[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 19]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 27118]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO PERKINS T. SHELTON

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JIM DAVIS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 4, 2003

  Mr. DAVIS of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise in honor of Perkins T. 
Shelton, a relentless fighter for equal rights and equal 
representation.
  Perkins Shelton came to St. Petersburg thirty years ago and was a 
driving force in our community ever since. A leader in the St. 
Petersburg branch of the NAACP, he was elected secretary of the branch 
at the age of 88. Mr. Shelton was a mentor to numerous black leaders in 
the community and was a constant voice encouraging blacks to become 
active in the political process.
  Most notably, Perkins Shelton left an indelible mark on our voting 
system. After successfully fighting to replace Florida's multi-member 
legislative districts with single-member districts, Mr. Shelton worked 
to obtain equal representation in Pinellas County. A driving force for 
fair representation for all voters, Mr. Shelton was a leader in 
securing four single-member district representatives on the Pinellas 
County Commission.
  An advocate of continuing education, Mr. Shelton went back to school 
to become a paralegal, specializing in elder law. Working for Gulf 
Coast Legal Services, he fought discrimination against the elderly. Mr. 
Shelton never gave up the fight--he was even writing letters on behalf 
of the St. Petersburg Commission on Aging at age 91.
  Mr. Shelton was a Walter Mondale delegate to the 1984 Democratic 
National Convention. He served on the Environmental Development 
Commission, Housing Authority and Fair Housing Board and was a chairman 
of the legislative committee of the St. Petersburg Council on Human 
Relations. In 1988, the City of St. Petersburg gave Mr. Shelton a 
Senior Hall of Fame Award in honor of all his contributions to our 
community.
  St. Petersburg is undoubtably a better place to live thanks to 
Perkins Shelton. On behalf of our community, I would like to extend my 
deepest sympathies to Mr. Shelton's family. His impact will not be 
forgotten.

                          ____________________