[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 51 (Tuesday, April 20, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E553]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING THE LIFE OF TONI WINTERS McMAHON

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. TOM DAVIS

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 20, 2004

  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
life of Toni Winters McMahon, who passed away on January 21, 2004.
  Born Catherine Antoinette Winters in Keene, New Hampshire, Mrs. 
McMahon was a music graduate of Tufts University, where she was elected 
to Phi Beta Kappa. She then pursued graduate study in public 
administration at George Mason University.
  In Northern Virginia, Mrs. McMahon became involved in her community 
as a school activist. She served as president of the Fairfax County 
Council of PTAs and started projects to encourage high school seniors 
to volunteer at the county's various human services agencies. In 1981, 
she raised over $100,000 to save the Claude Moore Colonial Farm at 
Turkey Run in McLean when the National Park Service withdrew funding. 
Several years later in 1984, she was named the Fairfax County Citizen 
of the Year, an award cosponsored by the Fairfax County Federation of 
Citizens Associations and The Washington Post.
  Since 1984, Mrs. McMahon served as president/CEO of the Arts Council 
of Fairfax County, overseeing events such as the International 
Children's Festival at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts. 
While in this position, she fully committed herself to fund-raising, 
grant-writing, board development, and long-range planning. In 1999, 
Mrs. McMahon received the Jinx Hazel Arts Citizen of the Year Award 
from the Arts Council of Fairfax County.
  Mrs. McMahon always will be remembered for her dedicated efforts on 
behalf of the arts. She is a remarkable individual who played an 
integral role in making the arts in Fairfax County what they are today. 
At the time of her death, her board memberships included the George 
Mason University Center for the Arts, the Lorton Arts Foundation, and 
the Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington. Her survivors include four 
children: Dr. Doug McMahon of Medford, Oregon; John W. McMahon of 
Warrenton, Virginia; and Toni L. McMahon and Norwood McMahon, both of 
Fairfax, Virginia; and three grandchildren.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would like to pay tribute to the life and 
work of Mrs. McMahon and express my deepest condolences to all who knew 
and loved her.

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