[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 26 (Thursday, March 9, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E265]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING ALVIS BROOKER, ALDERMAN, 23RD WARD, NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ROSA L. DeLAURO

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 9, 2000

  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my good friend, the 
late Honorable Alvis Brooker, Alderman for the 23rd Ward of New Haven, 
Connecticut. On Monday, November 15, Alvis succumbed to the same rare 
liver disease that took the life of the great Walter Payton.
  Alvis was an incredible force in the Dwight/West River section of New 
Haven, representing more than 5000 city residents. He was a member of 
the West River Neighborhood Association as well as the Dwight Central 
Management Team. Both of these groups are neighborhood organizations 
whose mission is to improve and enhance the neighborhood and quality of 
life for its residents. He worked diligently to address the needs of 
those he represented, especially the various security, housing, and 
revitalization issues they faced. He was instrumental in the George 
Street revitalization project, which involved a complete rehabilitation 
of the New Horizon Apartments, an elderly affordable housing complex. 
He also played an integral role in securing the funding for the 
development of Shaws Supermarket at Dwight Place which has brought 
about an economic renaissance in the area. Alvis always brought the 
needs of his constituents to City Hall--ensuring that their voices were 
heard.
  During his three term tenure on the Board of Aldermen Board, he 
chaired the Public Safety and Substance Abuse Committee as well as the 
Youth and Youth Services Committee. As a case manager with the New 
Haven Family Alliance, he worked with primarily high-risk adolescents 
with drug and alcohol problems. His career experiences brought an 
uncommon insight to these committees and he was able to communicate the 
specific issues which our young people face with a unique authority. 
Prior to his work at the New Haven Family Alliance, Alvis pursued a 
counseling career within the Connecticut Department of Corrections, 
counseling inmates with substance abuse problems and lectured on the 
Criminal Justice System at public schools and universities across 
Connecticut. He also started and facilitated a program entitled ``Youth 
Reaching Out to Youth'', a program that designed an environment where 
teens could counsel each other on the difficult issues which they faced 
each day.
  In only 33 years of life, Alvis Brooker left an invaluable mark on 
our community. Behind the myriad of Aldermanic Citations and Mayoral 
Proclamations, there was a man who truly cared about his community. He 
was a leader in every sense of the word and will always be remembered 
for his unwavering commitment and tireless work on behalf of our 
children and families. He has certainly been an inspiration to all of 
us in the New Haven community and it was indeed a privilege to work 
with him and I am proud to have called him my friend.
  It is with a heavy heart that I rise today to join his mother, 
Sallie, family, friends, colleagues, and the community he loved well to 
bid a fond farewell to my dear friend, Alvis Brooker. His strength and 
good heart will live on.

                          ____________________