[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 140 (Thursday, October 8, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1942]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                     TRIBUTE TO SISTER IRENE KRAUS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. SANDER M. LEVIN

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, October 7, 1998

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to consecrate the memory of a 
woman whose life was spent treating the sick in my state of Michigan 
and throughout the nation, Sister Irene Kraus, a Daughter of Charity of 
St. Vincent de Paul.
  Sister Irene was a pioneer in the health care industry. She was the 
first woman to chair the American Hospital Association, she also 
chaired the Catholic Health Association and was inducted into the 
Healthcare Hall of Fame of the American Hospital Association. The 
number of honors bestowed upon this extraordinary woman are too great 
to list in full. Sister Irene's many accolades include: the American 
College of Healthcare Executives Gold Medal Award for Excellence in 
Hospital Administration, the B'nai B'rith International National Health 
Care Award, and the American Hospital Association Distinguished Service 
Medal.
  I became personally acquainted with Sister Irene while serving on the 
Lay Advisory Board at Providence Hospital in Southfield, Michigan. As 
President and Chief Executive Officer of Providence Hospital, Sister 
Irene provided the ladership and vision necessary to implement a health 
care policy and value system based on respect, advocacy for the poor, 
quality care, simplicity and inventiveness. It was this literally 
divine combination that made Southfield's Providence Hospital, and the 
many other institutions guided by her hand, so valuable to their 
respective communities.
  Underlying her many professional accomplishments, however, was her 
ability to look beyond organizational structures, to recognize every 
individual's need for medical and mental health care, and find 
practical avenues toward prevention and treatment. She did not hesitate 
to seek answers beyond the conventional wisdom of the day. Her 
combination of functional command, common sense and diplomacy often 
persuaded her colleagues to support her ground-breaking approach to 
policy.
  Her rare combination of compassion, clear thinking and spirited 
leadership will be sorely missed by all those whose lives she has 
touched. Our family will miss her as a person whom we had the privilege 
of knowing and working with; like with so many others, she left an 
indelible imprint on our lives.
  On Friday, October 9, a Memorial Service will be held to honor Sister 
Irene at Providence Hospital, Southfield, Michigan. Only the session in 
Congress will prevent my joining in this observance. I will be there 
fully in spirit.

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