[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 161 (Friday, October 3, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2222]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING LOUIS DE LA PARTE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. KATHY CASTOR

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 3, 2008

  Ms. CASTOR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to praise the lifetime 
achievements of distinguished Tampa lawyer and Florida legislator Louis 
de la Parte. Mr. de la Parte was honored for his unselfish compassion 
and courage to voice his beliefs on causes, even against popular 
opposition. He was a noble public servant and lived to help his family, 
friends, and community.
  Mr. de la Parte was born in Ybor City, Tampa, and grew up with his 
mother, a homemaker, and his father, who ran a men's clothing store, 
whom Louis helped out during the summer. His grandmother lived in 
public housing in Tampa, and his large family came from a modest 
background. He used his experience growing up around people less 
fortunate than he to help out his community and voice the opinions of 
those who could not be heard. He graduated from Jesuit High School in 
Tampa in 1946 and received his bachelor of arts degree in psychology 
from Emory University in 1950. His articulate leadership and natural 
ability for persuasion led him to earn his juris doctor from the 
University of Florida.
  After law school he joined the Air Force and started a family. He 
worked as a prosecutor but soon discovered that many of the problems 
that he was prosecuting could be avoided through science and the more 
effective delivery of mental health services. This revelation led Mr. 
de la Parte to run for public office. He served as a Democratic member 
of the Florida House of Representatives from 1962 through 1966 and the 
Senate from 1966 through 1974. He served his final year in the 
legislature as senate president.
  During his time in office, he built the Department of Health and 
Rehabilitative Services to assist the poor, mentally disabled, elderly, 
and sick. He avidly promoted environmental legislation and educational 
programs in prisons.
  A dedicated family man, Mr. de la Parte was deeply loved by his 
family. His wife and two children would follow him to work sometimes, 
carrying his briefcase for him. Mr. de la Parte loved to have big 
family dinners on Sundays, and to take his family on travels all around 
the world, particularly to those places he had been while serving in 
the Air Force. The de la Parte family is a Tampa treasure.
  Mr. de la Parte worked in private practice with his son for 4 years. 
He retired in 1990, when he began to develop the early symptoms of 
Alzheimer's disease. To congratulate his dedication to progress in the 
area of mental health, in 1996 the Florida Mental Health Institute at 
the University of South Florida was named after Mr. de la Parte.
  Madam Speaker, Louis de la Parte was a man of the highest regard who 
dedicated his life to the public good. He will be greatly missed by the 
State of Florida. My thoughts are with his wife, Helen, his children, 
Peggy and L. David, and the entire de la Parte family.

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