[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 185 (Friday, December 18, 2015)]
[House]
[Page H10695]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       REMEMBERING LILLIAN VERNON

  (Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York asked and was given permission 
to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York. Mr. Speaker, Lillian Vernon, a 
woman who personified the American Dream and inspired generations of 
girls and boys, passed away this week.
  Lillian was born Lilli Menasche in Leipzig, Germany, in 1927. Her 
family arrived here in 1937 after fleeing the new Nazi regime. She 
attended NYU for a couple of years before leaving to get married. And 
shortly after her nuptials, the newly pregnant Lillian gathered 
together what little wedding money she had to start a mail order 
business from her home in Mount Vernon, New York. She took the name 
Vernon as her own, and the Lillian Vernon Company was born.
  She put an advertisement in ``Seventeen'' magazine for a personalized 
purse and belt for $5; and within weeks, she had $34,000 dollars in 
orders.
  By 1970, Lillian Vernon had her first million-dollar year. A few 
decades later, she had nine catalogues, 15 outlet stores, two Web 
sites, a business-to-business division, and yearly revenue close to 
$300 million.
  She was a role model for women. She started her company when working 
mothers were often criticized and female entrepreneurs could rarely get 
credit. But undeterred, she persevered.
  She was also a trailblazer outside the business world and was known 
for her charity and her devotion to so many causes, including her 
dedication to the Lillian Vernon Foundation, which supports the U.S. 
Marine Toys for Tots Foundation, Literacy Volunteers of America, and a 
number of other charities. In 2011, Vernon was honored with the Project 
Sunshine Award for Philanthropic Leadership and was appointed by 
President Clinton as chairwoman of the National Women's Business 
Council in 1995.
  Above all, she was a mother. She was dedicated to her two sons, David 
and Fred, both of whom worked in the family business with her.
  I had the pleasure of meeting Lillian throughout the years. And I can 
say that even a reading of her accolades and accomplishments would fail 
to give a sense of just how special this wonderful woman truly was.
  We have lost a great American, and she will be sorely missed.

                          ____________________