Mr. JONES. Madam Speaker, I rise today in memory of Steve Streater, who passed away in Asheboro, North Carolina, on June 20, 2009, at the age of 50. I extend to all of his friends and family my deepest sympathy for their loss.

Many North Carolina residents will remember Steve as a University of North Carolina football hero, who helped lead the team to the 1980 Atlantic Coast Conference ACC title. What some might not know is that Steve was a star player in both baseball and football as a student at Sylva-Webster High School.

As a baseball pitcher, he set North Carolina High School Athletic Association baseball records that still stand today--with a reported 12 shutouts in a season, 23 wins in a season, and 61 career wins. He also had eight no-hitters.

Steve was a good student and like his brothers Eric and Jimmy, he went on to play football for a Division I college, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

At the University of North Carolina, Steve became the only ACC player in history to earn all-conference honors at two positions. He was a first-team punter and safety for the 1980 Tar Heels football team, the last to win an ACC championship.

During his senior season, he had five interceptions, including three in the season closer against Duke University. Steve was also the defensive Most Valuable Player of the 1980 Bluebonnet Bowl, with an interception that set up the winning touchdown against Texas.

Sadly, after his triumphant season, Steve's athletic career abruptly ended when he was involved in a freak car accident. In April of 1981, he was returning home from a tryout with the Washington Redskins. Hours after he agreed to sign a free agent contract, his car hit a slick spot, slid into an embankment, and was hit by another car. He suffered a back jury in that accident and was left paralyzed from the waist down for the remainder of his life. I remember that the Washington Redskins thought so much of Steve, they still paid his signing bonus after the injury.

Although Steve could no longer impress fans with his skills on the field, he made an even greater difference as he served as a role model for countless young people. From this tragedy, Steve became an inspiration to high school students throughout North Carolina. In addition to coaching, he was appointed State field coordinator for SADD, Students Against Drunk Driving, which launched in North Carolina in 1983. His car accident was not alcohol related, but in this role he was not only an inspiration to students, but to people like me.

While serving in the North Carolina General Assembly, I had the privilege and honor of introducing Steve several times when he spoke to student groups in my district. I am certain that he benefited from the love and support of his family and friends because, despite his accident, he never showed the pain of what he had lost.

Steve touched many of us young and old in such a positive way that his life will never be forgotten by those of us who had the privilege to know him. Steve Streater was an outstanding individual and he will be dearly missed.