[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 106 (Tuesday, June 25, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H4125-H4126]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING TERRI LEGIERSKI

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Kennedy) for 5 minutes.

[[Page H4126]]

  

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. Speaker, on February 19, 2024, western New York, the 
Communications Workers of America, and organized labor lost a towering 
figure: Terri Legierski.
  Terri was a prominent member of CWA Local 1133 in Buffalo. She served 
as the legislative and political director, working tirelessly to 
further the ideas of union advocacy and workers' rights across the 
region, the State, and the Nation.
  Terri was widely known for her energy and positivity in the fight for 
the labor movement. She was passionate and endlessly dedicated to the 
cause. Her work wasn't limited just to words, although she had no 
qualms in telling you what was on her mind.
  It was also evident in her actions. Terri was committed to making 
things better for the next generation of workers, and she refused to 
take ``no'' for an answer.
  As an elected official, I had the honor of knowing Terri for many 
years, and I had the privilege of calling her my friend. With Terri, 
you knew that she was going to fight until the end, and that extended 
to the political arena. If she believed in a candidate and their 
values, she was going to do everything in her power to ensure that they 
won.
  She helped to form the political landscape of western New York from 
city councils to mayors, town boards to supervisors, county legislators 
and executives, State assembly members and Senators, and Members of 
Congress.
  Whether it was a reception, a rally, or a picket line, Terri could 
work a crowd better than anyone. She was not the tallest person, but 
finding her was never a struggle because she would be front and center 
with a beaming smile and always dressed to impress in her CWA red.
  I vividly remember her outside Mercy Hospital in south Buffalo during 
the Catholic Health strike, fighting with every ounce of strength she 
could muster to make sure that the workers' demands were heard loud and 
clear, and you know what? They were, with the workers soon after coming 
to a hard-fought and well-deserved agreement with the hospital system, 
ensuring not just fair pay and benefits for a hard day's work, but just 
as importantly, ensuring safer nurse-to-patient ratios because they 
knew that safe staffing saves lives. It is because of her work securing 
that contract, Terri Legierski saved lives.
  As a former State Senator, one of the highlights of any legislative 
session was ACA's advocacy days. She would be there with her brothers 
and sisters in labor, advocating for critical legislation and teaching 
new members why civic engagement is so important.
  Terri and I were always connected in the struggle for workers' rights 
and better healthcare environments for the workforce, which provided 
for better outcomes for those that they cared for.

                              {time}  1230

  Whether that is safe patient handling, safe staffing, helping 
striking workers get access to unemployment benefits, or raising the 
minimum wage, if it was good for workers, Terri fought tooth and nail 
for it. Her track record speaks for itself. Every one of those issues 
was addressed by the New York State legislature.
  In her final months, Terri worked through her illness, never letting 
the struggle for workers' rights take a back seat to her own needs.
  In Terri's last days, she communicated that one of her greatest 
regrets in passing on was that she would not be there to watch me be 
sworn in on the floor of the House of Representatives.
  However, Terri was very much in this room on May 6. Her spirit 
continues to be with us and resonates in the work that we do each and 
every day, as it will be as we carry on her legacy in the fight for 
workers and for the rights of organized labor everywhere.
  She is survived by her husband, Mike; children, Tommy and Megan; 
daughter-in-law, Veronica; and grandchildren, Landon and Declan.
  To Terri's immediate and extended family, all of western New York and 
supporters of organized labor mourn with you, and we thank you for 
sharing such a genuine and magnificent soul with us.
  The world is a better place because Terri Legierski worked to make it 
so, and in her memory, we will continue that movement forward. May she 
rest in peace.

                          ____________________