[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 207 (Tuesday, December 9, 2025)]
[House]
[Pages H5097-H5098]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
MARY ELIZABETH ``BETTIE'' COLE POST OFFICE BUILDING
Mr. GILL of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass
the bill (H.R. 1461) to designate the facility of the United States
Postal Service located at 521 Thorn Street in Sewickley, Pennsylvania,
as the ``Mary Elizabeth `Bettie' Cole Post Office Building''.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1461
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. MARY ELIZABETH ``BETTIE'' COLE POST OFFICE
BUILDING.
(a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal
Service located at 521 Thorn Street in Sewickley,
Pennsylvania, shall be known and designated as the ``Mary
Elizabeth `Bettie' Cole Post Office Building''.
(b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation,
document, paper, or other record of the United States to the
facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be
a reference to the ``Mary Elizabeth `Bettie' Cole Post Office
Building''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Gill) and the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Randall) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
General Leave
Mr. GILL of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their
remarks and include extraneous material on this measure.
[[Page H5098]]
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Texas?
There was no objection.
Mr. GILL of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill, which would rename a
post office in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, for Mary Elizabeth ``Bettie''
Cole.
Mrs. Cole served as the associate director of office services,
director of the mailing department at Point Park College, local
historian, and beloved member of her community.
Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support this bill, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 1461.
Bettie Cole was a longstanding community leader in her home State of
Pennsylvania.
Born in Edgeworth on April 5, 1923, she studied journalism and
communications. Later in 2000, she became known as the historian of
Sewickley Valley's Black community. That year she published ``Their
Story: The History of Blacks/African Americans in Sewickley and
Edgeworth,'' documenting an often overlooked part of the local
community. Her book was published after 20 years of research, including
more than 100 interviews.
I commend my colleague, Congressman Deluzio, for advocating on behalf
of his constituents and bringing this bill to the floor. I encourage my
colleagues to join me in honoring the life of Bettie Cole by naming a
post office in Pennsylvania after her.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GILL of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Deluzio).
Mr. DELUZIO. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding and
the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gill) for his support.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask this Chamber to honor and
memorialize a beloved western Pennsylvania community leader, local
historian, and author by voting ``yes'' on H.R. 1461.
Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Cole, fondly called Bettie by those who knew her
and loved her, was born in Edgeworth, Pennsylvania, on April 5, 1923.
She moved to nearby Sewickley, Pennsylvania, in 1939, where she spent
the rest of her life. She was a 1940 graduate of Sewickley High School,
and shortly after graduation, she married and had two daughters who she
raised and nurtured.
Many years later, in 1988, she retired from Point Park College, now
Point Park University, as the associate director of office services and
the director of the mailing department.
While she worked at Point Park, Mrs. Cole earned her associate of
arts degree in journalism and communications. She was inducted into the
Alpha Sigma Lambda, a National Honor Society for part-time students, as
one of the 13 charter members of Point Park Gamma Epsilon chapter. She
boasted at the time she was possibly and proudly the chapter's eldest
member and nearly its only grandmother.
She put what she learned at Point Park to work for the benefit of her
community, Quaker Valley, and beyond.
Mrs. Cole was passionate about the history of her family and the
community in her hometowns.
For 20 years, she conducted countless hours of historic research,
including interviewing more than 100 community members. In 2000, that
work came to fruition with the publication of her book titled, ``Their
Story: The History of Blacks/African Americans in Sewickley &
Edgeworth.'' It was a one-of-a-kind documentation of a significant and
often-overlooked part of the Sewickley Valley community's history and
heritage.
Mrs. Cole passed away in 2016 at the age of 92, leaving behind a
family and community proud of her contributions. I think those merit
recognition, and what better way to memorialize Mrs. Cole and her work
than by putting her name on the post office in the community she loved
and chronicled. That history in Sewickley is a rich one, and Mrs.
Bettie Cole is a key part of telling that shared story.
The Sewickley Borough Post Office at 521 Thorn Street is a beautiful,
historical building. It would become an even more meaningful historical
marker for the community if it were renamed the Mary Elizabeth
``Bettie'' Cole Post Office Building.
H.R. 1461 was cosponsored by the entire Pennsylvania congressional
delegation, Democrats and Republicans alike. I thank my colleagues for
their support, and I ask this Chamber's ``yea'' vote on H.R. 1461.
Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I urge the passage of H.R. 1461, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. GILL of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I encourage my House colleagues to
support this bill naming a post office for Mary Elizabeth ``Bettie''
Cole, a local historian and beloved community member.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gill) that the House suspend the rules and
pass the bill, H.R. 1461.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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