[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 8 (Tuesday, January 16, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E113-E114]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 IN RECOGNITION OF MASSACHUSETTS STATE REPRESENTIVE KATHLEEN M. TEAHAN 
 FOR FOUR DECADES OF PUBLIC SERVICE TO THE MEN, WOMEN, AND CHILDREN OF 
                             MASSACHUSETTS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. STEPHEN F. LYNCH

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 16, 2007

  Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of a woman who has 
dedicated both her personal and professional life to the men, women, 
and children she has so thoughtfully served. Massachusetts State 
Representative Kathleen M. Teahan has served the citizens of Abington, 
East Bridgewater and Whitman for the last ten years. The impact of her 
work has been felt not only throughout the great Commonwealth of 
Massachusetts, but throughout this great Nation as a whole.
  Known to be an always positive leader in both the classroom and 
legislature, Representative Teahan began her public service as a 
teacher after graduating from Bridgewater State College in 1969. Over 
the next three decades, she taught at Whitman-Hanson Regional High 
School and Gordon W. Mitchell Middle School in East Bridgewater. Yet 
her passion to help others and invest in the community was not limited 
to just the classroom. Representative Teahan's commitment to Habitat 
for Humanity, the Whitman Democratic Town Committee, and the Whitman 
Library are just a few examples of her devotion to the citizens of 
Massachusetts.
  Encouraged and supported by her late husband Robert, Representative 
Teahan decided to expand her efforts to help others and was elected to 
the Massachusetts House of Representatives in November 1996. Since that 
time, she has not only made an impact on the citizens within the 7th 
District but has been a national leader and role model through her 
involvement with issues involving health care, education, employment, 
and the environment,

[[Page E114]]

especially finding passion in the areas of children's health and 
adoption.
  During her time in elected office, Representative Teahan served on 
the House Personnel and Administration, Joint Elder Affairs, and Joint 
Public Health Committees and served as the House chairman of the Caucus 
of Women Legislators. As a sign of her strong leadership and efforts to 
bring about positive change, Representative Teahan was nominated by her 
colleagues in 2001 to participate in the Flemming Fellows Institute at 
the Center for Policy Alternatives. She has also participated as a 
Massachusetts Team Leader for the Veterans Oral History Project at the 
Library of Congress since 2003.
  A place where her dedication and work is most evident is on the issue 
of oral health care. Representative Teahan served as a member of the 
Special Committee on Oral Health, who presented its report to the 
Massachusetts Legislature on March 2, 2000. Five years later, 
Representative Teahan became part of history when she became cochair of 
the Massachusetts Caucus on Oral Health, which is the first caucus on 
oral health in the Nation.
  Those who come in contact with Representative Teahan know all too 
well that she will fight for the health and well being of any child, 
whether they are in District 7 or in another country. In 2002, she 
accompanied a humanitarian delegation to bring medical supplies, books, 
Braille texts, toys, and toothbrushes to Cuba. Representative Teahan 
has been honored for her legislative efforts by the Congressional 
Coalition Adoption Institute, Health Care for All, and the Tufts 
University School of Dental Medicine, and the Special Olympics.
  It has always been clear that Representative Teahan's most cherished 
asset is her family, and she values the time she will now have to spend 
with her four children Anne, Jean, Robert, John, and her granddaughter 
Jill. Even though Representative Teahan's tenure as a State 
Representative has ended, her passion for changing lives will not 
cease. She will continue to inspire the next generation to get involved 
in their local communities, continuing her role as educator by teaching 
American Government at Bridgewater State College.
  Madam Speaker, it is my distinct honor to take the floor of the House 
today to join with State Representative Kathy Teahan's family, friends, 
and fellow citizens of Massachusetts to thank her for a decade of 
service in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and her lifetime 
of service in educating all within her reach. I hope my colleagues will 
join me in celebrating Representative Teahan's distinguished career, as 
we wish her good health and God's blessing in all of her future 
endeavors.

                          ____________________