[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 21]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 29285-29286]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      A TRIBUTE TO RALPH DICKERSON, JR. AND GLORIA DENNA DICKERSON

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. EDOLPHUS TOWNS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 17, 2003

  Mr. TOWNS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in honor of Ralph and Gloria Dickerson 
in recognition of their commitment and service to their community.

[[Page 29286]]

  Ralph Dickerson, Jr. has served honorably as the President of United 
Way of New York City since May 1988. As President of United Way of New 
York City, he has led the organization into the position of being the 
largest private funder of health and human services in New York City 
and as a major force in forging bold new solutions to the city's most 
critical human care challenges.
  Under his leadership, United Way of New York City's revenue has grown 
from $75.1 million to $135 million, making it the largest United Way in 
the nation. In addition, United Way of New York City has used its 
extensive knowledge of community-based human service agencies to broker 
and partner with government, foundations and business in ground 
breaking initiatives that are successfully addressing the city's human 
care issues and the high dropout rate.
  Ralph has held key executive positions for 30 years in local United 
Ways including St. Louis, Missouri; Madison, Wisconsin; Cleveland, 
Ohio; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He holds a B.S. in Business 
Administration; and he received a M.B.A. from the University of 
Wisconsin.
  Ralph and Gloria are the proud parents of two children, daughter, 
Maria Renee (deceased), and Ralph III. Their son, Ralph III and 
daughter-in-law, Michelle, have given them two grandsons, Cameron and 
Garrett and a granddaughter, Lauren.
  Gloria is the President of Maral Enterprises, Inc., The Learning 
Tree, and Copy Bee, which she started in May 1988. Maral is a 
children's book distribution company while the Learning Tree, and Copy 
Bee are retail stores offering teachers, parents and children a full 
line of educational books, materials and learning guides. This 
entrepreneurial business came about as a result of Mrs. Dickerson's 
written bibliography and review of children's books mostly written by 
African-American authors.
  Prior to this business venture, she served as Assistant Dean at the 
University of Wisconsin and Cleveland State University. She began her 
career as a special education teacher. Gloria holds a B.S. in Special 
Education, an M.S. degree, and completed her work toward a Ph.D. in 
educational psychology at the University of Missouri.
  Gloria serves on educational, civic and volunteer organizations, 
boards and as a Trustee at her daughter's school, The Winchester 
Thurston in Pittsburgh. She is a member of several professional 
organizations including the Alpha Kappa Alpha National Sorority.
  Ralph has served as a Director with several civic and corporate 
organizations and has received numerous city awards and honorary 
degrees. He was also inducted into the Alpha Kappa Psi Honorary 
Business Fraternity.
  Mr. Speaker, Ralph and Gloria Dickerson have both made significant 
contributions to their community through both their professional and 
voluntary endeavors. As such, they are more than worthy of receiving 
our recognition today and I urge my colleagues to join me in honoring 
these truly remarkable people.

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