[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 64 (Monday, May 22, 2006)] [House] [Pages H2965-H2966] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] THE LEGACY AND LIFE OF CARMEN ANAYA The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of January 31, 2006, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett) is recognized during morning hour debates for 5 minutes. Mr. DOGGETT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Carmen Anaya was a remarkable human being. Her life of 79 years both inspires and teaches us. Born in Monterrey, Mexico; a teacher, she moved to the United States as a young woman and married Jose Anaya. For the next 20 years as their family grew, they worked as migrant farm workers all across America--harvesting cherries in Michigan, tomatoes in California, potatoes in Oregon, and sugar beets in the Dakotas. Eventually they opened a small general store in Las Milpas in the Texas Rio Grande Valley. In Spanish, a ``milpa'' is a temporary field that is cultivated for a few seasons. But the colonia of Las Milpas was [[Page H2966]] the permanent home of thousands who lacked running water, had no paved roads and no jobs that offered a way to escape poverty. Even worse, most residents had little hope for a better future for themselves or for their children. In 1982, Mrs. Anaya joined with other people of faith to found Valley Interfaith, a nonprofit coalition of over 40 churches that, with the work of lead organizer Elizabeth Valdez, has now expanded to represent some 60,000 Valley families. Valley Interfaith leaders already knew how to cultivate fields, but together they learned how to cultivate hope and justice. For more than two decades, they have put their faith into action to help the impoverished help themselves and to hold elected officials accountable at all levels of government. With the very active and the very vocal participation of Mrs. Anaya, Valley Interfaith brought clean drinking water to over 160,000 residents of colonias like Las Milpas; secured living wage ordinances and raised the salaries of thousands; and, with a new job training program, have found jobs for another 1,500. Above all, through her work with Valley Interfaith, Mrs. Anaya inspired her neighbors to believe in themselves, in their communities, and in their ability to bring about change. Those once isolated and frustrated are now an organized voice with the ability to demand justice. Last Monday, I visited with the Anaya family at their home in Las Milpas shortly after the celebration of a funeral mass in the Parish of Santa Cabrini at which Ernesto Cortez, Jr., who continues to provide the leadership for a network of groups like Valley Interfaith, spoke of her leadership and tenacity in a eulogy. Mrs. Anaya loved her church at which she attended choir practice twice a week. At the rosary, Ofelia de los Santos, a friend through whom I got to know Mrs. Anaya, spoke of her involvement of her church in the quest for social justice. St. Frances or Santa Cabrini, as she is known in the Valley, is a saint who is the patroness of immigrants. And it was Carmen Anaya, an immigrant to our Nation, who spread the gospel through her words and deeds. Her example is particularly significant in the course of the ongoing national debate about immigration. Because two farm workers came across the Rio Grande to do hot, hard, demanding work, America has gained not only from their labors but from their six children: Jose, Jr., who operated the family store, now works for the city of Pharr. Diana and Consuelo each provide leadership for our country's future as public school principals. Minerva, or Minnie, a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel, is now a homebuilder with her husband, retired Green Beret colonel, Chris St. John. Eduardo, Eddie, an attorney and certified public accountant, has the only law office in Las Milpas. Linda, a nurse, is an administrator at Cornerstone Regional Hospital. The life of service of any one child would be enough to make a parent proud. But think how much our country gains and continues to gain from the service of each of these six children. Her life and her children say more about family values than a thousand speeches from the floor of this Congress. And in the ongoing national debate about immigration, we should reflect on her legacy. Mexican immigrants like Carmen and Jose Anaya have offered much to their adopted land. America is the stronger for their presence. ____________________