[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 163 (Thursday, October 25, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2250]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E2250]]
        TRIBUTE TO OLGA WOLOSYN, MAYOR OF THE CITY OF ENGLEWOOD

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DIANA DeGETTE

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 25, 2007

  Ms. DeGETTE. Madam Speaker, I rise to honor the extraordinary life 
and exceptional accomplishments of Mayor Olga Wolosyn. This remarkable 
public servant merits both our recognition and esteem as her impressive 
record of civic leadership and invaluable service has improved the 
lives of our people.
  Sadly, Mayor Wolosyn was taken from us by a series of brain aneurysms 
at the young age of 54. Olga will be greatly missed. Her passion for 
civic life and her capacity for community service were boundless. Her 
indomitable spirit sustained her through many challenges and molded a 
life of genuine accomplishment. Truly, her passing is a great loss to 
our entire community. Olga came to us from her native Pennsylvania 
where she earned her bachelor of arts degree from Seton Hill College. 
Subsequently, Olga and her husband moved to the Front Range from Grand 
Junction in 1972. Olga was elected to the Englewood City Council in 
November 1999 and served as mayor from November 2005.
  I always looked forward to visiting with Olga and members of the 
Englewood City Council because I was so taken by Olga's energy and 
enthusiasm for Englewood's plans as well as prospects for the future. 
She was a powerful advocate for her city and inspired conduct beyond 
the expected. Good leaders set the example and Olga led by doing. Many 
have pointed out that Olga ``was tireless and seemed to volunteer 
constantly,'' ``she was going full speed all the time,'' ``she had 
everyone's best interest at heart'' and ``regardless of the task for 
which she volunteered, she always got it done and got it done on 
time.'' Olga was a devoted volunteer with the schools; she served on 
the water board and the pension board; she served on the Englewood 
Education Foundation and the Englewood Teenage Drinking Task Force and 
she served on the board of the Greater Englewood Chamber of Commerce. 
As mayor, she helped secure a $1 million grant for schools to teach 
mathematics through art. In addition to her community service, Olga was 
a businesswoman and operated a pottery establishment--Wolosyn-Doty 
Pottery--with her husband, Jim Doty. Given Olga's capacity for 
achievement, it comes as no surprise that the Englewood Chamber chose 
Olga as Business Woman of the Year in 2004.
  Civic institutions depend on people with enormous energy and 
imagination. Olga was an extraordinary civic leader because she 
understood there are many ways to define a community. Olga was an 
artist and she recognized the power of art to inspire creativity, to 
bring people together and to foster new ways of collaboration. Olga's 
efforts to expand public art in Englewood added dimension to public 
spaces and created a deeper interaction between the community and its 
environs. As one of the founders of Englewood Arts, I believe Olga knew 
that the vision of a thriving community needed art and culture at its 
center and that is why Olga worked tirelessly to establish a cultural 
arts facility and make the arts part of the Englewood experience. 
Someone once noted that ``a thriving culture is a community alive.'' We 
are grateful for the life and vitality Olga brought to the arts, 
culture and the community. Her efforts have enhanced our sense of place 
and increased our quality of life.
  Olga Wolosyn lived a life that is rich in consequence. Englewood is a 
better place because of her efforts. Her character and her deeds leave 
a legacy of civic commitment rivaled by few. Truly, we are all 
diminished by the all too early passing of this remarkable woman. 
Please join me in paying tribute to the life of Mayor Olga Wolosyn, a 
distinguished public servant. It is the values, leadership and 
dedication she exhibited during her life that serves to build a better 
future for all of us.

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