[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 20, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E87]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


             MIAMI BEACH REMEMBERS COMMISSIONER ABE RISNICK

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 19, 1999

  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, a special tribute was held at the 
Holocaust Memorial in Miami Beach in memory of former Miami Beach 
Commissioner Abe Resnick who passed away late last year after decades 
of great contributions to the South Florida community.
  Commissioner Resnick's life exemplifies the achievement of the 
American dream through hard work, perseverance and dedication. Born in 
Lithuania in 1924, Commissioner Resnick was a survivor of the Holocaust 
after successfully escaping from a Nazi concentration camp in 
Lithuania. Not forgetting those who continue suffering under Nazi 
repression, he joined the Resistance and bravely fought to defeat the 
Nazi regime. Commissioner Resnick later left Europe with his family to 
settle in Cuba where years later he had to flee repression again, this 
time from the Communist regime of Fidel Castro.
  Arriving in the United States, he soon began a prominent and 
successful career as a leading real estate developer in South Florida, 
while remaining an active participant of the Jewish and Cuban-American 
communities of South Florida. One of his achievements was the 
realization of the construction of a Holocaust Memorial in Miami Beach 
that will forever serve as a shrine to all those who perished in that 
tragic period of human history.
  In 1985, Mr. Resnick was elected as commissioner of the city of Miami 
Beach and later also served as vice-mayor of the city where he 
continued his good works for the progress of our community.
  South Florida will forever remember the positive and lasting 
contributions of Commissioner Abe Resnick.

                          ____________________