[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 29 (Wednesday, March 6, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E292]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      A POINT-OF-LIGHT FOR ALL AMERICANS: MARY ELLEN PHIFER-KIRTON

                                 ______


                          HON. MAJOR R. OWENS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 6, 1996

  Mr. OWENS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to join thousands of my constituents 
and friends in Brooklyn and New York in saluting Mary Ellen Phifer-
Kirton as a point-of-light for all Americans.
  ``First Lady of Brooklyn CORE'' is the title we assigned Mary Phifer 
in the turbulent sixties, when Brooklyn's chapter of the CORE movement 
was on the cutting edge of the boldest actions. More than 800 people 
were arrested challenging discrimination in the construction industry 
at Downstate Medical Center. We dumped garbage on the steps of Borough 
Hall to demand better collection in Bedford Stuyvesant. We organized 
over 100 buildings with rent strikes. Through it all Mary Phifer was 
our inspiration in Brooklyn CORE.
  Mary Phifer moved to Brooklyn from Kannapolis, NC, in 1948. As a 
single parent she has raised four sons--John, Willis, Bernard, and 
Quentin--a daughter Teresa, plus several nieces and nephews. In 1975 
she married Randolph Kirton. During the entire period of her residency 
in New York, Mary has always resided in Brooklyn. This adopted daughter 
of Brooklyn obtained an AA in public administration from Kingsborough 
Community College and a BS in public administration from Medgar Evers 
College.
  A very special person, Mary Ellen Phifer-Kirton is retiring after 28 
years of dedicated service with the New York City Community Development 
Agency. Mary has been a committed community advocate and volunteer. She 
serves on the boards of the Association of Community Organizations for 
Reform Now [ACORN], the Brooklyn chapter of the American Civil 
Liberties Union, Fort Greene Senior Citizens Council, the Mutual 
Housing Association of New York, and the United Communities Democratic 
Club. She is also a member of the Greater Bibleway Temple, 100 Women 
for Major Owens, and the League of Women Voters, Midwood chapter.
  In addition to her lifetime of activism in the world community, Mrs. 
Phifer-Kirton has devoted 28 years of her civil service career to 
community action at the New York City Community Development Agency 
[CDA]. During the 6 years that I served as commissioner of the CDA, 
Mary was a staff member. Mary has been in the field since April 1967 
when she began her first assignment at CDA monitoring the neighborhood 
summer programs. By May 1981, she was the district officer of all of 
the CDA funded agencies in the borough of Brooklyn.
  Individuals like Mary are all too rare. She cares deeply about the 
community, so much that she has devoted over two decades of struggle in 
the fight to improve the lives of others. At a time when voluntarism 
and community involvement is decreasing, it is appropriate that we join 
with Mary's friends and family in celebrating this point-of-light in 
the 11th Congressional District. Before she relocates to Kannapolis, 
NC, friends and followers of Mary Phifer are assembling for a special 
tribute to Mary Phifer on Friday, March 8, 1996. We all welcome this 
opportunity to show how much we appreciate Mary's life of service in 
New York. She will always be ``First Lady'' in our hearts. And for the 
people of the Nation Mary Ellen Phifer-Kirton is a great point-of-
light.

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