[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 6 (Wednesday, January 26, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E81]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[[Page E81]]


         HONORING THIS YEARS KQED'S LOCAL HERO AWARD RECIPIENTS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 26, 2005

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, we have just recently commemorated our 
national holiday recognizing the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and 
we are about to enter February, the month designated Black History 
Month. We as a nation recognize and celebrate the contributions of 
African Americans to our society. As part of that celebration, KQED 
Public Broadcasting has recognized six individuals and I rise today in 
order to pay tribute to these six, who have made significant 
contributions to the African American community.
  KQED has provided the Bay Area with high quality noncommercial media 
since 1954. The station call letters represent an acronym for the Latin 
``quod erat demonstrandum'' (which was to be demonstrated) a motto the 
station has continuously lived up to by airing programming that makes 
its listeners think, feel and explore new ideas. As part of its 
commitment to the public KQED recognizes and rewards those who work 
tirelessly, and sometimes thanklessly, to try and better the place they 
live with a ``Local Hero Award''. The Award spotlights the achievements 
in particular individuals and profiles them with KQED programming 
throughout the month.
  This year KQED has chosen six extraordinary individuals who have 
dedicated their lives to improving their community. I would like to 
share a few words about each of these well deserving recipients.
   Mr. Speaker, three of the recipients, Dr. Veronica Hunt, Dr. J. 
Alfred Smith Sr. and Terrance Kelly, have been tremendous examples in 
the field of education. Dr. Hunt has worked for the last 35 years to 
expand educational and job-training opportunities for the residents in 
her community. As the dean of the Southeast Campus of City College of 
San Francisco, she has expanded the school's curriculum and instituted 
new programs, including the Partnership to Achieve Academic Success, a 
wonderful mentoring program. She recently became involved in a program 
that moves incarcerated young people from the penal system to college.
  Dr. Smith is the Senior Pastor at the Allen Temple Baptist Church as 
well as a professor at the American Baptist Seminary of the West in 
Berkeley, California. He has ranked among the 100 Most Influential 
Black Americans, and was named one of the Top 15 Greatest Black 
Preachers of 1993. Dr. Smith has authored 16 books, spoken throughout 
the world, and earned numerous awards, including the Greenlining 
Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award.
  Mr. Kelly provides guidance to many in the community through music. 
Terrance is the Artistic Director at the Oakland Interfaith Gospel 
Choir, as well as the director of the Foothill Community College Gospel 
Choir. He provides guidance to adults and children alike, as well as to 
stars like Linda Ronstadt and the Kronos Quartet. Terrance won an Emmy 
Award for the 1995 choral arrangement of the Oakland Interfaith Gospel 
Choir's KGO-TV public service announcement.
  Mr. Speaker, Mikael Wagner is a leader in the public health field. He 
has sought to empower those disenfranchised populations in the Bay 
Area, and has been instrumental in HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention 
campaigns. He is also the founder and president of Promotions West, a 
public relations firm that helps local and national organizations 
implement community outreach strategies. He established a financial 
literacy training program called ``MoneyWi$e'', which has benefited 
thousands of people.
  In the arts, Sally Joan Baker and Andre White are proven leaders 
capable of influencing their community on a grand scale. Ms. Baker has 
worked for the last 20 years trying to reach at-risk children through 
poetry. Sally is the Executive Producer and host of WEE POETS, a weekly 
television program where children ages 7 to 13 recite original poems on 
camera. She allows children to express themselves through poetry in 
front of a wide audience. She provides free television technician 
internships to unskilled, at-risk teens. The internships have led 95 
percent of participants to major in broadcasting when they go to 
college.
  Mr. Andre White is a renowned portrait painter. He was commissioned 
to paint the portrait of our friend and former colleague, Congressman 
Ron Dellums in 1996, which hangs in the House Armed Services Committee 
Room. Andre received a commission for the portrait of District Court 
Judge Vanessa Gilmore and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Andre's works are 
displayed in private and public collections across the nation.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the 
achievements of these extraordinary Bay Area residents. These activists 
are shaping the future of the next generation through the arts, in 
education and in the field of public health. Their contributions to the 
African American community are of the utmost importance and will be 
cherished for years to come.

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