[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 174 (Monday, December 5, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1587]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING MR. DOUG SIDEN

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. BARBARA LEE

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, December 5, 2016

  Ms. LEE. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor the invaluable service to 
our community from the leadership of Mr. Doug Siden, and to 
congratulate him on his retirement from the East Bay Park District 
Board of Directors.
  Mr. Siden has served for the past 24 years on the East Bay Regional 
Park District (EBRPD) Board. During his tenure, Mr. Siden recognized 
the importance that the East Bay Parks play in the lives of so many 
local residents, and has worked tirelessly to provide access and an 
enjoyable experience for visitors to all of the District's 66 
locations.
  As an EBRPD Board member, he worked diligently to help EBRPD pass 
Measures CC and WW to support and expand the system. At $500 million, 
Measure WW was the largest bond measure ever awarded to a local 
district to acquire and develop new parks, and it helped the Park 
District meet the increasing demand to preserve open space for 
recreation and wildlife habitat.
  Mr. Siden served for many years on the East Bay Economic Development 
Alliance's Executive Board, was a founding member and served as a 
chairperson of the Martin Luther King Freedom Center in Oakland, and 
led the fight to establish the Alameda County Creek and Watershed 
Symposium. Additionally, during his career he has served on the 
advisory committees of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and Pt. 
Reyes National Seashore.
  Mr. Siden is also a longtime Rotarian and has served as a Baptist 
minister for over six decades. He directed a youth camp for Baptist 
Churches of the West for 20 years, and led the effort to establish 
year-round camps in Santa Cruz and near Lake Tahoe. He holds an 
honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the American Baptist Seminary 
of the West for his leadership.
  On a personal note, Doug has been a long-time friend and partner in 
the East Bay, and I greatly appreciate his leadership and counsel. I 
wish him well on this new chapter of his life.
  On behalf of the residents of California's 13th Congressional 
District, I congratulate Mr. Doug Siden on a well-deserved retirement. 
We honor his tireless support of open space, parks, and healthy 
recreation, and also for his vision of a more ideal world in which all 
can enjoy and benefit from these natural treasures.

                          ____________________