[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 27 (Thursday, March 4, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E303-E304]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO GERRY GETTY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DENNIS MOORE

                               of kansas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 4, 2004

  Mr. MOORE. Mr. Speaker, I want to take a moment to recognize the 
recent passing of Gerry Getty, a noted elementary school teacher and 
community leader in Franklin County, Kansas, which is located just to 
the south of the Third Congressional District of Kansas.
  Gerry Getty taught elementary school for 32 years, was active in the 
National Education Association, and founded the Franklin County 
Literature Festival. I am saddened by her death at the young age of 53 
and want to bring to the attention of our membership an article about 
her that ran in the Ottawa Herald on February 12th and her obituary 
from the Topeka Capital-Journal of February 13th. Dedicated educators 
like Gerry Getty are essential to the success of our children and 
grandchildren. Through their selfless work on behalf of their students 
they foster a love of learning within our local communities. I commend 
Gerry Getty to my colleagues in the House and I hope we all will be 
inspired by her efforts to make life better for her students and for 
her neighbors in Franklin County.

                [From the Ottawa Herald, Feb. 12, 2004]

                    Literature Festival Founder Dies

                           (By Andy Gassaway)

       Gerry Getty, a retired elementary teacher and founder of 
     the annual Franklin County Literature Festival, died 
     Wednesday after a long illness. She was 53. She spent 22 of 
     her 32 years as an educator teaching elementary students in 
     the Central Heights school district, instituting the 
     district's Parent-Teacher Organization and its Reading Is 
     Fundamental program, in which students received free books 
     to take home each year.
       ``When she saw something she thought would be good for 
     kids, she went for it,'' Vickie Hall, Lincoln Elementary 
     fifth grade teacher, said. ``She has left quite a legacy of 
     the love of literature.''
       She graduated from Kansas State Teaching College in Emporia 
     in 1971. In 1992, she received a master's degree from Kansas 
     State University. Before coming to Franklin County, Getty 
     taught in Overbrook, and Tipton. During her tenure at Central 
     Heights, she also taught adult classes at Neosho County 
     Community College's Ottawa campus.
       Beginning in 1994, Getty organized a literature festival at 
     Central Heights that brought children's authors to the area 
     to meet with students. In 2002, the event was transplanted to 
     Ottawa University and included students from all of Franklin 
     County.
       ``She had a passion for reading,'' Steve Getty, her 
     husband, said. ``Her dream was for every student to be able 
     to read. She wanted to bring it home to Franklin County, and 
     wanted all students to see the wonderful world of literature, 
     meet authors and bring a little culture to their lives.''
       Last year, the event brought together more than 1,500 
     students on the OU campus to visit with 13 authors, 
     illustrators and storytellers who took the day to discuss 
     their craft with the young readers. Steve Getty said his wife 
     enjoyed reading the same books she read to her students. Her 
     favorite authors included Mary Downing Hahn and Vicki Grove, 
     he said.
       Getty led the way in affiliating the local teachers' 
     association with Kansas National Education Association and 
     National Education Association in 1990. She served several 
     years as president of the association and its negotiating 
     team, and was a delegate to the state convention and three 
     national conventions during her tenure. Her efforts earned 
     her the Viking of the Year award, as voted upon by her fellow 
     teachers at Central Heights. Other honors included being 
     recognized in Who's Who Among America's Teachers, the 2001 
     Outstanding Reading Educator award from the Franklin County 
     Reading Council and the 2002 Kansas Reading Association 
     Professional Literacy Award.
       ``She's a very well-respected teacher,'' Central Heights 
     elementary principal Mary Bogart said. ``She may have led a 
     short life, but she was a real doer.''
       Funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. Monday at Sacred Heart 
     Catholic Church, Ottawa.
       Getty has been cremated. A Rosary will be said at 2 p.m. 
     Sunday at Dengel & Son Mortuary, Ottawa, followed by a family 
     visitation.

            [From the Topeka Capital-Journal, Feb. 13, 2004]

                            Gerry Ann Getty

       Gerry Ann Getty, 53, Ottawa, died Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2004, 
     at the University of Kansas Hospital, Kansas City. Funeral 
     mass will be 10 a.m. Monday at Sacred Heart Catholic Church 
     with the Rev. Tod Ziegler officiating.
       She was born July 21, 1950, to Mathias and Marie (Haug) 
     Roeder in Seneca. She grew up on a dairy farm in Nemaha 
     County. She graduated from Baileyville-Benedict High School 
     in 1968. She graduated from Kansas State Teachers College, 
     Emporia, in 1971. In 1992, she received a master's degree 
     from Kansas State.
       She married Steven Getty on Oct. 3, 1970, at Seneca. He 
     survives.
       She was an elementary school teacher for 32 years. She 
     taught in Overbrook, McDonald, Tipton and Central Heights. 
     She also taught adult classes at Neosho County Community 
     College's Ottawa campus.
       She was a member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church. She 
     founded the Franklin County Reading Festival in 2000. She was 
     president and chief negotiator for her local chapter of the 
     National Education Association and served as a national 
     delegate. She received several education awards, including 
     Who's Who Among America's Teachers, 1995 Viking of the Year, 
     2001 Outstanding Reading Educator from the Franklin County 
     Reading

[[Page E304]]

     Council, and the 2002 Kansas Reading Association Professional 
     Literacy Award.
       Her survivors also include two sons, Brent Getty, Lawrence, 
     and Marc Getty, Kansas City, Mo.; three brothers, Larry 
     Roeder, Hiawatha, Dan Roeder, Overland Park, and Dave Roeder, 
     Washington, D.C.; and two sisters, Kathryn Roeder, 
     Pittsburgh, Pa., and Karen Underwood, Los Angeles.
       Her body was cremated. Rosary will be recited at 2 p.m. 
     Sunday at Dengel & Son Mortuary, where the family will meet 
     friends immediately following. Family inurnment will be 
     later.
       A memorial has been established with the Franklin County 
     Literature Festival. Condolences may be e-mailed to the 
     family through [email protected].

                          ____________________