[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 105 (Monday, July 29, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1435]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        IN HONOR OF JOHN JACOBS

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. NANCY PELOSI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 26, 2002

  Mr. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, It is with great personal sadness that I 
rise to pay tribute to my friend John Jacobs, a great friend to San 
Francisco's business and conservation communities. John worked 
passionately to keep San Francisco's economy vital and its environment 
sound. The former head of the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research 
Association (SPUR) and the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, he passed 
away on July 15th at 76 years of age.
  A native of Philadelphia, John served as a paratrooper in the 101st 
Airborne Division during the Battle of the Bulge during World War II. 
Following the war, he worked for NATO in England and France. He 
attended New Mexico State University on the GI Bill and received his BS 
in Business. His college roommate, John Hirten, urged him to come to 
San Francisco to lead SPUR, which he did for the next twenty years.
  John was one of the most influential figures in San Francisco's 
planning and economic development since the 1960's. Under his 
leadership, SPUR played a key role in the creation of the Golden Gate 
National Recreation Area by developing a network of more than 65 
conservation and civic-minded organizations. He served as deputy 
director of SPUR from 1960 to 1968 and as executive director from 1968 
to 1981.
  He then served as executive director of the San Francisco Chamber of 
Commerce from 1981 to 1988, when he became president of the 
organization for a year. He played a leading role in resolving the 
downtown business community's battles with City Hall and neighborhood 
groups and helped draft guidelines for the treatment of HIV-positive 
employees.
  John was also an avid sailor and expert yachtsman and named champion 
in several sailboat racing classes. His love for the San Francisco Bay 
Area was demonstrated by his service on the boards of the Fine Arts 
Museum, KQED, Point Reyes Bird Observatory, and the San Francisco State 
University Foundation.
  John's service to San Francisco and the Bay Area was a gift to us 
all. His insistence that the business and conservation communities 
communicate with and support each other made San Francisco a model for 
other cities. He was a hero, always vigilant, always willing and able 
to do battle. To John's lovely wife Shirley, I extend my deepest 
sympathy and my gratitude to her for sharing her magnificent husband 
with us.

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