[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 140 (Tuesday, October 7, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H9253]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page H9253]]
                      HONORING MILDRED A. O'NEILL

  (Mr. McGOVERN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks and include therein 
extraneous material.)
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to mourn the passing of 
Mildred A. O'Neill, the widow of our late Speaker, colleague, and 
friend Tip O'Neill.
  Millie O'Neill, who passed away yesterday at the age of 89, was a 
remarkable woman. She was a loving wife and mother, a tireless 
activist, and a dear friend.
  She was also a true daughter of Massachusetts. According to her son 
Tom, Millie had taken a nap so that she could watch last night's Red 
Sox playoff game, and passed away in her sleep. Well, Mr. Speaker, the 
Red Sox won their game. I am sure that Millie is smiling.
  All of us who admired and loved Tip O'Neill felt the say way about 
Millie. As Father Donald Monan, the former president of Boston College 
so beautifully said at the late Speaker's funeral mass, ``The pride of 
the Speaker's life was not the Medal of Freedom or the Legion of Honor, 
it was the love of his beloved Millie, who gave courage to his 
struggles and gave measure to his successes and loving understanding 
through all his illness.''
  Mr. Speaker, I know that all of my colleagues join me in keeping the 
O'Neill family in our thoughts and prayers. And I will include the 
obituaries of Millie O'Neill from the Boston Globe and Boston Herald in 
the Record.

                 [From the Boston Globe, Oct. 7, 2003]

        Mildred O'Neill, 89; Wife, ``Partner'' of Political Icon

                          (By Ron DePasquale)

       Mildred A. ``Millie'' O'Neill, widow and celebrated 
     sweetheart of Thomas P. ``Tip'' O'Neill Jr., former speaker 
     of the US House of Representatives, died in her sleep 
     yesterday in her Bethesda, Md., home, her family said.
       Her son, former Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Thomas P. 
     O'Neill III of Boston, said Mrs. O'Neill had taken a nap, so 
     she could catch last night's Red Sox playoff game, when she 
     died. She was 89.
       Her son called her a ``lovely, perfect lady'' who enjoyed 
     taking care of her family and working for charity. His 
     parents' love was inspiring, he said. ``They were inseparable 
     at a very early age and right through to the end of their 
     lives,'' he said.
       On the dedication page of his 1987 autobiography, ``Man of 
     the House,'' Tip O'Neill referred to his wife as ``The 
     Speaker of My House. A loving wife, mother and my partner 
     through so many triumphs and trials.''
       Anyone involved in Massachusetts politics from the 1940s to 
     the 1980s could remember Tip O'Neill singing the 1930s' tune 
     ``Apple Blossom Time'' to his wife, said US Representative 
     Barney Frank of Newton. ``Whenever you were with the two of 
     them, everybody was happy,'' Frank said last night. ``They 
     were like some couple out of the movies. The sense of warmth 
     that existed between the two of them was just 
     extraordinary.''
       Born Mildred Miller in Somerville in 1914, she met her 
     future husband at St. John's High School in North Cambridge, 
     where she graduated in 1932.
       At a 1999 Boston College ceremony honoring her husband with 
     a permanent library exhibit, Mrs. O'Neill said, ``Life with 
     Tom was a wonderful experience, and I am proud to have shared 
     those 50 years and see parts of it displayed at this 
     library.''
       Tip O'Neill died in 1994, ending a storied life as one of 
     the country's premier politicians. He retired from the House 
     in 1986 after 50 years in politics. His wife was a constant 
     presence in his social and political circles.
       In his autobiography, O'Neill wrote that when he became 
     speaker and Millie learned that other wives never knew when 
     their husbands were coming home at night, she told him, ``I 
     don't want you keeping them in the House until 8 or 9 at 
     night. And that, more or less, marked the end of evening 
     sessions in the House.''
       Mrs. O'Neill was chair or a member of the boards of the 
     March of Dimes, the Congressional Wives Club, and the 
     International Club. As chairwoman of the historic Ford's 
     Theatre in Washington, she was one of the first to receive 
     the Lincoln Award, in recognition in 1984 for spearheading a 
     $4 million fund-raising drive.
       ``Now, Mildred, you may have suspected now and then that 
     from time to time your husband and I find something about 
     which we disagree,'' President Ronald Reagan quipped at the 
     awards ceremony. ``But there is one thing that we sure agree 
     on--he's lucky, mighty lucky, to be the man in your life. On 
     behalf of everybody with whom you work, your work for this 
     grand, old theater has meant so much, Millie, that we all 
     thank you from the bottom of our hearts.''
       The O'Neills lived in Cambridge until 1976, when Tip was 
     named speaker and the family moved to Washington. The city of 
     Cambridge dedicated the north branch of its library as the 
     Mildred A. O'Neill Library in 1995.
       Raymond L. Flynn, former mayor of Boston, said, ``She was a 
     great friend. She was just a remarkable mother and led a 
     wonderful life and was a great representative for America.''
       In addition to her son, Mrs. O'Neill leaves two daughters, 
     Rosemary of Washington and Susan of Bethesda; a son, 
     Christopher, also of Bethesda; a sister, Dorothy Ryan, of 
     Marstons Mills; and eight grandchildren. A son, Michael, died 
     in 1997. A funeral Mass will be said Friday at 10 a.m. in St. 
     John the Evangelist Church in Cambridge. Burial will be at 
     Mt. Pleasant Cemetery in Harwichport, where Mrs. O'Neill had 
     long summered.
                                  ____


