[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 87 (Friday, May 25, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1147]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   IN LASTING MEMORY OF HELEN BRADLEY

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. MIKE ROSS

                              of arkansas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 24, 2007

  Mr. ROSS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of Helen 
Bradley, a woman who spent a lifetime giving back to the community she 
loved dearly through her dedicated service as Jefferson County clerk. 
She was a true treasure to Pine Bluff and Jefferson County, and her 
honorable service will never be forgotten by the State of Arkansas. She 
passed away May 11, 2007, in Pine Bluff, AR, at the age of 59.
  I am grateful to have known Helen Bradley and to have had the 
privilege to call her a personal friend. She spent her life and career 
making her community a better place for all who called it home.
  Mrs. Bradley's lasting impact on Jefferson County will be remembered 
forever. Her selfless and devoted career began after graduating from 
what is now the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, when she was 
hired as deputy county clerk for Jefferson County. She held that 
position for 22 years before she was elected to serve as Jefferson 
County's first African-American county clerk. During her career, she 
also served as secretary for the Jefferson County Quorum Court and the 
Equalization Board. Mrs. Bradley was also a member of the International 
Association of Clerks, Recorders, Election Officials and Treasurers, 
the West Pine Bluff Rotary Club and she was a proud member of the Mount 
Calvary Missionary Baptist Church. As a member of the National 
Association for the Advancement of Colored People, NAACP, she received 
the distinguished Pine Bluff Branch NAACP Dove Freedom Award in October 
2006.
  My deepest condolences go to Mrs. Bradley's husband, Sylvester 
Bradley, Sr., of Pine Bluff; her two sons, Sedgwick McCollum of Flint, 
MI, and Brandon Bradley of Piano, TX; her daughter, Tarnisha Gibson of 
Columbia, SC; her two brothers, James Edward McClinton of Flint, MI, 
and John Albert McClinton of Pine Bluff; her sister, Cecile Blade of 
Pine Bluff; and to her 9 grandchildren. Mrs. Bradley will be greatly 
missed, and her contributions to the city of Pine Bluff, Jefferson 
County and the State of Arkansas will never be forgotten.

                          ____________________