[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 120 (Thursday, September 11, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1740]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   IN MEMORY OF DR. ROBERTO OLIVARES

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. RALPH M. HALL

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 11, 1997

  Mr. HALL of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today is the funeral of one of the 
kindest and most compassionate men I have ever known and one of the 
most gifted, most respected and most beloved physicians in Sherman, 
TX--Dr. Roberto Olivares, who died Sunday at the age of 57.
  Dr. Olivares was born in Puebla, Puebla Mexico, studied at UNAM, the 
national university in Mexico City, and received his medical degree in 
1962. He moved to the United States in 1966 and after completing his 
internship at Kettering Memorial Hospital in Dayton, OH, he spent 4 
years as urology resident at The Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, 
IN. While there he was named chief resident and received the Pediatric 
Fellowship from Riley Children's Hospital.
  After a brief return to Mexico, Dr. Olivares moved to Sherman in 1974 
to begin what would be a 23-year practice. He was a beloved and highly 
respected physician and was only the second urologist in the United 
States to receive the Distinguished T. Leon Award from the American 
Urological Association four times for significant achievement in the 
field of urology.
  Dr. Olivares was a member of the AUA Terminology and Health Policy 
Committee from 1992 to 1997 and served on the board of directors for 
the South Central Region and as the Texas delegate to the national 
organization. He was past president and board member of the Texas 
Urological Society and was a selected member of the International 
Andrology Society, the Society of Laparascopy Surgery, the 
Endouriogical Society and Lithotripsy Society. He was dedicated to the 
local medical community and served as president of Medical Plaza 
Hospital for 2 years, chief surgeon at Wilson N. Jones and past 
president of the Grayson County Medical Society.
  Dr. Olivares was a dedicated and prominent figure in the community. 
He served as president of the Parks and Recreation Board, was a 
basketball and soccer coach for many years for the Boys and Girls Club 
and was a proud member of the Sherman Bearcat Booster Club. He could 
always be seen sitting at the 50-yard line cheering for the Bearcats. 
He and his wife, Gayle, hosted numerous fundraising events for local 
charities.
  But more than any of these achievements, his kindness, his 
compassion, and his faith distinguished him among his patients and his 
friends. I never heard him utter an unkind statement, and I never heard 
an unkind statement uttered about him. He took both a professional and 
personal interest in his patients and was concerned about both their 
physical and emotional well-being. His faith sustained his own 
struggles with leukemia, which eventually claimed his life, and with 
other family tragedies and other challenges that he endured with 
eternal optimism. His faith was a powerful example for all who knew him 
and were inspired by him, and he demonstrated his faith in all that he 
did and with all those he touched--through his words, his deeds and his 
daily interactions with people from every walk of life.
  Dr. Olivares is survived by his wonderful wife, Gayle; his sons, 
Roberto III and Ricardo; his daughters, Rebecca and Raquel; his mother, 
Minerva; sisters, Minerva and Elsa; brother, Sergio; and grandsons, 
Roberto IV, Julian and Austin. I am saddened to lose such a dear friend 
and constituent, and I share the grief of his family and many friends 
in the Sherman community.
  But I know that this great man would want us to carry on with the 
same optimism that he demonstrated so well, and we will carry him with 
us in our hearts and in our memories. Mr. Speaker, as we adjourn today 
in the House of Representatives, I ask that we do so in honor of and in 
memory of this great America, great physician, and great man--Dr. 
Roberto Olivares.

                          ____________________