[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 45 (Wednesday, March 10, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E222]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           HONORING THE LEADERSHIP AND LEGACY OF MARIA CUNHA

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. LORI TRAHAN

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 10, 2021

  Mrs. TRAHAN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the leadership and 
legacy of a mentor and a friend, Maria Cunha, who will retire as 
Associate Dean and Director of the Out of School Youth Development 
Program at Middlesex Community College. Her most recent years at MCC 
have had an immense impact on students and faculty alike, advising and 
supporting them in their educational and vocational pursuits.
  Maria was born in the Azores and moved with her family to the United 
States in 1967, eventually settling in Lowell among a vibrant, proud 
Portuguese community. After graduating from Lowell High School in 1974, 
she went to Regis College and became the first in her family to 
graduate from college four years later.
  Public service has always guided Maria's career. She worked as a 
teacher, interpreter, and mentor serving on countless non-profit boards 
and dedicated her life to advocating fiercely for families, children, 
and immigrants in our community.
  For twelve years at the International Institute, Maria helped 
families navigate government agencies on their path to becoming 
citizens and creating a new life in the Greater Lowell region. She 
carried that passion for advocacy to her next role as Constituent 
Services Director in former Representative Marty Meehan's District 
Office. There, she continued her mission to provide the highest quality 
services to our community and exemplified the nobility of service--
picking up the phone and listening to someone in crisis and delivering 
assistance; not giving up on someone in need of a hand; and advocating 
for resources and laws that fix our broken, inequitable systems.
  Over the years, Maria has served as a role model and mentor to so 
many, myself included. She is what we all should aspire to be as public 
servants--a shining and tangible example of how government, education, 
and community are supposed to work.
  Even in retirement, Maria will continue to champion those who don't 
have a voice, her rich Portuguese heritage, and immigrants in search of 
a better life here in our community.
  Through her many years of service, Maria has made the City of Lowell 
a better place to call home. Thanks to her efforts, the City's future 
is bright, and I join Lowell residents and so many throughout our 
region in thanking her for her dedication to this incredible community.

                          ____________________