[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 46 (Thursday, March 15, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E330]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING CORA COLE-McFADDEN

                                  _____
                                 

                          HON. DAVID E. PRICE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 15, 2018

  Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
career of a devoted public servant, community leader, and friend, Cora 
Cole-McFadden, who has recently concluded her service on The Durham 
City Council and as the city's Mayor Pro Tempore.
  A native of Durham, North Carolina, Cora developed her organizational 
skills and showed a keen sense of justice as early as her teenage 
years. She and three other classmates desegregated Hillside High 
School, a defining event that began her lifelong commitment to fighting 
for equal rights for all members of the Durham community.
  Cora's career is marked by many ``firsts.'' She served as the first 
African American woman to lead a department in the City of Durham and 
the first African American woman to be named the city's Mayor Pro 
Tempore. She was also the first recipient of the City of Durham's 
Diversity Change Agent Award, which is now named in her honor.
  In her seventeen years in the Durham City Council and as Mayor Pro 
Tempore, Cora was a tenacious advocate for safe and affordable housing, 
accessible healthcare, and empowering youth in the Durham community. 
She championed the City of Durham Youth Commission's representation at 
the first-ever Youth Summit sponsored by the North Carolina League of 
Cities. She helped spur the creation of a local teen center, and 
constantly sought ways to serve disadvantaged youth.
  Cora has served in various leadership positions in the Durham 
community, including the NAACP, the Housing Appeals Board, the Homeless 
Services Advisory Committee, the Joint City-County Planning Committee, 
and the Mayor's Committee for Persons with Disabilities. She has also 
served on the board of the National League of Cities and has been 
active in the North Carolina League of Municipalities. Although she is 
retiring from public office, no one doubts that Cora will find ways to 
express her love of the people of the Bull City and continue to serve.
  I am personally indebted to Cora Cole-McFadden for years of good 
advice and loyal support--from the time I first learned my district was 
being redrawn to include Durham right up to the present. She is quick 
with a smile and a word of encouragement, even in difficult times. Her 
energy and optimism are infectious--you know you can do the job and you 
certainly don't want to let her down.
  Lisa and I, along with constituents in the Fourth District and 
colleagues in the North Carolina congressional delegation, want to 
thank Cora Cole-McFadden for her generous and inclusive spirit and her 
dedicated service. We wish her and her family the very best as she 
begins the next chapter of her life.

                          ____________________