[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 170 (Tuesday, December 3, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1784]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   IN HONOR OF RACHEL WHEELER-ROSSOW

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JOE COURTNEY

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 3, 2013

  Mr. COURTNEY. Mr. Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today 
to honor a dear friend, Rachel Wheeler-Rossow. Rachel passed away on 
November 29th at the age of 74. Compassionate and selfless, Rachel 
dedicated her life to helping those less fortunate. She was a pillar of 
her community in Ellington, Connecticut, and she will not soon be 
forgotten.
  Rachel was born in Long Beach, California on March 20, 1939. She 
earned her Bachelor's Degree in Nursing from Salve Regina University 
and her Master's in Nursing from the Catholic University of America. In 
1970, she moved to Ellington, Connecticut and threw herself into public 
service. Four years later, Rachel and former husband Carl founded the 
Alpha & Omega Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to improving 
the lives of children with disabilities. Rachel and Carl ran the group 
out of their home, while taking in and raising nearly 50 children--a 
remarkable act of compassion and generosity.
  Rachel's work earned her recognition from former President Ronald 
Reagan at the White House in 1983. In 1990, she was awarded the 
Outstanding Humanitarian Service Award from Connecticut's Department of 
Children and Youth Services for her work on child welfare programs for 
children with HIV. The following year she also was honored with one of 
only 11 National Caring Awards from the Caring Institute, a Washington, 
DC based non-profit committed to promoting the values of integrity and 
public service.
  Rachel was deeply involved in the local government of Ellington, 
serving on the Board of Education, the Board of Finance, the Board of 
Selectmen, and as the chairwoman of the town Democratic Party. In 
addition to her nationally recognized efforts, her non-stop work to 
improve the lives of others never got in the way of her own 
thoughtfulness and down-to-earth manner. She was a good listener and 
had a modest quiet-spoken presence that carried a power and dignity 
that impressed all who came into contact with her. A friend of 
Rachel's, former Connecticut State Representative Ted Graziani, 
described her as ``an angel,'' whose example should inspire us all to 
be better people.
  I ask my colleagues to join with me in honoring Rachel Wheeler-
Rossow, whose altruism touched the lives of so many people in 
Connecticut.

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