Officer Anthony Mazurkiewicz Memorial Post Office Building

Floor Speech

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Ms. TENNEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Gill for yielding. I rise in strong support of my bill today, H.R. 323, to rename the post office in Avon, New York, as the Officer Anthony Mazurkiewicz Memorial Post Office Building.

It is appropriate to name this post office after Anthony Mazurkiewicz. A grateful community should always find ways to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice in its service.

Officer Anthony Mazurkiewicz, also known as Tony, was born on November 7, 1967, in Amsterdam, New York. Officer Mazurkiewicz was a graduate of Avon High School and SUNY Brockport.

Officer Mazurkiewicz then began his law enforcement career in 1988 as a jail deputy with the Monroe County Sheriff's Department in Rochester, New York. In 1993, he joined the Rochester Police Department as a patrol officer, serving both Clinton and Goodman sections until he transferred to the tactical unit in 2002.

During his distinguished career as an officer with the Rochester Police Department, Officer Mazurkiewicz was the recipient of the Rochester Police Department Life Saving Award, Officer of the Month Award, 17 Excellent Police Service Awards, 7 Unit Commendation Awards, 32 Chief's Letters of Commendation, and the Good Conduct Award for 29 years of service without a sustained complaint.

Beyond his duties as an officer with the Rochester Police Department, Officer Mazurkiewicz was also an active member of the Rochester Police Locust Club, a very distinguished club, for his entire 29-year career. This included serving as the tactical unit representative to the executive board for over 20 years and as a member of the contract negotiations team, the scholarship committee, and the house committee.

Officer Mazurkiewicz devoted 29 years to serving and protecting the Rochester community and was looking forward to a well-earned retirement to spend fishing, traveling, relaxing, and spending a lot of time with his wife, Lynn, and their family.

On July 21, 2022, Officer Mazurkiewicz was tragically shot and killed while on duty while conducting surveillance duty. As part of a murder investigation, Officer Mazurkiewicz and another officer were in an unmarked police vehicle when the subject walked up from behind and fired 17 rounds.

Officer Mazurkiewicz is survived by his wife of 28 years, Lynn; four children; three grandchildren; his parents, Francis and Rose Mazurkiewicz; his brother, Frank; his sister, Lisa; many aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins; Anthony's very large and extended law enforcement family; and everyone in the community who knew him.

Officer Mazurkiewicz was an American hero who dedicated 35 years of his life to upholding justice and the rule of law until he was ruthlessly killed in the line of duty while serving our community.

Renaming the Avon post office in his honor will not fill the profound hole left in our community and in the hearts of his beloved family, but it will serve as a lasting tribute to his honorable service and very distinguished legacy.

This tribute to Officer Mazurkiewicz will inspire future generations and ensure that his courage, patriotism, and commitment to our community are never forgotten.

I am grateful to my New York congressional colleagues for cosponsoring this bill and am especially thankful to Congressman Joe Morelle for co-leading this bill with me. I also thank Chairman Jim Comer, the Ranking Member Emeritus Gerry Connolly, and Ranking Member Robert Garcia for their support in the Oversight Committee. Finally, I thank Speaker Mike Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries for their help in getting this bill to the floor.

I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill to honor the life and service of Anthony Mazurkiewicz and show our enduring support for all of our fallen law enforcement officers.

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