[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 111 (Tuesday, July 24, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1314]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          IN MEMORY OF ASSOCIATE JUSTICE EDWIN FERNANDO BEACH

                                  _____
                                 

                          HON. ELTON GALLEGLY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 24, 2012

  Mr. GALLEGLY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in memory of my good friend, Edwin 
Fernando Beach, who passed away on the Fourth of July at the age of 88.
  Ed was a Renaissance man. He was a jurist--retiring as an Associate 
Justice of California's Second District Court of Appeal--an avid 
horseman, a gymnast, an artist, an aspiring musician, and a mason. He 
was very active in his adopted hometown of Santa Paula, California. But 
most of all, he was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and great-
grandfather.
  Justice Beach was born in Peru and moved to California with his 
mother and sister in 1930. He served in the U.S. Army Air Corps during 
World War II, where he began his love of horses and riding. After the 
war, he met his first wife, Janet, while they were students at the 
University of Southern California. After graduating from USC's School 
of Law in 1950, they moved to the Ventura County community of Santa 
Paula, where they raised seven children and lived the rest of their 
lives.
  Ed maintained a private practice in Santa Paula until he was elected 
to the Ventura County Municipal Court. Before he could take his seat at 
the bench, however, Governor Ronald Reagan appointed him to the county 
Superior Court. Then, in 1973, Governor Reagan appointed him to the 
Second District Court of Appeal, which he served until 1987, 
occasionally also serving the California Supreme Court as a pro-tem.
  Janet died in 2000. They had been married 51 years.
  During their lives together, Ed was honored by the Ventura County Bar 
Association in 1989 as the first recipient of the Ben E. Nordman 
Humanitarian Award, and at various times he served on the boards of 
trustees of the Santa Paula Memorial Hospital, the Blanchard Community 
Library, the Santa Paula Historical Society, and the founding boards of 
the Ventura County Symphony and Santa Clara Valley Bank. He was a 
member of the Santa Paula Rotary Club, becoming an honorary member on 
his appointment to the Appellate Court. He frequently rode his chestnut 
mare, Bonnie, in local parades, often in a Spanish riding costume. His 
children, all riders, many times accompanied him on their own horses or 
driving their pony cart.
  Ed and Janet were jointly awarded the Santa Paula Chamber of 
Commerce's Citizen of the Year award. Their home was the site for 
countless fundraisers, parties, and concerts for local community 
groups.
  In 2001, he married fellow Rotarian Barbara Robinson. Ed's 11 years 
with Barbara were spent traveling, gardening, and enjoying music and 
friends. She was at his side when he died at home.
  Mr. Speaker, Justice Edwin Fernando Beach was a man of extraordinary 
integrity, kindness, generosity, friendliness, intellect, and humility. 
I know my colleagues join me in remembering his great contributions to 
American society and jurisprudence, and in extending our condolences to 
his family and many friends.

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