[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 193 (Thursday, December 6, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1605]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                TRIBUTE TO DR. BARBARA SHANNON-BANISTER

                                  _____
                                 

                           HON. MIKE COFFMAN

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, December 6, 2018

  Mr. COFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, it is my honor today to recognize the 
accomplishments of my dear friend, Dr. Barbara Shannon-Banister. She 
will retire from her position as the Chief of the Community Relations 
Division for the City of Aurora on December 31, 2018.
  Dr. Shannon-Banister is a truly dedicated civil servant whose work 
over the length of her career has significantly benefitted my hometown 
of Aurora, Colorado, and the greater Denver Metropolitan area. In 1989, 
Dr. Shannon-Banister co-founded the Metro Community Provider Network 
(MCPN), which is the Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) that 
provides primary care and other health-related services for the 
medically underserved not only in the City of Aurora but also for areas 
outside of Aurora.
  As a fierce advocate for civil rights, Dr. Shannon-Banister also 
worked to bring the National Association for the Advancement of Colored 
People (NAACP) to Aurora, where she was instrumental in starting a new 
NAACP chapter in 1991. Her efforts gave the residents of Aurora, 
Colorado's third largest and most diverse city, an organization that 
fully understood the need to protect and advance the cause of civil 
rights.
  A true icon of our community, she is also President and chief 
executive officer of the non-profit foundation, Grand Design Inc. , 
that works to preserve African American culture through community 
outreach, hosting concerts, and visual arts performances.
  Mr. Speaker, Dr. Barbara Shannon-Banister represents the very best in 
public service that the State of Colorado and our nation has to offer. 
I thank her and commend her for her decades of tireless and 
inspirational leadership on behalf of all of us in our community, our 
state, and our nation. I wish her all the best of luck and a wonderful 
and fulfilling retirement.

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