[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 67 (Tuesday, May 14, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E800]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       IN HONOR OF RUTH JERNIGAN

                                 ______


                        HON. FORTNEY PETE STARK

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 14, 1996

  Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the achievements of 
Ms. Ruth Jernigan. She retired on April 1, 1996, after a total of 44 
years of tireless service as a community and legislative advocate.
  Ruth began working in 1952 at McDonnell Douglas in Long Beach, CA, 
where she was employed until 1978. In 1978, she began 18 years of 
service to the United Auto Workers [UAW] as a UAW international 
representative, where she has served as a coordinator for the UAW 
Western Region Political and Legislative Program. Her territory 
included part of northern California from Fresno to Oregon, the States 
of Oregon and Washington, and parts of northern Nevada. Her 
responsibilities included serving as the direct liaison between the UAW 
and city, county, State, and Federal elected officials and advocating 
for legislative issues on behalf of UAW members, their families, and 
the community.
  Throughout her long career, Ruth also served with distinction on 
several commissions. She was a commissioner for the Department of Water 
and Power in Los Angeles where her duties included planning and 
developing new programs for the department. She served as a 
commissioner on the Los Angeles County Commission for Women. In this 
capacity, she planned and developed programs to promote women to the 
highest levels of management in every department of the county of Los 
Angeles. She also served as a commissioner for Industrial Innovation 
for the State of California, an organization which provides a forum for 
debate and policy guidance for the Governor and the legislature on the 
role of technical innovation in maintaining California's leadership in 
the Nation's economy.
  Ruth was also a founding member of the 100 Black Women Organization 
of Los Angeles County, a member of NAACP, the Urban League, and the 
Black Women Forum.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that you and my colleagues join me in recognizing 
Ruth Jernigan for all of her years of dedicated service. I wish her 
much happiness and success in her future endeavors.

                          ____________________