[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 159 (Thursday, October 29, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2663-E2664]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        A TRIBUTE TO JEAN RUNYON

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DORIS O. MATSUI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 29, 2009

  Ms. MATSUI. Madam Speaker, I rise today in remembrance of Jean 
Runyon, someone who helped shape the Sacramento community for more than 
50 years. Jean was a dear friend and tremendous advocate of Sacramento. 
I know that countless people join me as I say goodbye to a truly 
wonderful person. I ask that my colleagues join with me in remembering 
a remarkable woman.
  Jean was born March 6, 1927, in Concordia Kansas. She was the only 
child of Rowena Thornberg Hamilton, an actress, and Brutus Kerr 
Hamilton, a 1920 U.S. decathlon champion and Olympic silver medalist. 
Her father moved the family to California where he worked for the 
University of California Berkeley for 32 years as both a track and 
field coach and athletic director. Her father gave her the limitless 
energy she was always known for and was the one closest to her heart.
  Jean studied drama at the UC Berkeley and wanted to be an actress, 
but instead of pursuing a career in acting she married S. Mercer

[[Page E2664]]

Runyon Jr., her college sweetheart, and moved to Sacramento in 1947. 
They would have two wonderful children, Stephen Runyon and Elizabeth 
Mulligan. Jean's first attempt at public relations came when Sacramento 
newspaper executive Eleanor McClatchy asked her to help the Music 
Circus Theater get publicity. Jean was acting in the Music Circus 
performances at the time and blended her knowledge of acting and 
natural skill at publicity with great success.
  She was a woman who knew many firsts. After starting her own PR firm 
in 1960 she was named Man of the Year by the Sacramento Public 
Relations Round Table in 1962. In 1978 she was the first woman 
appointed to the Sutter Community Hospitals board of trustees. Jean 
also became Sacramento's first female Rotarian. In 1988 she was named 
Sacramentan of the Year by the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of 
Commerce.
  Jean raised millions of dollars over the years for many worthy causes 
such as the American Heart Association, Make-a-Wish, the Cerebral Palsy 
Association, the American Lung Association, the Special Olympics and 
the arts community that she so dearly loved. She was one of the kindest 
people Sacramento ever knew, but at the same time was driven in her 
pursuit whether for donations to charity or a client's success. While 
she had a personality that won business clients over, she also never 
lost her whimsical side. She was famous for her zany rooftop 
performances as a witch on Halloween--she rained candy on kids from 
above--Jean Runyon was affectionately called the ``Good Witch of River 
City''.
  Her first husband, Mercer Runyon, died in 1970. That same year, her 
father passed away and she also underwent major surgery for breast 
cancer. She persevered through her tragedies with the can-do spirit 
that we all loved. In 1980 she married Philip Tow, a prominent air-
pollution control engineer who unfortunately died in 1986. Jean later 
married again to Eugene Graham, who passed away in 1991. Her last 
husband, Jack Murphy, a retired insurance executive passed away in 
2003. For all the challenges that Jean was presented with, it was clear 
that personal tragedies could not keep her down. She moved forward, 
never waivered and persevered with a positive outlook on life.
  The successful Sacramento PR firm that Jean began in 1960 was joined 
by Estelle Saltzman and Jane Einhorn and was called Runyon, Saltzman 
and Einhorn. Their presence in Sacramento was enormous. Some of their 
major clients included The Sacramento Bee, California Department of 
Health Services, California Department of Consumer Affairs/Bureau of 
Automotive Repair, Sacramento Cable and the Sacramento Kings. One of 
Jean's favorite PR campaigns was for the Sacramento County Measles 
inoculation campaign when the vaccine first became available. She felt 
some of her best work was for campaigns on teen pregnancy, AIDS, anti-
smoking and prenatal care.
  Jean is survived by her two children, son Stephen Runyon of Courtland 
and daughter Elizabeth Mulligan of Hood, four grandchildren and one 
great granddaughter. We will all miss Jean Runyon terribly and in so 
many ways, but we do have countless memories of her to cherish.

                          ____________________