[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 46 (Thursday, March 15, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E331]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  HONORING THOMAS (TOM) PETERS, PH.D.

                                  _____
                                 

                           HON. JARED HUFFMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 15, 2018

  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Thomas (Tom) 
Peters, Ph.D., for his twenty years of stellar leadership and exemplary 
public service as President and CEO of the Marin Community Foundation.
  A native of San Francisco, Dr. Peters finished his undergraduate 
degree at San Francisco State University, before going to the 
University of Minnesota, where he completed a Doctorate in Psychology 
and Health Science. He began his public health career in 1974 at the 
San Francisco Department of Public Health, and would go on to achieve 
repeated success and advancement over the course of 24 years, finishing 
that chapter of his professional life as the Director of Marin County's 
Department of Health and Human Services.
  In 1998, Dr. Peters became the President and CEO of the Marin 
Community Foundation (MCF). Combining his clinical and philanthropic 
careers to head one of the largest community foundations in the 
country, Dr. Peters has become a leading national voice for community 
philanthropy, advocating for and facilitating the dedication of private 
resources for the public good. MCF has distributed more than $1.3 
billion in grants to nonprofits working in critical community issues, 
ranging from education, healthcare, and the environment, to economic 
opportunity and access to the arts.
  Under his leadership, Marin Community Foundation became the first 
community foundation to approve a non-discrimination policy for its 
donor advised funds. He set the example for others to say NO to 
organizations, projects, and programs that discriminate on the basis of 
race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, medical condition, 
veteran status, marital status, disability, ancestry, sexual 
orientation, or any other characteristic protected by law.
  A respected community leader and champion for equity, he frequently 
offers the community a moral compass for taking action on important 
matters, like breaking down barriers to academic achievement and 
raising the bar for underserved communities, working to protect public 
lands and the environment, securing affordable housing where supply has 
been historically elusive, and fighting for comprehensive immigration 
reform.
  Mr. Speaker, Dr. Peters has been a champion of champions on a wide 
array of critical issues, and has led the Marin Community Foundation to 
take actions that have produced positive impacts throughout the region. 
Therefore, please join me in expressing my deep appreciation and praise 
for his indomitable leadership on the occasion of his 20th anniversary 
as President and CEO of the Marin Community Foundation.