[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 5 (Tuesday, January 19, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E41-E42]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    EXPRESSING CONDOLENCES AND CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF MRS. MILDRED 
                        DeLOACHE WINSTON THOMAS

                                 ______
                                 

                       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 to 
honor an incredibly gifted teacher and devoted citizen of the Dallas 
community, Mrs. Mildred DeLoache Winston Thomas, who passed away on 
December 29, 2009 at the age of 93.
  Mrs. Thomas was born in Cedar Creek, Texas on May 12, 1916. A 
lifelong Christian, she spent her formative years at Mount Olive 
Baptist Church where she was baptized and completed primary school. She 
later went on to graduate from Emile High School and receive a Bachelor 
of Science Degree from Tillotson College in Austin, Texas.
  Throughout her remarkable life, Mrs. Thomas worked diligently to 
better herself, her family, and her community. She began a career in 
education that would last roughly 40 years, spending 36 of those years 
with the Dallas Independent School District. While working as a full 
time mother and teacher, she completed a Master of Science Degree at 
the University of North Texas at Denton where she was one of seven 
African Americans to integrate the university.
  Upon retirement in 1986, Mrs. Thomas continued to be active in civic 
life. She served as a docent for the Dallas African American Art 
Museum, the Dallas Museum of Art, and the Dallas Arboretum. As a woman 
committed to her faith, she continued to be active in various 
ministries at New Hope Baptist Church where she was a deaconess.
  Mildred Thomas lived a spirited life and carried herself with 
dignity, elegance, grace and warmth. She held deep beliefs on fairness,

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right and wrong, and was unflinching in her defense and support of 
those she loved.
  Madam Speaker, with the passing of Mrs. Thomas, Dallas has truly lost 
an honorable and dedicated citizen, and I ask my fellow colleagues to 
join me today in celebrating her long and accomplished life.

                          ____________________