[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 62 (Monday, May 9, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Page S2772]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO ALICE SAUDARGAS

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I rise today to honor an outstanding 
Illinoisan, Alice Saudargas, and to thank her for her many years of 
service as she ends her term on the Rockford School Board.
  Alice Saudargas is a remarkable public servant. She has dedicated her 
life to working with high-poverty schools and troubled children. Alice 
and her late husband Alex spent more than 70 years educating students 
in Rockford, and as she recently said ``we loved every minute of it.''
  Alice Christine Nesheim was born in 1916 in northern Illinois to 
Norwegian immigrants. She graduated first in her high school class and 
was the first in her family to attend college. She graduated with a 
degree from DeKalb State Teachers College, which is now Northern 
Illinois University. While there, she met her husband Alex Saudargas 
and they moved to Rockford to start a family.
  Alice raised ten children and supported Alex as he led the basketball 
team at West High School to two legendary state championships in 1955 
and 1956. In those days, Alice could always be seen at West's 
basketball games, cheering on the team.
  But Alice wanted to have a personal impact on the lives of Rockford's 
neediest students. She went back to school and earned her master's 
degree in education from Northern Illinois University. Alice worked as 
a special education teacher and eventually became a principal of 
Elmwood Center, a school for emotionally disturbed children. The 
students there called her ``Big Mamma'' and they always appreciated the 
love, support, and care she showed them.
  Alice retired from the school district in 1986 at the age of 70, but 
she didn't slow down or lose her passion for education. She led 
committees to help make the Rockford schools more inclusive of all 
children and to maintain the legacy of West High School. At the age of 
84, Alice was appointed to complete a term on the Rockford School 
Board. She was subsequently elected in her own right and served on the 
board for 11 years. Her last day as a Rockford School Board member was 
April 26.
  Alice is supported in all her endeavors by her 9 surviving children, 
16 grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren as well as the hundreds of 
students she has supported and mentored throughout her long career. She 
has touched the lives of countless individuals in my state. She is 
renowned for her commitment to Rockford's neediest children, her strong 
spirit, and of course her trademark laugh.
  Although Alice's time on the Rockford School Board has come to an 
end, I know that this won't be the end of her service or commitment to 
the community. I understand that she plans to write a book about her 
life and work. That will be quite a story.
  I thank Alice for her lifelong efforts to improve the lives of others 
in and around Rockford. I wish her all the best.

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