[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 19 (Monday, February 12, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E150]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 TRIBUTE TO ASSEMBLYWOMAN GLORIA DAVIS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSE E. SERRANO

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, February 12, 2001

  Mr. SERRANO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute and to wish a 
very happy birthday to Assemblywoman Gloria Davis, an outstanding 
individual who has devoted here life to her family and to serving the 
community. Ms. Davis turned 63 on Friday, February 9 and celebrated at 
a party given by her family and friends.
  Mr. Speaker, Assemblywoman Davis has represented the 79th Assembly 
District of Bronx County, which includes the neighborhoods of 
Morrisania, Claremont, Crotona-Mapes, Longwood, Charlotte Gardens, 
Concourse village, and Belmont, since 1980. Prior to her election, she 
served six years as district leader. She is a vibrant, dynamic, caring 
woman who has dedicated the past twenty years to the improvement of 
conditions for families and children. She was a co-founder of the City-
Wide Parents for Day Care, and national coordinator for the National 
Welfare Rights Organization, and has served as a member of the steering 
committee of the Women's State Democratic Committee. Active in the 
revitalization of her district, Ms. Davis has been instrumental in 
securing funds for the redevelopment of the Boston Road corridor, 
fighting to have an Educational Opportunity Center (EOC) built and 
continuously supported in the district, insisting that Settlement 
Houses continues to have a mission today, and challenging the community 
to recognize their dependence upon each other.
  Her seniority and dedication to coalition building were recognized 
when former Speaker Saul Weprin appointed her Assistant Majority Whip 
in January 1993. She was appointed Chair of the Assembly's Majority 
Conference in January 1995. Current Speaker Sheldon Silver has come to 
rely on her to insure productive discussion and in January 2001 she was 
appointed Majority Whip. Further, she was recently appointed Co-Chair 
of the Assembly's Tri-State Planning Committee and heads the Bronx 
Delegation. In 1991, Assemblywoman Davis became the first woman elected 
to serve as chair of the New York State Black and Puerto Rican 
Legislative Caucus. Two years later, she was elected as chairperson of 
the New York State Association of Black and Puerto Rican Legislators, 
Inc.
  Gloria Davis was born on February 9, 1938, in the Bronx and was 
raised in Gainsville, Florida. She returned to the Bronx as a young 
adult and attended Bronx Community College and Fordham University. She 
was previously employed by the Comptroller's Office of the City of New 
York, the Department of Transportation and was a Confidential Aide to a 
Bronx Supreme Court Judge.
  Mr. Speaker, Gloria Davis is the mother of five, the grandmother of 
eleven, and she is a great grandmother as well.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleague to join me in wishing a happy 63rd 
birthday to Assemblywoman Gloria Davis and in congratulating her in her 
recent appointment as Majority Whip of the New York State Assembly.

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