[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 134 (Wednesday, October 2, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1419]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   IN RECOGNITION OF MS. JEAN FICKLIN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL M. HONDA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, October 2, 2013

  Mr. HONDA. Mr. Speaker, I along with Representative Swalwell, rise 
today to honor Ms. Jean Ficklin of Newark, California, a highly 
distinguished community member who, along with her husband Herman and 
four children, has been a resident of Newark for fifty years. Ms. 
Ficklin's excellence in education and promotion of African American 
culture and history is why she will be honored at the South County 
NAACP's 35th Annual Community Awards Gala in Hayward.
  Ms. Ficklin set the stage for future instructors of color by being 
the first African American instructor in the school district. She spent 
thirty-three years educating and inspiring our youth as a teacher, 
ending her career in 1987 at Newark Unified School District.
  Since her retirement, Ms. Ficklin has remained an active member in 
the community. She founded the Afro-American Cultural & Historical 
Society, Inc., an organization whose mission is to bring cross-cultural 
understanding of the African American community through the collection 
and preservation of art, artifacts, recorded media, and the sponsorship 
and coordination of awareness events. The organization's reach is vast 
and covers Newark and the Tri-City area, including Fremont, Union City, 
and Hayward. Ms. Ficklin also holds memberships in the NAACP and Alpha 
Delta Kappa International Sorority for Women Educators, among a variety 
of other groups.
  The City of Newark, the California State Senate and Assembly, the 
County of Alameda, and so many more have previously recognized Ms. 
Ficklin for her excellence as an educator and cultural historian.
  Please join us in honoring the extraordinary accomplishments of Ms. 
Jean Ficklin and her outstanding dedication to improving our society 
and fostering cultural understanding. May her love of education and her 
endless compassion continue to flow throughout our community.

                          ____________________