[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 7 (Thursday, January 17, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E33-E34]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              PASSING OF FORMER DELEGATE MARGARETTE LEACH

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. NICK J. RAHALL II

                            of west virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 17, 2008

  Mr. RAHALL. Madam Speaker, West Virginia recently lost an outstanding 
daughter, Margarette Leach. Margarette passed away on December 23, 
2007, but today I rise to celebrate a life well lived and to remember 
with fondness the accomplishments of a remarkable woman who, over her 
many years, was a torchbearer in the arenas of healthcare and politics 
in West Virginia.
  The unfortunate news of her passing has brought sadness to so many 
throughout West Virginia, including those who did not have the 
opportunity to meet Mrs. Leach but who have

[[Page E34]]

come to benefit from her passionate support for the field of 
healthcare.
  Margarette, a West Virginia native, was born in Goodwill, WV on 
December 4, 1926. She graduated from Beaver High School in 1944 and 
from St. Mary's School of Nursing in 1948. She would go on to dedicate 
her life to helping other by serving as a nurse and elected official 
for the next 60 years, 14 of which she spent as a member of the West 
Virginia House of Delegates representing District 15.
  In April of last year, Delegate Leach was honored with The Center for 
Rural Health Development's 2007 Rural Health Leadership Award. The year 
2007 would see another honor bestowed on Margarette, when the Prestera 
Center for Youth and Families was named after her. She pushed hard for 
the Merritt Creek connector from Interstate 64 to State Route 2 and 
helped to obtain funding for the Jenkins Plantation Museum and the 
Madie Carroll House. She also helped to bring the bronze statue of 
Carter G. Woodson to its current location in Huntington.
  In 2004, Margarette was named a West Virginia History Hero, but to 
those she diligently served over the years, she was already a hero many 
times over.
  She will be greatly missed by her family, in particular her husband 
of 58 years and their family, as well as, the community she served so 
faithfully over these many years. My thoughts and prayers are with the 
family of Margarette Leach. I join with West Virginians in honoring her 
remarkable life and the legacy she left behind.

                          ____________________