[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 71 (Friday, June 9, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E919]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   HONORING FINER WOMANHOOD AWARDEES

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DALE E. KILDEE

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 7, 2000

  Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise on behalf of the Lambda Rho Zeta 
Chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., located in Pontiac, Michigan. 
For many years, the sisters of Zeta Phi Beta have emphasized family 
leadership and civic pride. Each year, at their Finer Womanhood 
Scholarship Luncheon, they award scholarships to college bound 
students, and also recognize those who have made a significant impact 
on the City of Pontiac. On June 10, the Chapter will gather for their 
seventeenth annual luncheon, where they will honor Ms. Cynthia Thomas 
Walker as Woman of the Year, and Mrs. Dorothy Jones Herron and her 
family as Family of the Year.
  Cynthia Thomas Walker has truly shown herself to be more than 
deserving of the distinction of Woman of the Year. She is currently the 
Administrator of 50th District Court in Pontiac. She is the first 
African-American and the first female to hold this position. Originally 
from Chicago, Cynthia came to Pontiac in 1985, where she worked for 
UAW-GM Legal Services and was an instructor for the American Institute 
for Paralegal Studies before becoming a Deputy City Attorney in 1993. 
The following year, she became City Attorney and continued that role 
until last year, when she was promoted to her current position. Cynthia 
is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, the Southeast Michigan Court 
Administrators Association, and the NAACP. She is also the proud mother 
of a twelve-year-old son, Clifton.
  This year's Family of the Year is the family of Dorothy Herron Jones 
of Pontiac. A product of the Pontiac School District, Mrs. Herron 
graduated from Pontiac Central High School, and went on to the Jones 
School of Nursing in Ann Arbor, and St. Joseph Mercy School of Nursing 
in Detroit. She began her medical career at Pontiac General Hospital as 
an LPN and later an RN. In 1971, she became a staff nurse at General 
Motors Truck and Coach. She rose through the ranks to her current 
position as Associate Administrator for GM Corporate Health Services, 
working with facilities in eight states, including Michigan. She is a 
member of several nurses' associations, the American Occupational 
Health Association, and the NAACP. Mrs. Herron has raised two wonderful 
sons. Dr. Michael Herron is an emergency room physician at Chesatee 
Hospital in Dahlonega, GA and Georgia Baptist Hospital in Warm Springs, 
GA. Darryl Herron has recently completed a two-year assignment in the 
Asian Pacific as Regional Manager of the Audit Staff for General 
Motors. He is currently the Manager of Capital Appropriations at GM 
Powertrain Global Headquarters in Pontiac. Mrs. Herron is also proud of 
her grandchildren, David and Destiny.
  Mr. Speaker, as a member of several civic and fraternal 
organizations, I understand how important these groups can be to 
improve the community climate. I am proud of the hard work the Lambda 
Rho Zeta Chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority has done for the City of 
Pontiac, and I ask my colleagues in the 106th Congress to join me in 
applauding them and their award recipients.

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