[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 195 (Wednesday, November 19, 2025)]
[House]
[Page H4776]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF JACK FECIO

  (Mr. Kennedy of New York was recognized to address the House for 5 
minutes.)
  Mr. KENNEDY of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a heavy heart 
to honor the life and legacy of my dear friend, Jack Fecio, who passed 
away on November 2 at the age of 79.
  He was a man whose faith, generosity, and deep love for our community 
and his Irish heritage left an indelible mark on Buffalo and beyond.
  Jack was more than a friend. He was family to so many of us in 
Buffalo's Irish community. He embodied the best of what it means to be 
Irish, not just in ancestry but in spirit. He was warm, humble, and 
fiercely devoted to our community. Jack carried himself with the quiet 
strength and wry humor that is as much a part of Ireland's heart as its 
green hills and rocky coasts.
  Buffalo's Irish community has always been built on the simple but 
powerful values of faith, family, and service. No one lived those 
values more fully than Jack. Whether he was greeting friends at the 
Buffalo Irish Center or lending a hand to those in need, Jack showed up 
with open arms and a full heart.
  For decades, Jack dedicated himself to the Irish Center in the heart 
of south Buffalo. He believed deeply in the center's importance to the 
Irish and Irish Americans who call western New York home. He knew that 
our heritage is something we share and something that binds generations 
together in our community. Through his leadership, that spirit of 
togetherness grew stronger year after year.
  Jack and his beloved wife, Maureen, extended that generosity far 
beyond Buffalo. As codirectors of the Belfast Summer Relief Program for 
over two decades, they opened their hearts and their home to children 
from the north of Ireland. Through their work, they welcomed over 1,800 
kids to our community in western New York, giving them a chance to 
experience peace, friendship, and hope at a time marked by terrible 
conflict.
  Jack and Maureen helped bridge divides with love and hospitality. 
That is who they were. That is what their faith taught them.
  Jack's love for his family was deep and unwavering. His cherished 
children, John and Jennifer, and his precious granddaughters, Madeline 
and Maeve, should know that their father and grandfather's legacy lives 
on in them and the countless lives he impacted across the globe.
  I thank his wife, Maureen, for so graciously sharing Jack's light 
with all of us.
  Jack Fecio's life was one filled with service to others, including 
one of his greatest joys: serving as a volunteer firefighter. Countless 
Buffalonians, Irish Americans, and Irish citizens are better off today 
for having known Jack.
  Today, we honor Jack for the heritage he preserved, the families he 
embraced, and the bridges he built. I ask my colleagues to join me in 
paying tribute to Jack Fecio and in holding the Fecio family in our 
prayers and in our hearts as they grieve a man who gave so much to us 
all. May we all strive to carry forward his generosity, his humility, 
and his unwavering commitment to others.
  ``May his soul be at the right hand of God''; ``Ar dheis De go raibh 
a anam.''
  On behalf of a grateful community and nation, may Jack Fecio rest in 
peace.

                          ____________________