[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 135 (Friday, August 12, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E840]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





            IN RECOGNITION OF THE LIFE OF RUFUS C. GREEN, II

                                 ______
                                 

                      HON. SANFORD D. BISHOP, JR.

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, August 12, 2022

  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a loving 
husband, dedicated father, outstanding educator, tireless community 
leader, and dear of friend of longstanding, Rufus Cullen Green, II. 
Sadly, he passed away on July 28, 2022. A homegoing service to 
celebrate his extraordinary life will be held on Saturday, August 13, 
2022, at 10:00 am on the campus of Fort Valley State University in the 
University's Heath and Physical Education Complex.
  Mr. Green was born to the union of Lottie Hicks Green McCoy and Rufus 
C. Green, Sr. A highly learned man, Mr. Green received his Bachelor of 
Science Degree from Fort Valley State College (now university) and a 
Master of Science Degree from the University of Georgia. He also did 
further studies at Brown University.
  Mr. Green made a difference in the lives of our most precious 
resources, our young people. He knew that ``Young people may be forty 
percent of our population, but they are one hundred percent of our 
futures.'' He began his storied career in education as a teacher of 
science and later as the principal of D.F. Douglas High School. His 
final position in his educational administration journey was as the 
Assistant Superintendent of the Taylor County School System.
  His career in educational administration may have ended, but his love 
of helping people did not. Throughout his life he gave his all to 
causes that he loved, and in which he believed. He epitomized ``manly 
deeds, scholarship, and love for all mankind as a life member of Alpha 
Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He was also a member of Sigma Pi Phi 
Fraternity, the Georgia High School Accrediting Commission, and the 
Georgia Kiwanis Club.
  Commissioner Green also served as an elected official, serving both 
on the Taylor County Board of Education and the Board of Commissioners.
  He loved Fort Valley State University and was a member of the Fort 
Valley State University Foundation. He gave so much to the University 
and the Wildcat family will miss him immensely.
  But most importantly, Mr. Green was a man of faith who put God first 
in his life. And in turn, God blessed him with a wonderful life. He was 
a dedicated member of the St. Phillip AME Church.
  Shirley Chisholm once said that ``Service is the rent that we pay for 
the space that we occupy here on this earth.'' Rufus Green paid his 
rent, and he paid it well. Mr. Green also treated people how they 
deserved to be treated. George Washington Carver once said that ``How 
far you go in life depends on tender with the young, compassionate with 
the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the weak and 
strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these.'' 
Rufus Green went far in life because he never swayed from this 
philosophy in dealing with people.
  Mr. Green led a wonderful life but none of this would have been 
possible without the love of God and his wonderful family to include 
his loving wife, Bernice S. Green, and his children; Rufus C. Green, 
III, Marcus, and Dr. Lori Green. I know that his entire family will 
miss him dearly.
  On a personal note, Mr. Green was my friend for many years. He has 
never told me only what I wanted to hear, but he always told me what he 
felt I needed to hear. I will be forever grateful for his wise advice 
and sage counsel. I will miss him dearly.
  Madam Speaker, I ask that my colleagues in the House of 
Representatives join my wife, Vivian, and me, along with the people of 
the Second Congressional District of Georgia, in paying tribute to the 
life of Mr. Rufus Cullen Green, II and in extending our deepest 
sympathies to his family, friends, and loved ones during this difficult 
time of bereavement. Moreover, we pray that we will be consoled and 
comforted by an abiding faith and the Holy Spirit in the days, weeks, 
and months ahead.

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