[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 111 (Tuesday, July 27, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1435]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                 HONORING THE LIFE OF MRS. KAREN BAUMAN

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BRIAN HIGGINS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 27, 2010

  Mr. HIGGINS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Karen 
Bauman and to acknowledge her dedication to the teachers, students, and 
people of Western New York. Mrs. Bauman passed away suddenly on June 
30, 2010 at the age of fifty-eight.
  Karen Bauman was born on October 5, 1951 in Buffalo, New York. She 
was the younger of two children born to Frank and Sophia Hlavna. She 
graduated from Hamburg High School in 1969 and continued her education 
at Bryant and Stratton College. After finishing school, Karen found a 
job working for Liberty National Bank. It was at this bank where Karen 
met her future husband, Thomas Bauman. They were married in 1979, and 
when their children were born, Steven in 1980 and Joseph in 1984, Karen 
decided to stay home to raise her family.
  Karen became uniquely involved in education when her oldest son, 
Steven, began kindergarten in 1986. She started volunteering at St. 
Mary of the Lake School several times a week, but it wasn't until 1990, 
the same year her son Joseph started kindergarten, when she was hired 
full time. She stayed in her position as an aide for twenty years.
  During her many years of service, Karen had the privilege of teaching 
many children, leaving an everlasting impression on their lives. One of 
her students, Nicole Santiago, wrote, ``She was one of the sweetest 
women I have ever had the good fortune to know. The things she has 
taught me will stay with me for the rest of my life. I will miss her so 
much.''
  Everyone who knew Karen remembers how her smile and laughter would 
brighten up the room and how she was always involved with various 
school, parish, and community functions. Whether it was serving as a 
Eucharistic Minister at St. Mary of the Lake Church or helping out at 
various school functions at St. Mary's School for the Deaf, Karen 
dedicated her life to service and volunteerism. Karen believed in 
living a Catholic life and she passed that on to her two sons.
  Mrs. Bauman is survived by her husband, Thomas Bauman, her sons, 
Steven and Joseph, her brother, Larry Hlavna, as well as one niece and 
six nephews.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Karen Bauman for her dedication 
to others and tireless service to the Western New York community. I 
invite my colleagues to join me in honoring her life and extending her 
family our deepest condolences.

                          ____________________