[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 98 (Thursday, July 15, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1386]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      IN MEMORY OF EDILITH ECKART

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MIKE THOMPSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 14, 2004

  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
Edilith Eckart, who died June 16, 2004 in Humboldt County, California 
at the age of eighty-four.
  Edilith Eckart was born in Brooklyn, the daughter of Norwegian 
immigrants. She was a teacher prior to World War II then served her 
country in the U.S. Navy as a WAVE Lieutenant Junior Grade during that 
war. After the war she moved to New Orleans with her family where she 
began her lifelong vocation as an activist for peace and civil rights. 
She was an ardent and effective environmentalist who was often called 
as an expert witness in court cases.
  Her belief in the concept of a peaceful world was absolute. She was 
an activist extraordinaire, a Veteran for Peace, a columnist, a citizen 
diplomat, a member of Women in Black, a biologist, a devoted parent, 
grandparent and world traveler. She led fifteen trips to the Soviet 
Union, visited Israel and Palestine several times and in 1995 she went 
to Japan for ceremonies marking the 50th anniversary of the bombing of 
Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
  Characteristically, she engaged in civil disobedience and joined 
international organizations to help deliver $4 million worth of 
medicines to Iraqi hospitals following the first Gulf War. She was the 
co-chair of the Veterans for Peace ``Iraq Water Project,'' which 
resulted in the building of a number of water treatment plants in rural 
Iraq.
  She believed in the power of individuals to forcefully speak out for 
peace and justice, connect with the people of other countries in the 
pursuit of those ideals and she worked valiantly to relieve suffering 
wherever she found it.
  Referring to herself as a contemplative activist, her garden was 
listed with the Sanctuary Garden Project, a nation wide network of back 
yard sanctuaries.
  Edilith Eckart received many national awards for her friendship 
building in the Soviet Union, Palestine, Iraq, as well as the Veterans 
for Peace Presidents Award. She was also awarded the Physician's for 
Social Responsibility ``Broad Street Pump Award.'' The American 
Association of University Women honored her during Women's History 
Month in 1998.
  She was an inspiration; a humanitarian and she left a distinguished 
legacy to us all.
  Mr. Speaker, it is appropriate at this time that we recognize Edilith 
Eckart for her unwavering commitment to the ideals and values that 
sustain our great country.

                          ____________________