[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 31 (Monday, March 1, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E300]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               TRIBUTE TO MARY JEANNE ``DOLLY'' HALLSTROM

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 1, 1999

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Mary 
Jeanne ``Dolly'' Hallstrom, a woman of undaunting spirit and a pillar 
of courage.
  Dolly Hallstrom began her journey of public service following World 
War II, and became actively engaged on behalf of children with 
disabilities. She founded the National Association for Children with 
Learning Disabilities in 1963, and was appointed chair in 1965 of the 
Illinois Advisory Council on the Education of Handicapped Children. She 
was elected a state representative and served two terms. Since 1991, 
she has been serving on the Illinois Human Rights Commission.
  Dolly Hallstrom remains the consummate public servant and a powerful 
voice, whose extraordinary and unselfish contributions on behalf of 
children, the disabled, and women is remarkable. Her life's work to 
improve the quality of life and to protect the rights of the most 
vulnerable among us is immeasurable.
  I am honored to call Dolly Hallstrom a friend and a mentor.

                  DO SOMETHING, DON'T JUST BE SOMEBODY

                         (By Grace Kaminkowitz)

       No one has nominated a politician for sainthood lately. But 
     some politicians are saintly, despite the recent behavior of 
     Washington types to the contrary. We were exploring the 
     notion that women enter politics to do something while men 
     run for office to be someone. During the course of an 
     interview with Mary Jeanne ``Dolly'' Hallstrom of Evanston, 
     it became clear how unique she is.
       The facts: Dolly started going to nursing school at St. 
     Francis Hospital but love and World War II interfered. She 
     went east supposedly to visit her grandparents but really 
     because her sailor boyfriend was stationed at the Brooklyn 
     Navy Yard. They were married, and after some years they 
     returned to Evanston. Dolly recalls that at the time her 
     nursing school classmates were graduating, she was giving 
     birth to her son, the first of her two children.
       In Evanston, she had worked at St. Francis' special needs 
     nursery and was hooked on helping children such as the 
     infants with Down Syndrome.
       In the early years of her marriage, she did the usual 
     things such as the junior women's club and being a Girl Scout 
     leader. As time went on, she revived her earlier interest in 
     handicapped children and began working on their behalf. As 
     she tells it, the time was right to pay attention to their 
     problems. ``God had an angel on my shoulder and directed 
     me.''
       By 1963 she had founded the National Association for 
     Children with Learning Disabilities. Her work was being 
     recognized, and she and other volunteers had begun hearing 
     from people all over the country. By 1965 she was appointed 
     chair of the state's Advisory Council on the Education of 
     Handicapped Children. She was a volunteer lobbyist for 
     handicapped youngsters, so it occurred to her she might make 
     a difference in their lives as a member of the state 
     legislature. She ran as a Republican in 1970, but lost.
       In that race, she'd been rebuffed in her quest for precinct 
     lists by the head of the local Republican Party because, he 
     said there already was one Evanston Republican woman in the 
     legislature and that was enough. Dolly remedied that by 
     becoming a precinct committeeman, thus assuring herself 
     access to the lists she needed if she ever ran again.
       In 1978, then State Rep. John Porter decided to run for 
     Congress and asked Dolly to run for his soon-to-be-vacant 
     seat. She hesitated because Gordon, her husband of 33 years, 
     was dying of cancer. He urged her to do it, so after he died, 
     she fulfilled her husband's deathbed wish, ran and won.
       She served just two terms but made her mark, working with 
     the late Eugenia Chapman, an Arlington Heights Democrat, on 
     the bill that created the current guardianship and advocacy 
     laws for the state. She also proved to be a staunch feminist, 
     backing bills supporting women's equality.
       The 1982 census resulted in new districts, and Dolly landed 
     with another Republican. She could have run against him in a 
     primary or against a Democratic in a general election. She 
     liked both potential opponents but ran against the Democrat 
     and lost.
       She worked as a protection and advocacy lobbyist for years. 
     Then in 1991 Governor Edgar named her to the Human Rights 
     Commission, which she graces with her wisdom to this day.
       None of this would be remarkable if you didn't know that 
     Dolly had a disabling stroke and is paralyzed on her left. 
     She now gets around on a motor scooter. Her disability hasn't 
     kept her from flying to Springfield in small planes.
       To arrive on time for a 10 am meeting downtown, she must 
     awaken at 4 or 5 am to get dressed. As if that were not 
     difficulty enough, she also has lost much of her vision and 
     ``reads'' with a computerized device that speaks the words on 
     a page to her. Despite these limitations, she's always 
     perfectly groomed.
       The Biblical Job has nothing on this woman who also has 
     been hospitalized for weeks with shingles and countless other 
     ailments. But when someone commented that no one person 
     should be burdened with so many illnesses, she answers, ``God 
     gives them to me because He know I can handle it.''
       That's what is most remarkable--her undaunted spirit and 
     her resolute refusal to quit even when the odds are all 
     against her. She retains a disposition so bright it's 
     virtually unreal. She's warm and passionate, funny and 
     unfailingly kind. And that's why no one doesn't love Dolly 
     Hallstrom. People, from the most conservative to the most 
     liberal, are all her friends, and all adore her.
       There are people who will get their just rewards in heaven. 
     That's assured for Dolly Hallstrom but she deserves all the 
     rewards she can get right now for her continuing 
     contributions to society and for proving how saintly some of 
     our public servants are.

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