[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 18]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 26332]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                       A TRIBUTE TO LEEROY CLARK

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JAMES A. BARCIA

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 5, 2000

  Mr. BARCIA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join me 
in praising the work and life of Tuscola County Human Development 
Commission Chairman LeeRoy Clark upon the occasion of the dedication of 
the LeeRoy Clark Center to serve the everyday needs of senior citizens.
  For more than 35 years, LeeRoy has quietly applied his keen intellect 
and loving heart to improving the lives of friends, neighbors and 
strangers, while simultaneously overcoming the intolerance of less-
enlightened minds. The breadth of LeeRoy's involvement and influence on 
his community cannot be underestimated or overvalued. In fact, a simple 
list of the many civic, educational and labor organizations that have 
benefitted from his leadership would take up several newspaper columns. 
No work log or time sheet is large enough to reflect his humanitarian 
commitment.
  His work on the Human Development Commission and the community action 
movement has spanned four decades, beginning in 1965. LeeRoy has served 
as Commission Chairman for 31 of those years. He is also a board member 
of the Michigan Community Action Agency Association and is in the 40th 
year as an elected member of his township board.
  Those who know LeeRoy have long praised him for his quiet and 
thoughtful lead-by-example approach. His efforts have immeasurably 
enhanced many lives by feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, 
finding work for the jobless at a fair and just wage, easing the burden 
of the impaired and leveling the playing field for minorities and the 
disadvantaged.
  Although LeeRoy, who resides in Millington, Michigan, has received 
many accolades for his volunteer work, he has never sought such 
recognition. His wife, Billie, says he prefers ``the appreciation that 
someone shows him by a handshake, a smile, sending a note or taking the 
time to say thank-you.''
  I hope my colleagues will join me today in publicly honoring LeeRoy 
Clark with the official gratitude of the United States House of 
Representatives for a lifetime of compassionate endeavors that have 
earned the handshakes and appreciative smiles of an entire community.

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