[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 201 (Wednesday, December 6, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1173-E1174]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     REMEMBERING THE LIFE OF THE LATE HONORABLE TAMMY MARIE STEWART

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. TROY A. CARTER

                              of louisiana

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 6, 2023

  Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the 
Late Honorable Tammy Marie Stewart, the most senior judge on the 
Orleans Parish Juvenile Court bench. She passed away after a brief 
illness at the tender age of 53.
  As a judge, Stewart won over attorneys on both sides of the aisle. 
The Old Testament scripture teaches us that the office of judgeship in 
the tribal confederacy of the Israelites was centered in a covenant 
relationship with Yahweh and that judges arose as Yahweh saw fit to 
lead erring and repentant people to restoration. Knowing the work He 
would have our beloved do, God endued this beautiful soul with 
charisma, a spiritual power enabling her to judge and influence those 
she would encounter. He ordained her to be born to her earthly parents, 
Benjamin Armond Stewart, Jr., and Dianne Mary LeBlanc-Stewart, on 
Thursday, February 26, 1997, in New Orleans, Louisiana. This judge in 
training enjoyed a blessed and contented life with siblings Tracy and 
Benjamin III, where her life qualities and love of law were nurtured in 
her heart by her mother's service as an administrator in Traffic Court.
  Her formative education began at Phillips Elementary. And as a 
student at Phillips Junior High, she was honored to carry the title 
``Miss Phillips Junior High.'' After graduating from John F. Kennedy 
Senior High School, she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in 
Political Science from Southern University at New Orleans, where her 
grace, beauty, and intellectual prowess gave rise to her being elected 
Miss SUNO. Never one to stand on her laurels, she pursued her goal and 
was granted her Juris Doctor from The Ohio State University College of 
Law, Columbus, Ohio.
  ``You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the 
poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your 
neighbor.'' Leviticus 19:15 ESV
  Returning to her beloved New Orleans, she began her legal experience 
serving at the New Orleans Legal Assistance, Family Law Unit as a 
Summer Law Clerk, an Assistant District Attorney in the Orleans Parish 
District Attorney's Office under Harry Connick, Juvenile, Magistrate, 
and Trial Divisions; an Associate Attorney at Hailey, McNamara, Hall, 
Larmann and Papale, L.L.P; a Trial Attorney at Casler, Bordelon, and 
McGinty; and a Senior Associate at Spears and Spears.
  Her judicial experience began in 2002 when the Louisiana Supreme 
Court appointed her; she served the First City Court of New Orleans as 
Judge Pro-Tempore until 2007. The Honorable Tammy Stewart served as an 
Orleans Parish Juvenile Court Judge since 2009, wherein she presided 
over juvenile cases involving delinquency, Families in Need of Services 
(FINS), and adoptions.
  ``Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the rights of the 
poor and needy.'' Proverbs 31:9 ESV
  The Nationwide Registry of Who's Who in Executives and Businesses 
recognized Judge Stewart as an Honored Professional. Well-rounded and 
socially conscious, she was a former board member of Innocence Project 
New Orleans and a former adjunct professor of Criminal Justice at 
Southern University in New Orleans. Judge Stewart volunteered with the 
Louisiana SPCA, the Humane Society, and the Louisiana State Bar 
Association's Secret Santa Project, where she worked as a liaison with 
organizations such as Boys Hope Girls Hope and Head Start. Judge 
Stewart was also a member of the Advisory Committee to the Supreme 
Court for the Revision of the Code of Judicial Conduct and served as 
Judge Pro Tempore in First City Court (2003 through 2007); and was a 
member of the Franklin Avenue Baptist Church.
  Professionally, she held memberships and affiliations in the 
Louisiana State Bar Association, Louisiana Judicial Council, National 
Bar Association, American Bar Association, New Orleans Bar Association, 
Fourth and Fifth Circuit Judges Association, Louisiana Council of 
Juvenile and Family Court Judges, Louisiana District Judges 
Association, Fourth Circuit Judges Association, Alpha Kappa Alpha 
Sorority, Inc., Metropolitan Area Committee, Leadership Forum Graduate 
Municipal Yach Harbor Corporation, former Board Member Association for 
Women Attorneys, Most Senior Judge of Juvenile Court of New Orleans 
National Association of Women Judges, National Bar Association, 
National Association of Women Judges, National Judicial College Project 
One: One-Family, One-Judge Louis A. Martinet Legal Society, Inc., and 
the Black Law Student Association.

[[Page E1174]]

  On Monday, July 24, 2023, at half past two in the morning, our Lord 
and Savior dispatched His angel to carry this beautiful soul home. She 
was preceded in death by her grandparents, Eddie LeBlanc Sr., Florence 
LeBlanc, Benjamin Stewart, Sr., and Martha Stewart; her aunt Jenette 
LeBlanc, Uncle Larry O. LeBlanc, and her beloved dog Mocha.
  Judge Stewart's memory will be forever cherished by her beloved son, 
Dylan Jackson, whom she shared with Calvin Jackson; her parents, 
Benjamin Armond Stewart, Jr. (Regina) and Dianne Mary LeBlanc-Stewart 
(Harry Albert); sister Tracy Stewart Hill (Gregory); brother Benjamin 
Armond Stewart, III (Rachel); Stepbrothers David Gillard, Daniel 
Gillard (Chanitra), and Dominick Gillard; Godchildren Tyler Phillip 
McMahon and Karina Angelique Brown; a host of aunts, uncles, nephews, 
nieces, other relatives; good friends Glenn Jones, Andrea Foster, and 
Tina Haines; civic and judicial associates, and the legion of youth she 
represented.
  Her life, legacy, and impact on our community will forever be 
remembered.

                          ____________________