[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 153 (Wednesday, October 10, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2114-E2115]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING NAILAH OLIANI FRANKLIN

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. JESSE L. JACKSON, JR.

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, October 10, 2007

  Mr. JACKSON of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
life of Ms. Nailah Oliani Franklin, an extraordinary young woman who 
was raised in the 2nd Congressional District of Illinois.
  On September 19, 2007, hundreds of people began the search for Nailah 
Franklin after she did not show up for a meeting at work. 
Unfortunately, the search concluded 9 days later on September 27, 2007, 
when police discovered her body in a wooded area in Calumet City, 
Illinois. Her disappearance captured the heart of many in the 
Chicagoland region and others across the country.
  During the week she was missing, a grassroots campaign led her story 
into the national media. More than 2,000 people filled the sanctuary 
and vestibules of Trinity United Church of Christ on Chicago's South 
Side to help celebrate her life. ``Even today Nailah is bringing people 
together,'' stated family member Marina Franklin.
  Nailah Franklin was a gift from God, whose life was cut too short. We 
will all relish in the impact she left on her family, friends and all 
that came in contact with her spirit, elegance, courage and strength.
  Nailah was born on April 12, 1979, to Maria and Lee Franklin, in 
Highland Park, Illinois. Her name which means ``one who succeeds'' is a 
testament to the life she lived. Her confidence and intelligence earned 
good grades at Homewood--Floosmor High School, where she ran track and 
was on the Voyager newspaper staff. In 1997, Nailah graduated from 
Homewood--Floosmor High School and enrolled at the University of 
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, my law school alma mater.
  She remained active in many activities during college. She wrote for 
the Daily Illini student newspaper, co-hosted a jazz and neo-soul music 
show on the student run WBML FM, tutored local high school students and 
assisted with football recruiting. She received her bachelor's degree 
in advertising in 2001. She then returned to Chicago and began working 
for advertising giant Leo Burnett. Later, she joined Eli Lily & Co. in 
2006 as a pharmaceutical sales representative.
  Her family described her as a force to be reckoned with. A presence. 
Someone who wasn't afraid to speak her mind, try new things and set the 
bar high for herself and those around her. ``She was strong, resilient, 
vivacious, opinionated and above all, fashionable. A `girlie-girl,' she 
loved her family and friends, fashion, spa visits, music and anything 
and everything related to Oprah. She was exceptional without being 
ruthless,'' her family noted.

[[Page E2115]]

  She was a music lover with tastes running the gamet from jazz to 
house to neo-soul to old school R&B. She loved to watch Grey's Anatomy 
and she had to find out what songs had been used during each episode so 
she could put them on her iPod.
  Nailah will most be remembered as a successful professional, doting 
aunt, loving daughter, sister, niece and friend--a woman of 
extraordinary grace and resilience whose spirit blessed all who knew 
her.
  Her family has established the Nailah O. Franklin Memorial Fund at 
the Chicago Community Trust. The fund will make grants to prevent 
violence and guide young people's educational and social development.
  I pay tribute to this beautiful life lost.

                          ____________________