At the quarterly Southeast Texas Waterway Advisory Council (SETWAC) convened on July 25, 2019, Captain Jacqueline Twomey presented the Certificate of Merit to Mr. Bill Carpenter. The citation reads:
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Certificate of Merit
To
Mr. Bill Carpenter
The Commandant of the United States Coast Guard takes great pleasure in presenting the Coast Guard Certificate of Merit to Mr. Bill Carpenter for his outstanding expertise, leadership and contributions as a member of the Managing Board of the Southeast Texas Waterway Advisory Council (SETWAC) from 2008 to 2018. During this time he served SETWAC as the Port of Beaumont representative, bringing experience and commitment to the planning and resiliency needs of the waterway complex.
During his tenure, SETWAC was voted National Harbor Safety Committee of the Year for 2008; it served as a public safety forum to provide critical coordination for industrial growth along the Sabine-Neches Waterway including the construction of Cheniere and Golden Pass LNG facilities, expansion at Total, Motiva and Valero refineries as well as the Ports of Beaumont and Port Arthur.
In addition to representing the Port of Beaumont concerns for SETWAC, Mr. Bill Carpenter is recognized for his significant and professional response efforts following hurricanes that struck the southeast Texas area including hurricanes EDOUARD (2008), GUSTAV (2008), and historic storms RITA (2005), IKE (2008) and HARVEY (2017). Mr. Carpenter’s service to the maritime interests of the Sabine-Neches Waterway and to the people of Jefferson County are recognized and greatly appreciated.
Mr. Carpenter’s professionalism and commitment to the safety of Southeast Texas waterways will be sorely missed on the SETWAC Managing Board. The SETWAC organization, the Sabine-Neches Maritime community, and the United States Coast Guard are all indebted to Mr. Carpenter for his dedicated and distinguished service.