“Legislators of the Year” Biden and Weldon feted at CFSI dinner
Sen. Joseph Biden (D-DE) and Rep. Curt Weldon (R-PA) were honored as “Legislators of the Year” at the Congressional Fire Services Institute`s Seventh Annual National Fire and Emergency Services Dinner, held in Washington, D.C., on April 26. They were acknowledged for their work in passing the Ben Franklin Medal and Fire Services Bill of Rights Act. The medal was sold by the U.S. Mint from July 1993 to June 1994. More than 120,000 medals were sold, raising almost $2 million shared by various fire service foundations. The final checks were presented at the dinner.
Other speakers on the program included the following:
President Clinton, who thanked the firefighters from all over the country who responded to the Oklahoma City bombing incident and paid tribute to all firefighters in the United States.
Vina Drennen, widow of City of New York (NY) Fire Department Captain John Drennen, who described her husband`s 40-day struggle for life after being severely burned in a fire and stressed the importance of fire prevention in America.
Actor McLean Stevenson, spokesman for the Children`s Burn Foundation, who added levity to the program.
