[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 2]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 1789]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



        IN MEMORY OF MARY M. BRANNEGAN OF PAWCATUCK, CONNECTICUT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. SAM GEJDENSON

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 29, 2000

  Mr. GEJDENSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a very heavy heart to 
offer a few words in memory of Mary Mullaney Brannegan of Pawcatuck, 
Connecticut. Mary was my friend and an outstanding public servant in 
the southeastern Connecticut for decades. She will be missed by 
countless members of the community whose lives she touched during her 
long and meaningful life.
  Mary was born in Pawcatuck in 1908 and lived in the same house her 
entire life. Early in her career, she was a teacher in the business 
department of Stonington High School until her retirement in the 1950s. 
Over many years, she served as a clerk in the office of probate judge 
and for a brief period as judge of probate. She was well-known by 
everyone in Town Hall. Later in life, she was an active volunteer with 
the Pawcatuck Neighborhood Center, which provides a range of essential 
services to residents in the community. She was affectionately known as 
the ``daffodil lady'' because she sold bouquets of daffodils each year 
to raise funds for the Center.
  Mary was also the pillar of the Democratic party in Stonington for 
many decades. In this capacity, she helped every Democratic leader--
including this member--to understand that our party represents the 
interest of working Americans who have made this country great. To her 
final days, she had an acute political sense and understood the pulse 
of the community better than anyone.
  Mr. Speaker, Mary has been widely remembered as a friend, a mentor 
and a leader. She reached out to every member of the community and had 
an extended family which is too numerous to count. Everyone who knew 
her will remember her fondly. I extend my deepest sympathy to her son 
and daughter. We can take comfort in the fact that Mary Brannegan's 
memory will endure in Pawcatuck through her many good deeds, years of 
service and friendships.

                          ____________________