[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 5 (Tuesday, January 19, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E40]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   EXPRESSING CONDOLENCES AND CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF MATTIE LEE NASH

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                       HON. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 19, 2010

  Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today in 
honor of Mattie Lee Nash who passed away recently at the age of 87.
  As a remarkably civic-minded resident of West Dallas, Ms. Nash was 
constantly working to better her community. She was frequently referred 
to as the ``Mayor of West Dallas,'' and during the 1980s she served on 
the Dallas Housing Authority's board where she gave a voice to the 
often forgotten neighborhoods west of the Trinity River. In 1991, she 
was elected to the Dallas City Council after the adoption of the 
single-member-district system that helped to ensure diverse 
representation on the city council. Throughout all of this, she 
maintained a tireless sense of hope that emboldened citizens across the 
city of Dallas.
  Twenty-five years after her term on the city council, we remember Ms. 
Nash with warm thoughts and heavy hearts. Her actions so struck people 
in the community that the city recently honored her by naming a 
recreation center in her honor.
  Madam Speaker, I ask my fellow colleagues to join me today in 
honoring Ms. Mattie Lee Nash who worked tirelessly for the citizens of 
West Dallas to ensure that they were actively and fairly represented.

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