[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 55 (Thursday, March 29, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E691-E692]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          HONORING THE LIFE OF MRS. REBECCA DOLORES JARAMILLO

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                          HON. EMANUEL CLEAVER

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 29, 2007

  Mr. CLEAVER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Mrs. 
Rebecca Dolores Jaramillo, a remarkable and compassionate

[[Page E692]]

leader of the Hispanic community in Kansas City, Missouri, in my 
District. Born on October 23, 1939, Mrs. Jaramillo, also more 
affectionately known as ``Becky'', set forth on the long journey of 
advocacy of equal rights and equal opportunities for minorities and 
women before passing on May 13, 2005. Her passing has created a deep 
loss felt by her family, the greater Kansas City area, and most 
assuredly, the thousands of lives she touched throughout our great 
Nation.
  Rebecca Jaramillo, as the fifth of twelve children, entered the world 
curious for knowledge and eager to stir up excitement. She lived a 
joyous life until the rigors of racism and discrimination entered her 
life and inspired her to proactively work for equality. After marrying 
her husband, Joe, and settling down in Kansas City, they soon 
encountered discrimination when they were repeatedly denied the 
privilege of restaurant service. The couple became active in fighting 
the issue when they joined the NAACP and Kansas City, Missouri's People 
for Public Accommodations drive, which sought the passage of a bill 
requiring public businesses to provide service to all persons 
regardless of race, national or ethnic origin, and skin color.
  In 1981, Becky received community service awards from the HUD Kansas 
City Area Office, the Hispanic Chamber of Greater Kansas City and the 
Guadalupe Centers, for her role as the HUD office coordinator in the 
application process for Posada del Sol: a senior citizen's high-rise 
apartment complex in Kansas City's West Side. That same year, Becky, 
together with her fellow HUD employee Jose Gonzalez, and Ninfa Garza, 
program coordinator for the Guadalupe Centers Senior Citizens program, 
founded the Greater Kansas City National Hispanic Heritage Committee 
and created the Fiesta Hispana, to annually commemorate National 
Hispanic Heritage Month.
  For many years Becky actively continued her advocacy by serving on 
boards of local and national community agencies such as: Model Cities; 
the U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity; the American G.I. Forum, the 
League of United Latin American Women; the Panel of American Women; the 
Incorporated Mexican American Government Employees (IMAGE)--1979 to 
1982 as national chairwoman of the IMAGE Women's Action Committee with 
headquarters in Washington, DC; the Federally Employed Women; the 
United Nations Women's Commission; the Women's Political Caucus; the 
Guadalupe Centers, Inc.; the Mexican American Women's National 
Association (MANA); the Heart of American United Way; the Salvation 
Army and several others.
  While serving as national secretary for the Panel of American Women, 
Becky was part of a select group of panelists invited to the White 
House on April 27, 1979, for a special reception hosted by President 
Jimmy Carter in their honor for their many years of work in the area of 
human relations.
  Becky also received distinguished awards from the Federal Executive 
Board of Greater Kansas City, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Panel 
of American Women, the Mexican American Women's National Association, 
and the Salvation Army. In 1981, The Central Exchange of Kansas City 
honored Becky by naming her its second Woman of the Year.
  In 2002, the Guadalupe Centers awarded Becky its coveted I. Pat Rios 
Award for outstanding contributions to the Community, recognizing her 
for her role in the historical completion of Posada del Sol and the 
first West Side neighborhood fountain. The fountain was formally 
dedicated on September 15, 2000 by the Kansas City, Missouri Parks and 
Recreation Department.
  On March 4, 2005, Becky received the YWCA Hearts of Gold Award for 
Economic Empowerment for her service 30 years before as a United 
Nations delegate on a commission studying the status of women in the 
world.
  Madam Speaker, please join me in honoring the life of Mrs. Rebecca 
Dolores Jaramillo and expressing our heartfelt sympathy to her husband, 
Joe Jaramillo, her children, Romulo Joseph, Cynthia and James, and her 
many relatives and friends. I urge my colleagues to please join me in 
conveying our gratitude to her family for sharing this great woman with 
us, and to accept our condolences for their tremendous loss. She was an 
inspiration to us all.

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