[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 7 (Monday, January 9, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E4]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  CELEBRATING MRS. IRIS DARCINE BOWIE (ANDREW) THOMAS'S 90TH BIRTHDAY

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. JONATHAN L. JACKSON

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, January 9, 2023

  Mr. JACKSON of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in celebration of 
Mrs. Thomas's 90th birthday, which is on January 7th, Mrs. Iris Darcine 
Bowie (Andrew) Thomas R.N., was born on January 7, 1933, and grew up in 
Yellowpine, Texas. She graduated from Texas College where she was a 
member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Alpha Tau Chapter in 1951. 
With a heart and calling for a career in nursing, she attended 
Provident School of Nursing., Chicago, IL. She then met a young medical 
student, Dr. Andrew L. Thomas, and they married on June 12, 1960. They 
spent their honeymoon in Ghana studying tropical diseases, and later 
traveled to the People's Republic of China, Syria, Lebanon, and Saudi 
Arabia to champion the cause of providing quality medical services to 
all people. Always concerned about access to care, Dr. Thomas launched 
Project Seventy-Five in 1966, a national effort to maintain and 
increase the number of minority students in the healthcare field.
  Mrs. Thomas was also the first Black supervisor in nursing education 
at Michael Reese Hospital. Later, she was a teacher at the In Service 
Education Department at La Rabida Children's Hospital for the 
chronically ill, where she earned the Outstanding Nurse of the Year 
award. She retired from John Stroger (formerly Cook County) Hospital as 
Nurse Coordinator at the Referral Center in 2009.
  She is the mother of 2 children, Mrs. Darcine Adelia (Howard) March, 
Beverly Hills, CA, and Dr. Andre L'ouverture (Pamela) Thomas, 
Orthopedic Surgeon, Del Rio, TX. And the grandmother of 5: Andrew L. 
Thomas, II, D.D.S. Howard University College of Dentistry anticipated 
in 2024, Maiah Lynette Thomas, 2022 graduate, Howard University, Chloe 
Thomas, Sophomore Howard University, Lalia Thomas and Gabriel March.
  We have shared a fence for more than 50 years and Mrs. Thomas is the 
greatest neighbor I could have. On behalf of the First Congressional 
District of IIlinois, it is my honor and privilege to recognize Mrs. 
Thomas on her 90th birthday and I wish her continued health and 
happiness.

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