[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 104 (Wednesday, July 13, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Page S4553]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        REMEMBERING KIP TIERNAN

  Mr. BROWN of Massachusetts. Mr. President, I rise today in tribute to 
Ms. Kip Tiernan of Boston, MA, who died on July 2. Kip was an immense 
force for good and a towering figure in the fight to better the lives 
of the less fortunate.
  Kip Tiernan was, herself, accustomed to loss and struggle and 
redemption. A child of the Depression, Kip lost both parents by age 11 
and was raised by her grandmother who taught her by example the 
importance of helping those in need. At a time when young women were 
discouraged from taking a stand or speaking out she was precocious, 
learning to fly a plane while still a teenager.
  She led a remarkable life not just in spite of her own struggles but 
perhaps because of them. Her early years were marked by her own 
struggle with substance abuse. She spoke openly about the consequences 
of her drinking and how her recovery from alcoholism helped her to 
empathize with the women she would help.
  Kip is best known for founding Rosie's Place in 1974, the Nation's 
first homeless shelter for women. Rosie's Place is a remarkable 
institution that has grown from simply providing emergency shelter and 
a hot meal to assisting women of all ages to put their lives back 
together. Each year they serve nearly 75,000 meals, hand out tons of 
groceries, provide thousands of hours of counseling and educational 
services, help dozens of low-income homeowners to avoid eviction or 
find permanent housing, and deliver numerous other services to 
thousands of women.
  In addition to Rosie's Place, Kip helped found the Boston Food Bank, 
the Boston Women's Fund, Community Works, Transition House, Aid to 
Incarcerated Mothers, Food for Free, Finex House, John Leary House, My 
Sister's Place, the Greater Boston Union of the Homeless, and numerous 
other organizations dedicated to providing immediate help and longer 
term assistance to the poor and homeless.
  It is impossible to measure with any accuracy the impact of Rosie's 
Place and the many other organizations that Kip helped to found. We 
will never know just how many women were saved from dangerous streets 
or abusive relationships. Nor can we estimate how many children and 
families were spared the depravation and indignity of a life on the 
streets. We can never be sure how many people who were touched by Kip 
were inspired to go on to help others.
  Kip once said: Compassion is a discipline; it's not just a smiley 
face. She knew that helping on a larger scale required organization. 
She used her own marketing and PR skills to raise money and awareness 
for various groups and knew that running increasingly sophisticated 
operations that served thousands required recruiting other 
professionals with their own God-given talents.
  People may disagree about how best to fight poverty or help the 
neediest among us, but there should be no disagreement that Kip Tiernan 
transcended the disagreements and politics by committing herself to do 
the hard work, the sometimes uncomfortable work of demonstrating 
compassion and helping others one on one.
  While some volunteer a day or two a year, Kip made it her life's 
work. Kip Tiernan leaves behind an incredible legacy of service and 
love. Our city, State, and world are far better places because of her.

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