Honor James Cody’s Retirement

Senate Resolution No. 1327 BY: Senator DEFRANCISCO COMMENDING James Cody upon the occasion of his retirement after 17 years of distinguished service as Director of the Syracuse VA Medical Center WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize and honor the distinguished careers of those esteemed individuals within our midst whose lives have been committed to the pursuit of excellence and who bring great pride to the citizens of our Empire State; and WHEREAS, The quality and character of life in the Central New York community has been ably served and uniquely enriched through the selfless dedication and benevolent concern of James Cody; and WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to commend James Cody upon the occasion of his retirement after 17 years of distinguished service as Director of the Syracuse VA Medical Center; and WHEREAS, James Cody has served 40 years as a federal government employee, including 38 with the Department of Veterans Affairs; and WHEREAS, In 1976, James Cody completed his Bachelor of Science degree in health education from the State University of New York at Cortland; additionally, he earned a Master in Public Administration (MPA) with a concentration in health administration at New York University in 1981; and WHEREAS, In 1977, James Cody initially entered federal service with the Department of Agriculture; one year later, he took his first job with the Department of Veterans Affairs as a safety specialist at the VA hospital in Brooklyn, New York; and WHEREAS, James Cody held additional positions within the VA system before settling in Syracuse, New York; he has worked at the VA Central Office in Washington, DC and at VA Medical Centers in Baltimore, Maryland; Lyons, New Jersey; and Providence, Rhode Island; and WHEREAS, James Cody, the longest-serving director of the Syracuse VA Medical Center, was appointed to the position of director in January

2000; under James Cody's direction, the Syracuse VA Medical Center continues to be among the highest-ranked VA Medical Centers in the nation for patient satisfaction, and has achieved significant growth both in veteran patient population and infrastructure; and WHEREAS, Today, the Syracuse VA serves more than 150,000 veterans in Central and Northern New York; along with the main complex in Syracuse, the agency operates eight additional Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs), including sites in Auburn, Binghamton, Carthage, Cortland, Ithaca, Massena, Oswego and Rome; and WHEREAS, Over the past 17 years, James Cody has spearheaded several projects at the Syracuse VA Hospital, including the construction of a $90 million, 30-bed spinal cord injury center which opened in June of

2013; and WHEREAS, As the Syracuse VA Medical Center's leader, James Cody successfully administered an annual operating budget of $280 million and has managed a staff of 1,700 employees; and WHEREAS, In recognition of his outstanding service to veterans, James Cody was presented with the Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious Executives in 2010 by the Deputy VA Secretary Scott Gould; he received this prestigious honor for consistently demonstrating leadership, integrity, and commitment to his work and his service to veterans; and WHEREAS, James Cody's experiences includes: member of the University Hill Corporation Board in Syracuse, New York; President and Treasurer of the Healthcare Executive Group of Rhode Island; member of the Senior Health Care Executive Society of New Jersey; member of the DC Hospital Association Planning Committee; chairperson of an advisory committee to the Group Health Association HMO in Washington, DC; part-time professor at the University of Maryland in the Health Care Management Program; and a fellowship from the American College of Health Care Executives; and WHEREAS, Upon his retirement, James Cody will have more time to spend with his family, especially his wife, Lois, and two daughters, Chrissy and Eileen; he will continue to devote his time to health care, public service, and academia; and WHEREAS, James Cody, in every capacity in which he has served, has left a permanent mark on the upstate New York community, and he will be forever remembered as a determined, innovative and genuinely concerned expert in his field; James Cody will officially retire from his post on