[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 76 (Thursday, June 5, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1135]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         TRIBUTE TO 1997 HONOREES OF BLACK WOMEN OF ACHIEVEMENT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MAXINE WATERS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 5, 1997

  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, we often hear the complaint that people just 
don't care anymore; that the ``I've got mine, you get yours'' mentality 
permeates all segments of our society. People who say that, obviously, 
haven't crossed the path of Black Women of Achievement. This volunteer, 
professional women's organization has spent 14 years quietly working to 
raise funds to support the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and 
honor black women for outstanding achievements and significant 
contributions to their communities. The NAACP Legal Defense and 
Educational Fund is an organization that uses the law to pry open the 
doors of opportunity for African-Americans, other people of color, 
women, and the poor.
  BWA has been on a mission, and it has succeeded over and over and 
over. In just the last 3 years, the organization has raised over 
$500,000 for LDF. In addition, some 200 African-American women have 
been honored at its annual fund raising luncheons.
  On June 20, 1997, BWA will honor 16 extraordinary African-Americans. 
It is my pleasure to enter into the Congressional Record, this tribute 
to Black Women of Achievement and its 1997 honorees. They represent the 
best of America. I commend them for their tenacity, determination, and 
spirit. They are blazing a trail that gives future generations hope for 
a world of equality, fairness, and justice.
  The 1997 honorees are: actress/minister Della Reese; actress JoMarie 
Payton-Noble; renowned entrepreneur-artist Synthia Saint James; Rachel 
Marie Burgess, division chief, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department; 
Adrienne Y. Crowe, regional senior vice president, Bank of America; 
Shirley Douglas, vice president, business development, Bechtel 
Infrastructure Corp.; Sheila Frazier, producer, Black Entertainment 
Television; Angela Gibson, public affairs director, Pacific Telesis; 
Carolyn L. Green, director of government and public affairs, Ultramar 
Diamond Shamrock Corp.; Rae Franklin James, executive officer, customer 
relations and communications, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transit 
Authority; Jacqueline E. Massey, administrator, network design, GTE; 
Iris Stevenson, teacher/director, Crenshaw High School Elite Choir; 
Debra J. Williams, program manager, Southern California Edison; Rhonda 
Windham, general manager, LA Sparks; and Della Walton York, district 
sales manager, AVON.
  BWA also pays special recognition to the outstanding achievements of 
others who support the goals of the organization and their communities. 
Special recognition has gone to such notables as actor-activist Ossie 
Davis and veteran news anchor Pat Harvey. The 1997 special recognition 
award will go to John W. Mack, president of the Los Angeles Urban 
League.
  The 1997 luncheon will be opened with an invocation by Rev. Dr. O.C. 
Smith, City of Angeles Church of Religious Science.
  BWA Committee members are: Beverly Whitaker, 1997 chair, Occidental 
Petroleum Corp.; Betty A. Johnson, 1997 cochair, Department of Water & 
Power; Pat Johnson, 1997 cochair, Health Point Services of America; 
Josephine Alexander, Chi Eta Phi; Berlinda Fontenot-Jamerson, Pacific 
Enterprises/The Gas Co; Carolyn J. Fowler, AT&T Angela Gibson, Pacific 
Telesis; Jackie Hempstead, Bank of America; Karen (Kay) Hixson, Karen 
Hixson & Associates; Beverly A. King, King & Wright Consulting; Doris 
LaCour; Office, Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke; Jackie Massey, GTE; 
Gloria Pualani, Northrop Grumman; Natalie L. Sanders, M.D., Association 
of Black Women Physicians; Rose Mary Spriggs, consultant; Sylvia 
Swilley, M.D., Kaiser Permanente; Pat Watts, Edison International/
retired; and Linda Young, public relations consultant.

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