[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 76 (Tuesday, May 20, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Page S3180]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      CONGRATULATING RAYMONDE FIOL

 Mr. HELLER. Madam President, I wish to congratulate Mrs. 
Raymonde Fiol for being named the 2014 Nevada Senior Citizen of the 
Year, an honor that is well deserved by this truly remarkable Nevadan.
  Every year in May, Nevada celebrates Older Americans Month to 
recognize senior citizens for their contributions to our communities 
and to bring awareness on ways to continue a healthy, safe, and mobile 
lifestyle. Thirteen percent of Nevada's population is over the age of 
65, and these individuals like Mrs. Fiol, who are dedicated to 
strengthening our communities, are why our State has much to celebrate 
this month.
  The Nevada Delegation of the National Silver Haired Congress, in 
partnership with the Aging Services Directors Organization, established 
this award in 2013 to honor individuals who have selflessly worked to 
improve their community. Given Mrs. Fiol's remarkable life story and 
dedication during her many years of work to preserve the memory of the 
Holocaust, it is easy to see why she has been chosen. At the age of 3 
years old, she was saved and sheltered when the Nazis invaded Paris. 
Both of her parents were murdered at the concentration camp in 
Auschwitz. Against all odds, Mrs. Fiol is now living in Las Vegas, NV, 
and using her days to spread a message of tolerance through her role as 
the president of the Holocaust Survivors Group of Southern Nevada and 
board member of the Governor's Advisory Council on Education Relating 
to the Holocaust. She also serves on the Coordinating Council of 
Generations of the Shoah International, the largest Holocaust survivor 
family organization in the world, and works to arrange social events 
for the Las Vegas community survivors.
  When she is not volunteering on these boards, you can find Mrs. Fiol 
in the classroom sharing her story with Nevada's youth or with UNLV's 
documentary filmmakers capturing her life and story, all with the noble 
goal of ensuring that the world will never again turn a blind eye to 
state-operated genocide of a culture. Mrs. Fiol is dedicated to making 
this world a better place and educating our youth about the hardships 
that people have had to endure and about a time in our world's history 
that we must never forget. Her strength serves as an example not only 
to the Silver State but to the entire Nation.
  Mrs. Fiol's mission and commitment to helping all of those who were 
affected by the Holocaust and to educating Nevada's youth about one of 
the darkest times in international history is commendable, and I am 
both honored and humbled to congratulate her today. She is a remarkable 
woman who deserves our utmost praise and respect. It is with great 
honor that I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating this 
extraordinary Nevadan.

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