[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 84 (Wednesday, June 22, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1312]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




TRIBUTE TO RUTH SHACK, PRESIDENT OF DADE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: DECADES 
             OF SERVICE TO THE PEOPLE OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. KENDRICK B. MEEK

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 22, 2005

  Mr. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, rise to honor a true leader in our 
South Florida Community, Ruth Shack.
  After she became the President of the Dade Community Foundation in 
1985, Ruth spearheaded a campaign to encourage philanthropy and 
charitable giving by developing a permanent endowment to meet Greater 
Miami's emerging charitable needs. The Foundation protects and manages 
the assets of philanthropic funds and provides grant-making expertise 
to donors with various interests at all levels of giving. By bringing 
together diverse groups in Miami-Dade County, the Foundation helps 
improve the quality of life and build a more cohesive community by 
supporting local nonprofit organizations with grants and technical 
assistance.
  Spurred by her leadership, the Foundation made a radical change in 
its mission by diversifying its Board of Governors, its staff and its 
grant-making focus to better respond to the needs of Miami's greatest 
asset and our most intractable challenge: the incredible ethnic 
diversity of our community. They review the grants they award from the 
standpoint of their impact on the issue of cultural alienation and the 
need to help people work successfully across ethnic barriers. 
Empowerment and seed funding for emerging groups, based in the diverse 
multicultural communities of Miami-Dade, are the hallmarks of their 
grant-making program.
  In addition to her two decades of leadership at the Dade Community 
Foundation, Ruth Shack has also served three very productive terms on 
the Dade County Commission and in leadership capacities in numerous 
other organizations, both locally and across the country. Throughout 
her career she has demonstrated a profound commitment to making Miami a 
community where opportunity is available to everyone.
  Mr. Speaker, I know that I speak for our entire community in 
congratulating and thanking Ruth Shack for her 20 years at the helm of 
the Dade Community Foundation.

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