[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 111 (Thursday, August 2, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1507]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO GITTA NAGEL

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, August 1, 2001

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I invite my colleagues to join me today in 
paying tribute to a dedicated champion of Jewish affairs and public 
service, Mrs. Gitta Nagel of California, who will soon be receiving an 
Honorary Doctorate degree from Bar-Ilan University in Israel. Mrs. 
Nagel has continually strived to ensure a brighter, more cohesive 
future for the Jewish community by encouraging stronger academic 
programs and an everlasting remembrance of the Holocaust.
  As a young child living in Amsterdam during the Holocaust, Gitta saw 
first hand the destructive force and brutality of the Nazi regime, an 
experience that would continue to drive her throughout her life as a 
philanthropist. After the war, she emigrated to the United States where 
she attended UCLA and met her future husband, Jack Nagel.
  Through her efforts to promote a stronger Jewish community, Gitta 
Nagel has held leadership roles in numerous organizations including the 
United Jewish Communities, the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations, 
and Israel Bonds. In addition, she was a founding member of the Golda 
Meir Club, an organization that supports the State of Israel through 
her annual purchase of $5,000 worth of Israeli government bonds. Gitta 
also started a chapter of Bnei Akiva, a testament to her unwavering 
support for Zionism and the State of Israel.
  She has also shown a perpetual commitment to a prosperous future 
through her support of education. Therefore, Mr. Speaker, it is no 
surprise that Gitta is an original founder of Yeshiva Yavneh of Los 
Angeles High Schools. She had lent her support to Bar-Ilan University 
through an endowment for immigrant students, doctoral fellowships, 
research grants, and numerous other academic programs.
  Mr. Speaker, in addition to Gitta Nagel's unwavering support for 
Jewish organizations, I would like to both emphasize and commend her 
work to preserve the memory of the Holocaust. Gitta has selflessly 
worked to secure a special place in history for Holocaust victims. She 
has given incredible amounts of time, energy and resources to make sure 
that the atrocity of the Holocaust is never forgotten.
  The Nagel's are founders of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in 
Washington, D.C., and are members of the Board of Trustees of the Simon 
Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles. In 1985, Gitta spoke before the 
Federation of Humanities in Stockholm, Sweden in a ceremony recognizing 
the 40th anniversary of the disapperance of Raoul Wallenberg, the 
Swedish diplomat responsible for saving the lives of over 100,000 Jews 
during the end of World War II, including my wife Annette and me. She 
was also a featured speaker before the Austrian Parliament during the 
celebration of the 90th birthday of Simon Wisenthal.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues in Congress to join me in 
recognizing Gitta Nagel's contributions and commitments to Jewish 
affairs and community service worldwide. She has had a major impact in 
strengthening the ties of the Jewish people and ensuring that the 
Holocaust will never be repeated. I invite my colleagues to join me in 
congratulating Gitta Nagel for her very deserved honor.

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