[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 33 (Friday, February 23, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E172]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING PHYLLIS HANCOCK AS A DISTINGUISHED LEADER IN CENTRAL FLORIDA 
                        FOR BLACK HISTORY MONTH

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. DARREN SOTO

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, February 23, 2024

  Mr. SOTO. Mr. Speaker, Phyllis Hancock has been the president of the 
A. Philip Randolph Institute (APRI) Orlando, Florida chapter, for over 
20 years serving Orange, Osceola, Seminole, and Lake Counties. A. 
Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin founded the A. Philip Randolph 
Institute in 1965 to continue the struggle for racial equality, 
political, and economic justice for all working Americans. APRI is the 
senior constituency group of the American Federation of Labor and 
Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). APRI consists primarily 
of trade unionists. Phyllis has been a member of the Communications 
Workers of America (CWA) since 1975. Local CWA 3108 Orlando is where 
she found her passion for working in the Black community.
  Along with the support of her members, she has engaged the community 
along with students at the Evans High School ROTC in the nonpartisan 
get-out-the-vote campaign, voter registration/education, sign waving, 
phone banks, restoration of civil rights, and canvassing within Black 
communities. APRI hosted voter education activities in local churches, 
union halls, and community centers in Congressman Darren Soto's 
district. Phyllis' joy comes from watching students enhance their 
community pride.
  Phyllis has run unopposed throughout her tenure partly due to her 
God-given, harmonious leadership ability. She built the largest APRI 
chapter in Florida under the direction of the APRI national President 
Clayola Brown. Her sisters, Sharon, and Fonda were natural leaders. 
Phyllis' leadership ability was taught and sparked by her mother, Mae 
Belle Whitley Hancock, Pete Bohaczyk, her Campbell Middle School 
history teacher, and membership in the Church of Christ.
  Phyllis is the middle daughter of three girls born to Jadie and Mae 
Belle Hancock, Jr. She is a second-generation union member. As a child, 
she watched her parents host civil rights meetings.
  Jadie, a member of the Transport Workers Union, used his influence to 
help Black people obtain employment at the Kennedy Space Center.
  On February 22, 2024, Phyllis Hancock was honored as a distinguished 
leader in Central Florida for Black History Month.

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