[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 86 (Monday, June 1, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E804]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                HONORING COMMUNITY CHAMPION YVONNE CLARK

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MIKE KELLY

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, June 1, 2015

  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize one 
of my constituents from Western Pennsylvania, Yvonne Clark. Yvonne, the 
Director of Walker's Neighborhood House in Lawrence County, has served 
both her family and community with excellence, leaving behind her a 
legacy of compassion and integrity that has impacted many.
  The seventh of sixteen children, Yvonne worked for both American 
Cleaners and First National Bank before putting her professional 
ambitions on hold in order to raise her family. She has been happily 
married to Robert Clark for forty-seven years, and together they have 
three children: Robert Jr., Adella, and Aaron. Yvonne and Robert are 
also blessed to be the grandparents of nine grandchildren.
  In 1979, Yvonne enrolled in the Pittsburgh Beauty Academy in Beaver 
Falls, Pennsylvania and graduated with honors shortly thereafter. Under 
the mentorship of a respected and accomplished local salon-owner, 
Yvonne learned the skills of the trade and eventually opened her own 
salon in 1984. When health issues demanded a change of course, Yvonne 
worked as a family service worker and then a job coach before returning 
to school at Midwestern Baptist School of Ministry. Again, she 
graduated with honors and received her Associate's Degree in Women's 
Ministry in 2006. Additionally, valuing her role as mother and 
grandmother, Yvonne became the primary caregiver for her three 
grandchildren when her daughter was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
  It was around this time that Walker's Neighborhood House, a division 
of the Gussie M. Walker Community Outreach Organization, was 
established. The mission of this after-school program is to empower 
youth and families to be the best they can be by obtaining a better 
education, while also learning that with God all things are possible. 
By providing both tutoring and structured recreational opportunities 
for local youth in an area where 85% of the population is considered 
low-income, Walker's Neighborhood House is breathing life back into the 
community and empowering our next generation of leaders. Under Yvonne's 
devoted and impassioned leadership, over 2,500 students have walked 
through its doors and left changed for the better.
  In serving her family and community, Yvonne has shown herself to be a 
leader in the truest sense of the word and a role model for the many 
who are privileged to know her. Furthermore, her dedication to 
directing the St John United Holy Church Choir for thirty-five years 
gives evidence to the core Christian values that inform her 
experiences. On behalf of the Third District of Pennsylvania, I would 
like to express sincere gratitude and appreciation to Mrs. Yvonne 
Clark, a true Community Champion.

                          ____________________