[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 123 (Tuesday, September 21, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1914-E1915]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        A TRIBUTE TO GRADY OWENS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 21, 1999

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, it is with deep regret that I inform our 
colleagues of the passing of one of the most remarkable individuals my 
20th Congressional District of New York has ever produced. Grady Owens 
was one of those quiet individuals who never made headlines nor stirred 
controversy, and yet made a deep impact on the quality of our lives, 
most especially on those dear to him.
  Grady Owens first came to Orange County, NY, as a young man in 1947. 
His uncle was the owner of the King's Lodge in Otisville, which was 
renamed the Betty Shabazz Retreat Center in 1998. King's Lodge was a 
well respected business which especially catered to people of color. 
Grady eventually came to be the third generation owner of the Lodge, at 
which he hosted some of the most famous and respected people of our 
time, including the beloved husband and wife acting team Ossie Davis 
and Ruby Dee, and the renowned poet, Maya Angelou.
  Grady became well known throughout our region as a person who would 
always go out of his way to say hello, to inquire about the health of 
the people he encountered, and to render this opinions on the issues of 
the day. Columnist Barbara Bedell, in reporting on Grady's passing in 
the Times Herald Record, noted that: ``when he'd go to the post office 
for mail or run an errand around Middletown, you'd think he was running 
for office. Everyone knew him and he'd spend time conversing with each 
and every person as though he had all the time in the world.''

[[Page E1915]]

  Grady left Orange County for eight years, from 1961 to 1969, as a 
U.S. Marine, and was stationed in the deep south. During those years, 
he was refused a bus ticket because he refused to stand in the line 
reserved for ``colored'' people. In another incident, a bottle of 
ketchup was poured onto his head at a lunch counter which was not yet 
integrated. Despite these humiliating experiences, Grady refused to 
bear malice against those who practiced such hate. He heeded Rev. Dr. 
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s advice that the only way to conquer hate is 
through love, and that in fact hate is more harmful to the hater than 
the hated.
  I had the privilege of membership in the Middletown (NY) Chapter of 
the NAACP during the years Grady was its president. He often recounted 
his own sad experiences with racism--always with regret rather than 
vengeance--and urged us to work to make certain that our children and 
future generations would not have to ever again bear such indignities.
  Grady was married for over 30 years to the former Judy Joyiens of 
Queens. Judy reminisced that he was the kind of man that, when they 
were married, his former girl friends attended the ceremony.
  Grady, who was only 61 years old when we lost him earlier this week, 
had lived the last 6 years of his life with a transplanted liver. 
Regrettably, his long struggle to regain his health did not succeed, 
but he remained an active and highly visible member of our community 
right up until the past few weeks.
  In addition to his affiliation with our NAACP chapter, Grady was a 
member of the Lion's Club, the Board of Directors of the Horton Medical 
Center, and was active on the advisory board of Orange County Community 
College (of which he was a graduate), and served on the editorial board 
of the Times Herald Record.
  Grady also attended Mt. St. Mary College in Newburgh, NY.
  In addition to his wife, Judith, Grady is survived by his five 
children: Diane Fulston of Atlanta, GA; Robin Anderson of Middletown, 
NY; Keith L. Taylor of the Bronx; Erin Beth Owens, also of the Bronx; 
and Grady Dennis Owens, Jr., of Monroe, NY.
  Grady leaves behind three sisters, one brother, three grand-children, 
and many aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews. While no words can help 
ease the grief that his large, loving family is experiencing, hopefully 
the knowledge that many of us in what Grady considered his ``extended 
family'' share their deep sense of loss, and the realization that we 
have truly lost a remarkable individual will be of some consolation.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge our colleagues to join in extending our deepest 
sympathies to all of Grady Owen's many loved ones, with our sincerest 
regrets that this man who set a fine example for all of us in the 20th 
century will not be joining with us as we enter the new millennium.

                          ____________________