[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 89 (Thursday, June 4, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E846]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      IN HONOR OF STEVE BOLLINGER

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. J. FRENCH HILL

                              of arkansas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 4, 2015

  Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, losing a father, mother, husband, or wife is 
an emotionally traumatic experience for any family. In addition to the 
burden faced by families that have experienced this type of loss, 
losing a head of household has severe economic implications for their 
journey forward. The Bollinger family learned this three decades ago, 
after unexpectedly losing their beloved Steve, leaving his wife, Lin, 
with four children and no income other than social security and several 
small insurance policies. Luckily, the Bollingers had a strong team 
behind them to help them through the immediate difficulties this 
presented.
  During the Reagan Administration, Steve was Assistant Secretary for 
Community Planning and Development at the U.S. Department of Housing 
and Urban Development. Previously, he had run for Cincinnati City 
Council and served as the head of the Public Housing Authority of 
Columbus, Ohio, where he served honorably. His dedication rendered a 
sincere appreciation and respect from his colleagues, and these 
individuals would be the ones that summoned the means of supporting the 
Bollinger family until they won a worker's compensation claim that 
enabled them to return funds to the newly established Bollinger 
Foundation. And so, the group had a newly empowered mission: to support 
families that faced the same struggle.
  I had the opportunity to work with Steve when I was a young staffer 
on Capitol Hill, working for the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, 
Housing, & Urban Affairs. Steve came before the Committee to bring the 
Reagan Administration's deregulation of the Community Development Block 
Grant.
  Steve, a young man at the age of 36, died while traveling to 
Savannah, Georgia, to speak to the Georgia Municipal League. Lin was 
pregnant with their fourth child, and Steve, who had been a public 
servant most of his adult life, had not had enough time to build a 
sufficient nest egg to properly take care of the future needs of his 
family.
  Since its founding, the Bollinger Foundation has provided nearly 
three quarters of a million dollars to families who have lost a loved 
one, with assistance given to families of individuals having worked in 
community or economic development, or assisted housing, as Steve did.
  The Foundation has helped countless families including families 
affected by the bombing of the Murrah Federal Office Building in 
Oklahoma City, in which the greatest loss of life and injury was to 
people who worked for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban 
Development. Numerous families have benefitted from the efforts of the 
Foundation and their committed members, and their efforts represent 
Steve's memory well. I am grateful for Steve, our friendship of long 
ago and or the continued work of the foundation bearing his name.

                          ____________________