[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 160 (Wednesday, December 12, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1909-E1910]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               IN HONOR OF LOIS NOLAN ``PAULINE'' LARSON

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN B. LARSON

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 12, 2012

  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, Thoreau famously said most 
men lead lives of quiet desperation. My mother led a life of quiet 
inspiration. Thousands gave witness to that and stood in line for more 
than three hours to pay their final respects to Lois Nolan Larson, 
affectionately known as Pauline. My family was deeply touched by the 
outpouring of the community. It was a great tribute to my mother's 
lifetime commitment to her community. Several kind statements of 
appreciation were made by elected officials--from the President of the 
United States to the Governor of our state; from Senators to House 
Leaders in Congress and members of the Connecticut General Assembly. It 
was, however, two articles--one by Tom Condon of The Hartford Courant, 
the other by Bill Doak of our hometown paper, The East Hartford 
Gazette, that captured the sentiment, feeling and appreciation of an 
everyday mom who gave to her community and set an example to emulate. 
The following are those two articles:

                 [The Hartford Courant, Oct. 12, 2012]

       East Hartford Mother Left Legacy of Involvement and Action

                            (By Tom Condon)

       Democracy works because good people give their time and get 
     involved. At the municipal level, few epitomized the ethic of 
     participation quite like Lois Pauline Nolan Larson of East 
     Hartford, who died this week at 87.
       For decades starting in the 1960s, Mrs. Larson, known to 
     all as Pauline, served the town in most of the ways it is 
     possible to serve. She was a member of the town council and 
     the Democratic town committee, on which she served as vice 
     chairwoman and treasurer. She served on the town's parks and 
     visiting nurse association boards and the cemetery 
     commission. The community center in the Mayberry Village 
     neighborhood where she lived is named in her honor.
       She volunteered her time while she and her husband were 
     raising eight children, and while she was battling multiple 
     sclerosis. She inspired two of her children to go into public 
     life. Her son Timothy Larson was mayor of East Hartford for 
     eight years and is now a state representative. Her son John 
     Larson is the seven-term U.S. representative from the 1st 
     District.
       John Larson spoke of his mother's battle with declining 
     health in a televised speech at the recent Democratic 
     National Convention, and how she wanted not to be a burden to 
     her family. ``Mom, you're not a burden,'' Larson told the 
     convention crowd. ``You're an inspiration.''
        Many in East Hartford nodded.
                                  ____


                   [From The Gazette, Oct. 18, 2012]

 Lois ``Pauline'' Nolan Larson: Family, Politics and Mayberry Were Her 
                                  Life

                             (By Bill Doak)

       Lois Nolan ``Pauline'' Larson, one of the stalwart mothers 
     of Mayberry Village and an influential leader in East 
     Hartford political circles, passed away Wednesday, October 10 
     with her family by her side.
       She is the mother of United States Congressman John Larson, 
     and former mayor and State Representative Timothy D. Larson 
     of the 11th Assembly District.
       Sunday night a line of mourners waited for up to three 
     hours outside D'Esopo's East Hartford Chapel on Carter 
     Street. Monday for Pauline Larson's funeral in St. Isaac 
     Jogues Church Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy, US Senators 
     Joseph Lieberman and Richard Blumenthal and Congresswoman 
     Rosa DeLauro were among the hundreds attending a Mass 
     presided over by four priests from the local and state 
     diocese.
       Her daughters read a touching poem that, they said, 
     reminded them of their mother.
       Congressman Larson reflected on the influence his mother 
     and father had and their love for one another, reunited at 
     last. Raymond Larson died 24 years earlier.
       ``The first thing my father would say would be `you're 
     late', said the Congressman. He thanked the many people for 
     their patience at the funeral home and those who made a 
     difference, caring for his mother during the later years of 
     her life as she battled Multiple Sclerosis and dementia. In 
     particular he thanked his brother, David, who served as his 
     mother's companion and caregiver at the family home on 
     Chandler Street until the decision was made to care for her 
     at Riverside Healthcare Center.
       ``Why,' my sisters would ask, does she have to go through 
     all this? Why does she have to suffer so?' The answer always 
     came back from her caregivers, `Why? She's here to be with 
     us.''
       Lois Pauline Nolan Larson died peacefully on October 10, 
     2012 at Riverside Health and Rehabilitation Center in East 
     Hartford, surrounded by her loving family.
       Born on April 9, 1925 to the late L. Edward and Carrie Mae 
     (Douglas) Nolan, she was raised in East Hartford where she 
     was a member of the East Hartford High School Class of 1942 
     and the National Honor Society. In 1945, she married her high 
     school sweetheart, Raymond E. ``Archie'' Larson, who 
     predeceased her in 1988.
       She worked during WWII at Pratt & Whitney then worked part 
     time at the Travelers and various other jobs while her 
     children were young, then full time at several companies 
     including Thomas E. Toomey and the State Capitol. In addition 
     to her family, she loved her community and the Democratic 
     Party.
       She was very active in many civic and community 
     organizations, including the Board of the East Hartford 
     Visiting Nurses and the Mayberry Village Revitalization 
     Association.
       She served for many years on the Federation of Democratic 
     Women and the Democratic Town Committee, including as Vice 
     Chair. Pauline was among the first women elected to the East 
     Hartford Town Council.
       While she always felt others were more deserving, Pauline 
     received countless awards and honors for her community 
     service, including the naming of the Lois Nolan Larson 
     Community Center in her beloved Mayberry Village. Pauline's 
     greatest attribute was the love she gave not just to her 
     family, but to everyone she came in contact with. She made 
     everyone feel as though they were the most important person 
     to her and nothing mattered more to her than what mattered to 
     them. Her caring spirit was a gift to her children and their 
     friends, who were always welcome at the ``brick mansion'' at 
     10 Chandler.
       Pauline was predeceased by her sister, Eleanor Nolan Elton.
        She leaves behind her eight children and their spouses: 
     Sharon and Kenneth Fitzgerald, John and Leslie Larson, Daniel 
     and Dorothy Larson, Christopher and Eileen Larson, Linnea and 
     Edward Bennell, David Larson, Marylou and Raymond Onidi and 
     Timothy and Nancy Larson; 18 grandchildren:

[[Page E1910]]

     Maura Downes and Tim, Sean Fitzgerald, Megan Hurlburt and 
     Tyler, Carolyn, Laura and Raymond Larson, Eric Larson and 
     Sue, Glenn, Jeffrey and Deborah Larson, Samantha Jeter, and 
     Jon, Cori Larson, Joe Bennell and Natasha, Chaim Bennell, 
     Gina and Nickolas Onidi, and Matthew and Arianna Larson; and 
     11 adored great-grandchildren; she also leaves an niece, 
     Candace Bryan, and nephew Brian Elton; and several cousins 
     and extended family members. Pauline's family extends a very 
     special thanks to Dr. Roy Zagieboylo, Karen Chadderton and 
     the entire staff at Riverside who took such loving care of 
     her, especially Delanney, Kathy, Charmaine, Janet, and Maria 
     and many other who treated her with compassion and dignity.

                          ____________________