[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 168 (Friday, November 4, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2018]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     IN HONOR OF MRS. GAI HOA RYAN

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, November 4, 2011

  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Mrs. Gia Hoa Ryan 
as she celebrates her 40th anniversary since coming to America from 
Vietnam in 1971.
  Born in Vietnam, Mrs. Ryan worked as a secretary and interpreter for 
the United States during the Vietnam War. She immigrated to the United 
States in 1971. Since immigrating, Mrs. Ryan has been an active 
community leader in the Greater Cleveland area. She is a teacher and 
lecturer of Asian culture, food, and society. She has been active with 
the Lorain International Festival, and hosted the 1995 Festival which 
honored Vietnam and the Vietnamese people. Mrs. Ryan also served as the 
coordinator for the Asian Community Project at Bridgeway from 1997 to 
2003. This Project provided mental health care to hundreds of Asian, 
Vietnamese, Laotian, and Cambodian families.
  Mrs. Ryan has truly been a leader to Cleveland's Asian community. She 
started the Asian Women's Support Group in early 1980s. In 1993, she 
created the Friendship Foundation of American Vietnamese. The 
organization has provided humanitarian services to the people of 
Vietnam by furnishing scholarships, building houses and schools, 
providing medical services, educational materials, food and clothing, 
and raising funds for the poor. She has also founded the Asian 
Community Mental Health Services as part of the West Side Community 
Health Center to provide mental health services for Asian families, 
senior citizens, and young people. Furthermore, in 2005, Mrs. Ryan 
established the Sai Gon Plaza. The Plaza serves as a community center 
in Northern Ohio for Asians, immigrants and various community groups. 
Mrs. Ryan has sponsored forty members of her family who have come from 
Vietnam and helped them establish homes and businesses.
  Mrs. Ryan has also served on many community boards including the 
Lorain County Community Alcoholism Board, various boards in the 
Detroit-Shoreway area, and the Mayor's Community Relations Board of the 
City of Cleveland. Most importantly she has raised her two children, 
Lynda Mia Ryan Shea and Thomas Joseph Ryan.
  Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honoring Mrs. Ryan as 
she celebrates her 40th anniversary since coming to America. Her 
advocacy work continues to improve countless lives both in Cleveland 
and Vietnam.

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