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Washington, D.C. - Someone recently asked me what I consider to be the most important aspect of my job. There are countless important duties that come along with being a Representative in Congress -- all of which I take very seriously. But I believe that my most important duty is providing superior constituent service to the people I represent. I am reminded of this responsibility everyday, and I appreciate the privilege to serve you.
I am proud of my track record in providing these services since I was elected to Congress last year. My office has had the opportunity to assist hundreds of constituents as they attempt to navigate their way through the layers of the federal bureaucracy. I am happy to report that we’ve had a lot of success in helping many of the people we represent.
We’ve assisted constituents solve a broad spectrum of issues, ranging from getting a needed passport and expediting critical decisions on Medicare coverage to resolving thorny issues with Social Security and the Internal Revenue Service. We’ve also had the honor of helping our members of the military transition back into civilian life as they return home from their service. And one of my most proud duties is to help our veterans obtain service medals that they’ve earned, but for one reason or another, never received.
I think it is important to take the opportunity from time to time to highlight some of the ways I can help, so if you, or someone you know, ever need assistance with the federal government, you’ll know to turn to us for assistance!
We recently assisted a constituent who was traveling alone in a foreign country when she unexpectedly became ill and was hospitalized. She had no family or friends in the country she was visiting, and was having trouble communicating with her doctors. A family member here in town contacted our office asking for our advice, and we contacted the American Embassy on her behalf. The Embassy then provided a consular officer to assist our hospitalized constituent in obtaining the best medical treatment possible.
Oftentimes, we assist our constituents with the paperwork mix-ups they encounter as they deal with the federal government. In one particular situation, the IRS erroneously reported the amount of a constituent’s income to the State of Ohio. The constituent, after several unsuccessful attempts to resolve the situation on his own, contacted our office to ask how to go about fixing the issue with the IRS. I called our contact at the IRS and asked them to correct the income amount. The IRS responded quickly by sending a corrected transcript.
One of the most special ways I can help is to assist our veterans in obtaining their deserved medals. We recently had a case where a local chapter of Native American tribes wanted to hold a private Veterans Day celebration to honor Native Americans who have served our country. One of the veterans to be honored was an 86 year-old decorated veteran of WWII who is 50 percent Cherokee Indian. His daughter called our office concerned that her father never received his medals and wanted to have them for the special ceremony.
With just three weeks to spare, we called the National Personnel Records Center to explain the situation and placed an urgent request to expedite the arrival of the medals. We were thrilled, as was our veteran and his family, when the medals got here in time for the special Veterans Day Ceremony.
There are so many more success stories I wish I could share. These successes, and others like them, remind me everyday of the importance of our work on behalf of the Second Congressional District. We take our responsibility to provide superior constituent services very seriously. I am proud of my tremendous casework staff.
While my office hasn’t been able to fix every problem a person might have had with the federal government, hopefully we’ve always been able to explore the options and serve as a source of reliable information.
If you or someone in your family needs help resolving a difficult issue with the federal government, please don’t hesitate to contact my office. We are here to serve you.
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