[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 32 (Wednesday, February 27, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E254]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     IN MEMORY OF EUNICE PETTIGREW

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. MIKE ROSS

                              of arkansas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 27, 2008

  Mr. ROSS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of my dear 
friend Eunice Pettigrew of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, who passed away 
February 8, 2008, at the age of 92.
  Eunice Pettigrew was a beacon of light and an inspiration to all of 
those who knew her and were blessed to call her friend. As someone who 
was determined to make the most out of life, Eunice chose to make her 
focus one of selfless service, and throughout her life she never 
stopped giving back to her family and her community. She was well known 
in Jefferson County for teaching cosmetology at what is now the 
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, and for owning her beauty shop 
which led her to become only the second African-American inspector of 
cosmetology in the State of Arkansas.
  While her motherly spirit and knack for teaching was apparent in 
Eunice's daily work, it was also representative of her selfless nature 
in life. She took great joy in helping others and worked tirelessly to 
create a strong sense of community in Pine Bluff. She took great pride 
in serving as PTA president of her children's schools for over 10 
years, working tirelessly to ensure the best education for every 
student. She was also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., and 
was named to Who's Who in the Southwest by the nationally recognized 
Who's Who in America publication.
  Eunice was passionate about studying her family's genealogy, which 
she successfully traced back for centuries. It is because of her 
research and work in this field that I have my most cherished memory of 
Eunice, dating back 6 years ago. Due to Eunice's work, I had the 
distinct privilege to read a manuscript into the Congressional Record 
of the House of Representatives based on her grandfather, Isaac 
Johnson, and his service to our country as a Buffalo Soldier, and I 
will forever be grateful for that opportunity to commemorate in history 
her proud family heritage.
  I send my deepest condolences to her children, Carol Thomas of 
Chicago, Illinois; Alonzo Pettigrew, Jr., of Pine Bluff; Paula 
Patterson of Little Rock; George Pettigrew of Kansas City, Missouri; 
Robert Pettigrew of Kansas City, Missouri; and her 17 grandchildren and 
16 great-grandchildren as well as three generations of nieces and 
nephews. Eunice Pettigrew will be greatly missed in Pine Bluff, 
Jefferson County, and throughout the State of Arkansas. I will continue 
to keep her family in my thoughts and prayers, and I am honored to 
speak to her wonderful life as a dear friend.

                          ____________________