Date: 1997-06-18
Speaker: BOB SCHAFFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I rise to recognize the life and work of Mr. George "Marv" Teal. Mary was born July 4. 1943. to Genevieve OBrien Teal. while his father. George Vincent Teal. served in the Philippines during World War H. As a boy he thought it was wonderful that the city threw him a .big birthday party each year with a parade and fireworks. George was tagged with the nickname "Marv" in high school and it stuck with him throughout his life. Mary died May 21. 1997 in Greeley. CO. where he and his family settled 15 years ago. He was laid to rest at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver on May 27. 1997. He was married to Kathy for 29 years. Together they raised three children: A son. George Patrick Teal who is a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army serving as a special projects officer. He has two daughters. Suellen and Kathleen. who are both computer technologists. He also has a granddaughter Laurel. who will be 2 in August. Marv and Kathy raised a lovely family and supported many community activities. A staunch Republican. he spent many years in leadership roles as precinct chairman. district captain. Weld County vice chairman. county and State assembly delegate. and of course as delegate to the Colorado Fourth Congressional District. He also served as election judge and canvass board member. He contributed his efforts to individual campaigns over the years and was an effective strategist helpful inplanning the time lines necessary for the success of those campaigns. George was always to be seen at late night committee meetings. at county and State assemblies and at busy intersections waving campaign signs. There was never a time when a call for help went unheeded. There was also never a time when he expected to be recognized for his efforts. Mary did what he did out of principle. Many people have been influenced by this wise. experienced man. He knew the secret of multiplying his influence by encouraging others of like mind to take leadership in the public realm. Mary was a quiet man. respectful of others. slow to anger and quick to forgive. He loved reading. flying. computer programming. and bicycling. His proudest accomplishments were of course his children. His son George followed through on the love of country Mary tried to instill by serving in the military and his daughters both followed his love of computers. That was in fact Marys first love. After graduating from St. Francis High School in Wheaton. IL. in 1961. he attended a technical school specializing in computer programming. Having his daughters become adept computer specialists was a definite source of fatherly pride. Marv came back to the computer field toward the end of his working career after spending many years in sales. As a young man Marv was drafted into the Army in 1965 during the first big draft of the Vietnam war. He felt privileged to serve his country as his father and his grandfather had done before him. and he thought it was his patriotic duty. He excelled in turbine generator school at Fort Belvoir. VA. graduating first in his class. He never got to use his mechanics training. though. because he was never sent to Vietnam. Instead he served out the rest of his time in Fort Campbell. KY as a company clerk. supply officer. and finished his last 9 months of service in his favorite duty. as a military policeman. Marv spent the rest of his life focused on his wife. children. and community. For 10 years he and Kathy were team leaders for World Wide Marriage Encounter weekends for the Catholic church. They were privileged to coordinate more than 60 weekends to help couples make their good marriages into great committed relationships. Mary and Kathy facilitated marriage preparation classes for their church. Marv was also instrumental in forming the Rite of Christian Initiative for Adults at St. Marys Parish in Greeley. He demonstrated his love of teaching and for young people as a confirmation teacher for 9 years. He was also a board member of Habitat for Humanity and Citizens for Responsible Government. Marv understood the meaning of the grassroots political process and exemplified it daily. It is people like Marv who contribute to the greatness of America. the behindthescenes hard work essential to our communities and the makeup of the character of this great Nation. I am privileged to have known him and experience the results of his efforts. They will not go unappreciated. His memory and the influence he had on us and our Nation will far outlive his life. Each time we celebrate our independence and the freedoms we too often take for granted. we need to remember the contributions of people like Marv. Mr. Speaker. I would like to submit for the RECORD a short poem that Marv considered his statement of his lifes philosophy and indeed it was the best description of his life as a devoted father. a husband. and American.