[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 135 (Friday, December 8, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2153]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    IN RECOGNITION OF JUDITH H. HOPE

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, December 7, 2006

  Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to Judith H. Hope, 
an outstanding New Yorker who has devoted herself to public service and 
to civic and political engagement. Ms. Hope's tremendous contributions 
to American civic life are being recognized this month by the well-
known and widely respected public policy advocacy organization, Citizen 
Action of New York. At a ceremony on December 6, 2006, Ms. Hope is 
being honored by Citizen Action with its Progressive Leadership Award. 
Also being similarly honored are our distinguished colleague and the 
dean of the New York State congressional delegation, the Honorable 
Charles Rangel, and Mr. Bob Masters, a dedicated leader of the 
Communications Workers of America.
  A lifelong activist devoted to the highest ideals of the Democratic 
Party, Judith J. Hope has exhibited strong, effective and graceful 
leadership while holding a series of important positions of leadership 
in the world of politics and public policy. As a founder of the Eleanor 
Roosevelt Legacy Committee, an organization dedicated to promoting 
women's candidacies for local and public office, Judith Hope has 
encouraged and inspired new generations of women to become deeply 
involved in public policy and the political process. Since its founding 
in 2001, the Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy Committee has provided crucial 
financial, educational and political support to hundreds of women, of 
whom 285 were successfully elected to public office.
  Judith Hope became immersed in public service at an early age. Born 
and raised in Arkansas, she learned critical lessons and insights from 
her father, the Speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives, and 
her mother, a respected writer and journalist.
  After moving to New York, Judith Hope became a civic and community 
leader and married Thomas A. Twomey, Jr., a Long Island attorney and 
environmental leader. In the face of tremendous political odds, she was 
elected Town Supervisor in East Hampton in 1973, the first woman ever 
to hold that office on Long Island, and the first Democrat to do so in 
modern history. In 1976, Governor Hugh Carey named her the first woman 
gubernatorial Appointments Officer in the history of the Empire State. 
In 1983 and 1985, she was again elected East Hampton Town Supervisor, a 
position that afforded her national recognition for her innovative and 
effective policies to preserve open space and environmentally sensitive 
land. In the political realm, she was elected to the Democratic 
National Committee in 1989.
  Following the election of Mario Cuomo as Governor, Hope became an 
instrumental figure in the leadership of the New York State Democratic 
Committee. In 1995, Judith was elected chair of the State committee, 
becoming the first woman to head a major political party in New York 
State. She served in that capacity for 7 years and was justly 
celebrated for her tremendous abilities and effective leadership.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that my distinguished colleagues join me in 
recognizing the enormous contributions to our civic and political life 
made by Judith Hope, a true leader in the finest traditions of our 
great republic.

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