[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 47 (Wednesday, March 16, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H3748-H3749]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          HONORING ROSA LUCAS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Ruiz) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. RUIZ. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a local leader in 
public health, an exceptional community advocate, my constituent, and 
my friend, Rosa Lucas.
  I first met Rosa during my freshman year at UCLA in 1991 while I was 
working at a farmworker health clinic. Ever since, I have admired her 
integrity, humility, selflessness, and passion for justice.
  Rosa's story begins in Los Angeles, California, December 7, 1945. She 
spent her childhood in Beverly Hills before studying at UCLA-Berkeley 
and UCLA. In 1968, she graduated UCLA with her bachelor's in Spanish 
languages and literature. Shortly after, Rosa launched her career as a 
charge nurse of neurosurgical intensive care at the UCLA Health 
Sciences Center, eventually leading her to become a certified nurse 
practitioner in 1975.
  Ten years later, she settled in our desert and began her work in the 
Coachella Valley.
  Throughout her career, Rosa has worked to serve the poor, the 
marginalized, and the underserved. She has provided care to those most 
in need at rural and farmworker clinics like El Progreso del Desierto, 
Santa Rosa Del Valle Medical Group, Desert Hot Springs Arthritis and 
Medical Clinic, and the Borrego Springs Community Health Foundation. 
Now she works for Eisenhower Health Urgent Care Centers.
  Rosa truly embodies what it means to think globally and act locally. 
She has devoted her life to addressing health disparities in our valley 
and has made it her goal to expand access to healthcare for our most 
vulnerable.

[[Page H3749]]

  As a physician, I have seen her dedication to this mission firsthand. 
In the summer of 1996 during a summer fellowship as a medical student, 
Rosa taught me the well-child exam. I will never forget her passion to 
care for at-risk newborns, and I knew then that she would be a great 
partner in the fight for health and social justice.
  Sure enough, in 2007 when I returned home from medical school, we saw 
patients together and provided free medical care to the poorest 
farmworker communities with the Flying Doctors.
  Together, we joined the founding board of directors for a new 
nonprofit called Coachella Valley Volunteers in Medicine which is the 
only free clinic in the Coachella Valley that provides free healthcare 
to the medically underserved. In fact, we started the street medicine 
program and launched that in order to take care to the people and to 
the homeless under bridges, at the parks, and in the homeless camps. 
Wherever they find themselves, we took care to them, and she still does 
that.

                              {time}  1015

  In fact, Volunteers in Medicine was the first in the valley to 
implement the street medicine model during the pandemic. We took tests 
directly to our most vulnerable populations, including farmworkers and 
the homeless. This model later grew into a collaborative approach to 
vaccinating at-risk populations at work sites, schools, churches, and 
local trailer parks.
  On top of that, Rosa feeds the hungry. She battled food insecurity 
throughout the pandemic, partnering with local organizations to 
coordinate food delivery for the hungry and the food insecure, 
partnering with local promotora organizations.
  Rosa's compassion and incredible service have touched every corner of 
our communities. She has transformed care delivery in our desert and 
opened doors for many.
  As a member of the clinical faculty at CSU San Bernardino, Palm 
Desert, and the UCR School of Medicine, Rosa has helped shape a new 
generation of healthcare providers. She has inspired our communities' 
young people on the advisory boards for the Head Start programs at 
Desert Sands Unified School District and Coachella Valley Unified 
School District.
  For her outstanding service, Rosa has received numerous accolades, 
including the 2019 Senior Inspiration Award from Riverside County, and 
most recently, the 2021 Hometown Heroes Award from the city of 
Coachella.
  Rosa is relentless in her advocacy and never takes no for an answer 
when advocating for the medically underserved and her patients.
  Rosa has been an incredible adviser to me and has had a profound 
impact on the entire Coachella Valley. In fact, I respect Rosa because 
she delivers. She delivers her heart, she delivers her mind, and she 
delivers food. She delivers tests, she delivers vaccines, and she 
delivers healthcare with every inch of her soul and body. Rosa delivers 
herself for the people.
  We are all indebted to Rosa because she is the person who has led the 
charge for so many years and has been a consistent voice. When there 
was none, there was Rosa. When there was none, she provided care and 
delivery.
  On behalf of California's 36th Congressional District, I thank Rosa 
for her incredible service. I am so privileged to have her in my life, 
and I am honored to call her a friend.

                          ____________________