[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 27 (Friday, February 18, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E297]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                           JAMES J. HAGGERTY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. NANCY PELOSI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, February 18, 2011

  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of James J. 
Haggerty, known affectionately to many of us as ``The Big Fella.'' He 
was the beloved husband to his cherished Cecelia and proud father of 
seven: Jeanie, Mauri, James Jr., Matthew, Cecelia, Daniel, and Katie. 
And he was the doting grandfather to 18.
  Jim's life motto was ``to those whom much is given, much is 
expected.'' He believed strongly in public service, through which he 
knew he could help people. When his close and dear friend, Bob Casey, 
became Governor of Pennsylvania, Jim served in his cabinet as Secretary 
of the Commonwealth and later as his General Counsel.
  Jim's life was made full by his big family and many friends. He 
adored his wife, and he died just 11 days before their 45th wedding 
anniversary. He was strengthened by his abiding Catholic faith, loved 
his Irish heritage, and was a loyal Dunmorean.
  Jim supported many worthy causes, serving as chairman of the board of 
the University of Scranton, a member of the board of Scranton 
Preparatory School, and a staunch champion of the United Way of 
Lackawanna County. His good works strengthened northeast Pennsylvania.
  At his funeral mass, Monsignor Joseph Quinn said of Jim to an 
overflowing and loving crowd: ``God used him to build many bridges 
along the way, bridges that connect lives.''
  His grandson, James, called him a man of courage and generosity, 
saying: ``He has taught me the importance of giving back.''
  As the Scranton Times-Tribune reported, James Jr. said his father 
epitomized ``honesty, integrity, and love'' to his family. And he 
closed with a poem read by Robert F. Kennedy in Lackawanna County in 
1964, about Irish freedom fighter Owen Roe O'Neill:
  ``We're sheep without a shepherd, when the snow shuts out the sky. 
Oh! Why did you leave us, Owen? Why did you die?''
  My husband Paul and I were proud to call the Haggertys our friends 
for nearly 50 years, and are deeply saddened by Jim's passing. It is a 
source of great happiness to us that our children and grandchildren are 
loving friends.
  Indeed, so many were proud to call Jim their friend: last Sunday, in 
Scranton, a line of those who had come to pay their respects to Jim 
stretched for blocks. As they waited in line for hours, they shared 
their stories of how Jim Haggerty helped them.
  I hope it is a comfort to the Haggerty family, to Celia and to their 
children and grandchildren, that so many grieve their loss and are 
praying for them in this sad time.

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