                 [From the Boston Herald, Oct. 7, 2003]

          Mildred A. O'Neill, at 89, Wife of Late U.S. Speaker

       Mildred A. (Miller) O'Neill of Bethesda, Md., formerly of 
     Cambridge, wife of the late U.S. House Speaker Thomas P. 
     ``Tip'' O'Neill Jr. and an activist involved in many 
     organizations, died yesterday at her home. She was 89.
       Born in Somerville, Mrs. O'Neill was educated at St. John's 
     School in North Cambridge and later graduated from St. John's 
     High School in 1932, where she was first introduced to her 
     husband. She was a longtime Cambridge resident, where she 
     lived until 1976, when she and her husband moved to 
     Washington, D.C., after he was elected speaker of the U.S. 
     House of Representatives. She was also a longtime summer 
     resident of Harwichport.
       Mrs. O'Neill was active in many causes, particularly the 
     St. John's Church Rebuilding Fund and was president of the 
     parish Guild of St. John's Church. She also was active in St. 
     Coletta's School for Exceptional Children. She worked for 
     many worthy causes as chairwoman or executive board member 
     for the March of Dimes, Congressional Wives Club, 
     International Club and So Other Might Eat.
       She was the chairwoman and honorary chairwoman of the 
     historic Fords Theatre, receiving the Lincoln Medal in 1984 
     for her fund-raising efforts. She was also the chairwoman of 
     the Family Pantry in Harwichport.
       Many organizations have honored Mrs. O'Neill for her 
     selflessness and devotion to her husband, family, friends, 
     country and church. She has received honorary doctorates from 
     the University of Scranton, Our Lady of the Elms, and Barry 
     University. In 1995, the city of Cambridge dedicated the 
     North Cambridge Branch Library in her honor as the Mildred A. 
     O'Neill Library.
       Mrs. O'Neill's central role during her adult life was that 
     of political wife, family members said. Throughout her 
     marriage of 52 years, she served as sweetheart, mentor, 
     confidante, supporter, campaigner and friend. Her role was 
     epitomized in the dedication of her husband's autobiography, 
     ``Man of the House,'' which reads: ``For Millie--The Speaker 
     of My House. A loving wife, mother, and my partner through so 
     many triumphs and trials.''
       Mrs. O'Neill is survived by two daughters, Rosemary of 
     Washington, D.C., and Susan A. of Bethesda, Md.; two sons, 
     Thomas P. III of Boston and Christopher R. of Bethesda, Md.; 
     a sister, Dorothy Ryan of Marstons Mills; and eight 
     grandchildren. She was also the mother of the late Michael T.
       A funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Friday at St. 
     John the Evangelist Church, Cambridge. Burial will be in 
     Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Harwichport.

                          ____________________