[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 15911]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


               HONORING THE LIFE OF TESS MANALO-VENTRESCA

                                 ______
                                 

                               TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 13, 2005

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in sadness to honor the 
extraordinary life and service of Tess Manalo-Ventresca. Ms. Manalo-
Ventresca died on Tuesday, July 12th, 2005 of complications from heart 
surgery. I wish to offer my sincere condolences to her husband Joel 
Ventresca, her family and friends.
  Tess Manalo-Ventresca's passing is a loss for the people of the 12th 
Congressional district. Tess was an extraordinary human being, one we 
all can look up to in hopes of serving our community as selflessly as 
she did. For the past 30 years Tess played a vital role in the Bay Area 
community, volunteering in the Haight Ashbury, the Tenderloin and the 
Sunset districts of San Francisco. She donated her time to numerous 
causes, from helping local youths to assisting underserved communities, 
to promoting small, local businesses and neighborhood safety. Most 
recently she was a volunteer with Experience Corps at the Sunset Beacon 
Center. For the past five years she participated in this program, which 
places older adult volunteers in public schools to provide tutoring for 
children in need.
  Ms. Manalo-Ventresca never looked for accolades, no matter how richly 
deserved; nevertheless they were showered upon her. Earlier this year, 
she was named California Woman of the Year by the California State 
Assembly and was chosen to be an Asian Pacific American 2005 Local Hero 
by KQED. In April she was selected for a MetLife Foundation Older 
Volunteers Enrich America Award.
  Just last April my wife Annette and I met with Tess. I could not 
then, and can not now, express adequately the appreciation I have for 
the incredible work she did throughout her lifetime. The Sunset, the 
Bay Area and the country need more people like Tess. To the very end 
Tess was working on projects to help children live up to their 
potential and to improve the neighborhoods in which we live.
  Tess helped give children a brighter future, a gift that will live on 
with us forever. The joy she brought to life will never be forgotten.

                          ____________________