[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 135 (Thursday, October 2, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1914]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   IN LOVING MEMORY OF BESSIE GILMORE

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BILL PASCRELL, JR.

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 2, 1997

  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I would like to call to your attention the 
loving memory of Bessie Gilmore, from Paterson, NJ.
  Bessie was born on September 12, 1920 in Camden, SC. She was the 
daughter of the late Charles June, Sr. and Margaret Bracey June 
Jackson.
  Bessie moved to Paterson, NJ at a very young age and was baptized at 
St. Augustine Presbyterian Church in Paterson. A graduate of Paterson 
Public School No. 6, she attend Eastside High School and graduated from 
Brown Home Mather Academy in Camden, SC.
  As a community leader, Bessie spoke for the disenfranchised citizens 
of Paterson. She spearheaded numerous civic action committees, served 
as chief organizer for the Federation of Neighborhood Councils, which 
is a division of the Paterson Task Force for Community Action, and 
coorganized the Welfare Rights Organization.
  Bessie served as a commissioner on the Paterson Board of Adjustment 
and a member of the Board of Directors of the Bergen/Passaic County 
Health Systems Agency, the WPAT Coalition Committee, and Title One 
Committee. A Fourth Ward Democratic coleader and County Committeewoman, 
she was a member of the NAACP and the Citizens Committee for the 
Passaic County Vocational High School.
  Bessie's many honors included the War Against Poverty Award, 
presented to her by the Paterson Task Force for Community Action, the 
Major's Award for Civic Contributions, and the Paterson Chapter of the 
Black Women's Health Project Award.
  Bessie is survived by her husband Louis Gilmore, her daughter Deborah 
Jamison Jeter, and two brothers, Charles June, Jr., and James Jackson, 
Jr.
  Mr Speaker, I ask that you join me, our colleagues, Bessie's family 
and friends, and the city of Paterson in paying tribute to the loving 
memory of Bessie Gilmore.

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