First District, we did it! We survived 2022 and two years of one-party Democrat rule in Washington. I'm excited for 2023, for the 118th Congress, and to see what's next for the great state of Georgia. 

Looking back, there's been a lot of good this year, more than I can fit into a single email. When staff asked me to pull together my favorite photos from each month of the past year, it was a difficult task, but I ended up with the great opportunity to relive 2022 through my photos with you, the residents of Georgia's First Congressional District. 

From football games to forums and Kings Bay to Bacon County, I've gotten the chance to sit down with thousands of Georgians and hear your stories, successes, concerns, and dreams. 

Thank you - so much - for making this year one to remember. Cheers to 2023! 

This year we had our inaugural "Firsts of the First" Valentine's Day appreciation campaign. After gathering Valentine's Day cards from nursing homes, schools, churches, political groups, and more throughout the First District, we went to every single county and delivered them to first responders. We picked this group because while many of us were home during the COVID-19 pandemic, they were out in the communities making sure we were safe and had access to medical care when we needed it. 

This will now be an annual event but we will rename it to "Friends of the First" so that we can show appreciation to different members of the community every year. 

This hardly even needs a caption - anyone who's spent more than a minute in Savannah knows about our iconic Saint Patrick's Day celebrations. I look forward to attending these events every year. In fact, this year I was able to attend parades in both Savannah and Tybee. 

Can't wait to see you all in green again next year! 

This photo is a bittersweet one. Bitter because it is a reminder of just how high gas prices got last Spring, but sweet because the First District came together to ensure that Joe Biden knew just how much his inflation crisis was crushing the American people. 

Ahead of an Energy and Commerce Committee hearing, I asked all of you to send me your gas bills, so that the Biden administration could feel your pain at the pump. I presented these during the hearing, along with your stories, and sent the hundreds that I couldn't fit on one poster board to the White House. 

To commemorate National Police Week, I went to the National Law Enforcement Memorial in downtown Washington where we had a Back the Blue Wreath Laying led by Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

I was honored to lay a wreath at the wall with the inscription of the name of Sgt. Kelvin Ansari, a Savannah Police officer who was killed in the line of duty three years ago to the week that this wreath was laid. 

In June, I took my fifth trip to the southern border since being elected to Congress (five more than the Commander-in-Chief). During this visit with the House Budget Committee, I was honored to meet several members of Georgia's National Guard. Because of the crisis at our southern border, Governor Kemp has deployed our states' national guard to go assist the border patrol agents in their endless fight to slow the flood of illegal immigration. 

To everyone in Georgia's National Guard, and all branches of the military, thank you for your service! 

This year's Fourth of July celebrations were ones for the books. I'm not sure why I've always loved this holiday. Maybe it’s because I love parades or maybe it’s because I love this country so much - the greatest country this world has ever known that has given me the opportunity to live the American Dream. Whatever the reason, I just know I love celebrating July 4th, especially in South and Coastal Georgia.

I was lucky enough to make it to Independence Day events in St. Mary's, St. Simon's, St. George, Brunswick, Richmond Hill, Rincon, and Screven this year. 

After a record-high number of attacks on pregnancy care centers this year, I visited several in the District and had listening sessions to hear more about the services they provide and how the federal government can support their mission to provide health care access to mothers and babies. The work they do is vital, is it often free, and it educates families on the options available to them when it comes to planning for their futures. 

On this day, I went to Skylark Pregnancy Center in Brunswick, where I had a wonderful conversation with the workers and learned, once again, how important pregnancy care centers are to our health care system. 

I had the honor of being the keynote speaker at the Third Infantry Division and Local Law Enforcement 9/11 Patriots Day ceremony.

As I spoke of my personal memories of that awful day, looking around the room at the young people present, it occurred to me that many of our youth were born after 9/11/01 and have no memory of this awful event. The importance of us continuing to memorialize 9/11 cannot be overstated.

I remember it like it were yesterday. I was at work, when my secretary came up to me and said, “did you hear about that building falling into the river?”

Now, at the time, there was construction down on River Street in Savannah, so I assumed that’s what she was referring to. Little did I know, it was the largest terrorist attack ever on American soil.

It was surreal, as I’m sure all of us with memories of that day can agree. God bless America and God bless our troops.

In October, I unveiled the Pulling Back the Curtain report to educate people on the ways that Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) artificially spike prescription drug prices without providing any real value to consumers. They are the pharmaceutical industry’s middlemen, preying on the lack of transparency in the healthcare industry and robbing patients blind.

This was an incredibly special event because, in addition to welcoming several guests from across the country to share their experiences battling PBMs for necessary health care, I got to unveil this project in the same place where I opened my pharmacies decades ago. 

I am optimistic that, in the 118th Congress, we'll finally see some real progress on this issue. 

In November, I went to Riceboro in Liberty County where I visited the recently completed Early Childhood Education Center that includes Head Start, a childcare program administered through the Coastal Georgia Area Community Action Authority that serves children six weeks to five years old.

With a total student population capacity of 234, the program has 14 classrooms and serves nine counties in the region, including seven in the First Congressional District.

I've said it several times before, but spending time with children - the next generation of leaders - is one of the most rewarding and important parts of my job. Who knows, I might've taken this picture with a future GA-01 Congressman! 

We've made it to December! I had the honor of speaking at the Brunswick/Golden Isles Chamber of Commerce breakfast. At this event, I gave an update on the work we've been up to in Washington, especially as it relates to the business community, and shared my hopes for the next Congress. That's why it felt so fitting to end on this image, because it sums up the year in a great way - by recognizing our District's growth, achievements, and path forward. 

Happy New Year,