[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 7]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 9970]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       TRIBUTE TO NORTH MIAMI POLICE DETECTIVE KATHLEEN RUGGIERO

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. KENDRICK B. MEEK

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 29, 2003

  Mr. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to a 
wonderful human being and a magnificent pubic servant symbolized by 
North Miami Police Detective Kathleen Ruggiero. On Sunday, May 4, 2003, 
at the Miami Shores Country Club, she will be honored by the Knights of 
Columbus, Marian Council #3757 of North Miami, Florida, at a festivity 
dinner dubbed appropriately as ``American Night''.
  Officer Ruggiero came to the North Miami Police Department in 1984 
after working as a trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol for five 
years. The citation for this gala event defines ``.  .  . her loyal 
service to the community of North Miami and the Community she has 
created by her care and concern of children.'' Above all, however, this 
officer is more saliently characterized by her deep faith in the God 
she serves through those unloved and unfortunate children whom Divine 
Providence has deigned to send to her home. Being a loving mother to 
her own five children, she has taken upon herself the awesome 
responsibility of providing the same brand of love and affection to 
many more children who have been either abandoned or left at her 
doorsteps.
  These children have often been victims of domestic violence or have 
been shortchanged by the absence of basic family care. The children 
range in age from 1 to 12 years old, including newly-born babies she 
saved from a trash bin elsewhere. With her husband Walter, Officer 
Ruggiero truly represents the best and the noblest of our community. 
She exudes remarkable wisdom and compassion in tirelessly serving her 
North Miami community and beyond, and still manages to enlighten her 
fellow citizens on the agenda of conscientious public service and good 
governance impacting our duties and responsibilities toward the less 
fortunate.
  Along with countless others in Miami-Dade County, I am indeed a 
fortunate beneficiary of the brand of genuine advocacy she demonstrates 
both by way of word and example, buttressing her unconditional love for 
and commitment to the children uprooted from a home bereft of love and 
care. I have learned from her the centrality of God in our daily lives, 
conscious of the fact that the mandate of our Judeo-Christian Faith 
must characterize our actions toward those who could least fend for 
themselves.
  As she wakes up before the crack of dawn on each given day, she 
begins her domestic chores from mopping the floor to doing the laundry 
to preparing the morning breakfast for her brood, fully cognizant that 
she will always have a full day ahead of her. It is during these early 
morning hours of quiet solitude that she is enveloped by the loving 
presence of God, becoming conscious of her own Christian stewardship 
that God's work on earth must truly become her own.
  Lovingly called ``Mother Kathy,'' by her household and her own 
neighborhood, she simply admits that ``. . . It's not easy. I'm not 
looking at this like an 18- or 19-year-old would. I should be at the 
age probably where I don't have any kids and I'm going on cruises. But 
that wouldn't make me happy. I'm going to change those little lives.'' 
Indeed, making a little bit of difference in the lives of abandoned 
children is her genuine way of changing the kind of world to which she 
was given to serve.
  The Sun Sentinel aptly describes her as ``. . . a woman of few 
pretenses (who) goes by the distance . . . By helping these children 
you do so much more than help an individual. Even though I adopted 
these kids, my door will always be open . . .'' Indeed, Officer 
Ruggiero has truly become the consummate public servant and community 
activist who abides by the dictum that children who have less in life, 
through no fault of their own, should have more from those of us 
fortunate enough to have received greater blessings from God. The 
collective testimony from the parents, community leaders and residents 
of North Miami represents an unequivocal testimony of the utmost 
respect and gratitude she enjoys.
  With the American Night's Gala Tribute to her, our community is 
deeply touched by her undaunted quiet leadership and perseverance. As a 
public servant, she preaches and lives by the adage that, under God's 
Providence, our quest for personal nobility and professional excellence 
is not beyond the reach of those willing to dare the impossible. As a 
genuine steward of God, she has indeed earned our deepest respects and 
remarkable admiration.
  I am truly privileged to represent her and her family in the 
Congress, and I am grateful that she continues to teach us to live by 
the noble ethic of loving God by serving our fellowmen. Above all, her 
utmost caring and compassion for helpless little children appeal to the 
noblest character of our humanity. My pride in sharing her friendship 
is only exceeded by my deep gratitude for all that she has done to 
uplift our honor and dignity.
  This is the magnificent legacy with which we will always honor 
Officer Kathleen Ruggiero.

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