[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 62 (Tuesday, April 28, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E603]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 CONGRATULATING SISTER VIANNEY FOR 54 YEARS OF DEDICATION TO RELIGIOUS 
                           LIFE AND EDUCATION

                                  _____
                                 

                         HON. DANA ROHRABACHER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 28, 2015

  Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate a prominent 
resident and educator in my congressional district, Sister Vianney, on 
her 54 years of dedication to Catholic religious life and education.
  Sister Vianney first became a nun on July 7, 1961, with the Sisters 
of Mercy in Tullamore, Ireland, receiving the religious name ``John 
Vianney''. She arrived in Costa Mesa at the St. John the Baptist Parish 
and School and began her career as an educator on August 31, 1962. 
During her career at the school, she first served as a second grade 
teacher, then Director of Religious Education, and finally for 40 years 
was the principal of St. John the Baptist School.
  Sister Vianney holds a Diploma in Religious Studies from the 
Pontifical University of Maynooth, Ireland and a Masters in Education 
from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.
  During her tenure as principal, she made a special point of assisting 
special needs students, instituting a full-time Learning Support 
program for them in 2000, which enabled hundreds of such students 
maintain their dignity and self-worth in the context of a mainstream 
educational program.
  Sister Vianney was nominated for the Distinguished Principal of 1993 
Award by the Diocese of Orange and received the Bishop Vann Award for 
Outstanding Service to Catholic Education just a few months ago. In 
2005, she was named one of the ``100 Most Influential People who shaped 
Orange County in the last 25 years'' by the Orange County Register 
(ranking 49th on the list), and in 2013 was honored for her long 
service by the Costa Mesa Mayor and City Council.
  On June 19, 2015, the Mass of Farewell will be celebrated for her at 
St. John the Baptist Church.
  There are few educators anywhere who have had as profound an impact 
on so many students over so long a time as Sister Vianney, and I know 
as she leaves St. John the Baptist School that she carries with her the 
appreciation and fond wishes for a happy retirement of the many whose 
lives were shaped by her long educational career.

                          ____________________