[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 10 (Wednesday, February 1, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E52-E53]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          TRIBUTE TO JEAN SIRI

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. GEORGE MILLER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 1, 2006

  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, it was with great 
sadness that I learned of the passing of Jean Siri last week. I knew 
Jean well, enjoyed our conversations, and highly valued her opinions on 
local and national concerns.
  Jean Siri was born Jean Brandenberg on March 11, 1920, in Lakot, 
North Dakota. She grew up in a farming family her father was a 
prominent veterinarian. She earned a bachelor's degree from Jamestown 
College in North Dakota, then did graduate work at San Francisco State 
University and the University of California, Berkeley. Jean was a staff 
biologist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory from 1945 to 1952, 
then a board member and Chair of the Stege Sanitary District in El 
Cerrito from 1975 to 1979. She also served on the El Cerrito City 
Council from 1980 to 1985 and again from 1987 to 1991, including two 
terms as Mayor.
  At the time of Will Siri's passing in 2004, the couple had been 
married 54 years. Mr. Siri was renowned as both a scientist and 
mountaineer. From 1943 to 1945 he worked as a member of the Manhattan 
Project. In 1963 he was the co-leader of the first American expedition 
to climb Mount Everest. Will was a leading researcher in biophysics at 
Lawrence Berkeley Labs. During the 1960s and 1970s he also served as 
President-Director of the Sierra Club.
  The impact of Jean's life-long work on behalf of the environmental 
movement, public access to recreational resources, and public health is 
immeasurable. Among the long list of agencies that Jean supported with 
her time and endless energy were the West Contra Costa Conservation 
League, County Hazardous Materials Commission, the League of Women 
Voters, the West County Toxics Coalition, the Contra Costa County 
Public and Environmental Health Board, the Gray Panthers, and the Fresh 
Start Homeless Board of Directors. Along with her husband Will, Jean 
was instrumental in the creation of Save the Bay and was a long-time 
member of the Sierra Club. Jean will always be remembered as a staunch 
environmentalist and lover of the outdoors. Together, she and Will were 
recipients of many awards, including the Feinstone Environmental Award 
from Syracuse University in New York for their work on corrective 
legislation for air pollution, land use and solid waste treatment.
  Perhaps though, her greatest advocacy role was her representation on 
the East Bay Regional Park District Board of Directors. She was elected 
in 1992, and re-elected in 1996, 2000, and 2004. Jean loved the 
District, its staff, her colleagues on the Board and those who 
advocated on the District's behalf. She was passionate about the parks 
and contributed not only her great leadership experience, but a sharp 
wit and a wonderful smile for all who had the good fortune to work with 
her.
  To Jean's two daughters, Lynn Siri Kimsey of Davis and Anne Siri of 
Philo, and their families, I extend my heartfelt condolences. Their 
loss is shared by all who came to know and admire Jean. All 
Californians will benefit for generations to come from her work born of 
an uncommon passion for people of all walks of life and our fragile 
environment.

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