[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 60 (Thursday, April 23, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E957]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING RODNEY JOHN DIRIDON ON THE OCCASION OF THE 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF 
                               HIS BIRTH

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ZOE LOFGREN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 23, 2009

  Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California. Madam Speaker, today I rise to 
congratulate Rodney John Diridon, ``Rod,'' on the 70th anniversary of 
his birth. In addition to celebrating the commemoration of a life well 
spent, I would like to acknowledge the dedication he has exemplified in 
serving the Valley of Santa Clara for over half of his life.
  Diridon, the son of an immigrant Italian railroad brakeman, has 
focused on transportation issues for decades. A most effective 
proponent of public transportation, Rod Sr. is considered the ``father 
of modern transit'' in Santa Clara County and credited with countless 
achievements including building the light rail system. He is a former 
member of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors and a former 
candidate for the California State Assembly.
  Upon his retirement from public office in 1994, the main train 
station in San Jose was renamed ``The Diridon Station'' in his honor. 
He currently heads the Norman I. Mineta Transportation Institute at San 
Jose State University, and is a former chairman of the board of the 
High Speed Rail Authority.
  Rod's service to his community and country started much earlier in 
his life. From 1963 to 1967 he served in the U.S. Navy as a Fleet 
Officer and Combat Duty Officer in Vietnam.
  In 1969, Diridon founded the Diridon Research Corporation, later 
renamed Decision Research Institute (DRI) in 1972. DRI conducted market 
research, needs assessment surveys and legislative consulting 
throughout the United States. As founder and president he developed a 
``shared survey'' research procedure subsequently adopted by the UNICEF 
of the United Nations.
  His political career began in 1972 as the youngest person ever 
elected to the Saratoga City Council. He retired because of term 
limits, after completing 20 years and six terms as chairperson of both 
the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors and Transit Board. He is 
the only person to have chaired the San Francisco Bay Area's (nine 
counties and 104 cities) three regional governments: the Metropolitan 
Transportation Commission, the Bay Area Air Quality Management 
District, and the Association of Bay Area Governments.
  To find the basis for Rod's call to public service, one need only 
look at his family's roots. Rodney John Diridon was born in Dunsmuir, 
California in 1939 to Claude and Rhoda Diridon. As the son of Italian 
immigrants, Rod's father, Claudius Diridoni was compelled to change his 
name when bigotry in the railroad employment system kept him from being 
hired. After becoming a union member, Claude was protected from 
discrimination, thus starting the Diridon family's long appreciation of 
organized labor.
  Although Rod was dyslexic, through hard work and determination, he 
was a good student and member of championship football teams in high 
school. While working his way through college as a railroad trainman, 
he attended Shasta Junior College and Chico State, each for one year. 
He then transferred to San Jose State University, where he was a 
student leader, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting 
and an MSBA in Statistics.
  He was married to Mary Ann Fudge from July 4, 1964 until 1999 and 
raised two children, Rodney Jr. born September 10, 1969, and Mary 
Margaret, born September 14, 1971. On June 10, 2001 he married Dr. 
Gloria Duffy.
  Rod has chaired over 100 international, national, state and local 
community service programs and projects, most related to transit and 
the environment. He served, in 1993, as the chairperson of the American 
Public Transit Association in Washington, D.C., and more recently as 
the North American Vice President of the International Transit 
Association in Brussels. He has been an advisor to the Federal Transit 
Administration and in 1995 chaired the National Research Council's 
Transit Oversight and Project Selection Committee. Rod chaired the 
NRC's Transportation Research Board's study panel on ``Combating Global 
Warming Through Sustainable Transportation Policy.'' He is frequently 
asked to provide testimony to Congressional Committees.
  Diridon has received published recognition and numerous awards for 
his contributions and has served on numerous organizations committed to 
community service at the national, state, regional and local levels. He 
has been most involved with transportation, the environment, arts and 
human rights fund-raising and advocacy.

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