[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 129 (Friday, September 21, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1586]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


       IN HONOR OF THE HONORABLE JUDGE DONNA CONGENI FITZSIMMONS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 20, 2012

  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of the Honorable 
Judge Donna Congeni Fitzsimmons, who is the recipient of Recovery 
Resources' Community Challenge 2012 Exemplar Award.
  Recovery Resources is a community-based nonprofit organization with a 
mission of helping people triumph over mental illness, alcoholism, drug 
and other addictions. The Exemplar Award, established in 2006, 
celebrates members of the local community who have demonstrated a long 
and distinguished record of exemplary service and support for Recovery 
Resources' Community Challenge program.
  Judge Fitzsimmons graduated with a bachelor's degree from Boston 
College and earned her law degree from George Washington University in 
1976. She began her career in public service in 1977 as an Assistant 
Cuyahoga County Prosecutor. In 1980, she became the first woman to be 
appointed as Special Attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice, 
Organized Crime Strike Force in Cleveland. During her tenure as Special 
Attorney, Judge Fitzsimmons served as the lead prosecutor in the U.S. 
v. Lonardo, Gallo, et al case, in which she successfully convicted the 
former Cleveland Mafia boss, Angelo Lonardo in 1983. In 1984, she was 
appointed Deputy Counsel to President Reagan's commission on Organized 
Crime in Washington, DC and served in this position until 1985 when she 
entered private practice at the law firm of Atter & Hadden.
  On January 1, 1994, Judge Fitzsimmons assumed the role of Judge of 
the Rocky River Municipal Court and has been serving on the bench 
since. In 1997, she was appointed Chair of the Cuyahoga County Violence 
Against Women Act Committee and as the Municipal Court representative 
to the Cuyahoga County Criminal Justice Supervisory Services Board. As 
her career continued, Judge Fitzsimmons would be appointed to the Ohio 
Supreme Court's Court Security Committee, Criminal Procedure Committee 
and Jury Service Committee.
  In addition to her career, Judge Fitzsimmons is an active member of 
the Northeast Ohio community. She has served on Fairview Hospital's 
Community Advisory Board, as a trustee for Community Challenge, charter 
member of the Fairview High School Alumni Hall of Fame and an honorary 
chair for the Center for Prevention of Domestic Violence's Annual Break 
the Silence Luncheon. She also established the Stalking Victim Support 
Group and was a member of the Board of Trustees for the Leukemia and 
Lymphoma Society.
  Throughout her career, Judge Fitzsimmons has been recognized numerous 
times. She has been named Cleveland's Italian Heritage Committee Public 
Service Honoree 2011, ``Gem of Cleveland'' by the Junior League of 
Cleveland, and has received the Columbian Award from the Federation of 
Italian-American Societies of Northern Ohio. She has also been 
recognized by the Women's Center of Greater Cleveland.
  Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in congratulating Recovery 
Resources' Community Challenge 2012 Exemplar Award winner, the 
Honorable Judge Donna Congeni Fitzsimmons.

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