Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the service of my friend, Lieutenant Colonel Lyle Rock. Lyle is a childhood friend of mine, and I have known him for over 50 years. We grew up in the same neighborhood and played hockey together. Service to our Nation is a proud tradition in the Rock family. Lyle's father honorably served at the 148th Fighter Wing in Duluth, Minnesota, and Lyle followed in his footsteps, joining the Minnesota Air National Guard. In 2009, Lyle volunteered to deploy to Iraq, where he served as the chief of logistics and Iraqi adviser at the Multi-National Security Transition Command--Iraq. He happened to serve in Iraq at the same time as my wife, Jodi, and even though they served at different locations, it always gave me comfort to know that he was over there with her. During his career, Lyle has served at both the 148th Fighter Wing and the 133rd Airlift Wing, and he is currently posted at the Joint Force Headquarters, where he works as a director of plans and policy. At this time, Lyle Rock is the longest serving Air National Guard officer, with 38 years and 11 months under his belt. I find it especially impressive that throughout his entire service, he has only missed 2 days of drill. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to call Lieutenant Colonel Lyle Rock my good friend, and the State of Minnesota is proud of his decades of service. ____________________”