[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 18]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 24854]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO JACK BASKIN

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ANNA G. ESHOO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, November 3, 2005

  Ms. ESHOO. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Farr and I rise today to honor an 
extraordinary citizen of our community, Jack Baskin. Throughout his 
life, Mr. Baskin has made significant contributions to the betterment 
of Santa Cruz County and he is held in the highest regard throughout 
our region.
  Jack Baskin, now a retired engineer and general contractor, was born 
in upstate New York, the son of immigrants. During the Great Depression 
his family made many sacrifices in order for him to go to college, and 
he was the first member of his family to do so. He attended the 
University of Colorado where he studied mechanical engineering, later 
transferring to New York University where he earned his B.S. in 
aeronautical engineering.
  After serving as an aeronautical engineer during World War II, Mr. 
Baskin moved West and in 1948, acquired his California Professional 
Engineers License. He settled in Central California, and founded Jack 
Baskin, Inc., focusing on building affordable housing in the San 
Francisco area, in Santa Cruz and in Watsonville.
  Jack Baskin is dedicated to his community and has given generously to 
it. Among the local organizations that are beneficiaries of Mr. 
Baskin's time and donations are Cabrillo College and Dominican 
Hospital. He was the founder of the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz 
County, and he has participated in many other organizations for 
children, families, and senior citizens. The University of California, 
Santa Cruz, UCSC, has been a long time recipient of Mr. Baskin's 
extensive contributions. His donations have supported computer 
engineering, instruction in the arts, the Institute of Marine Sciences, 
Shakespeare Santa Cruz, an endowed chair in psychology, and a 
scholarship in literature. Mr. Baskin chaired the UC Santa Cruz 
Foundation for 2 years and remains a trustee. His commitment to 
education is memorialized by two prominent buildings named in his honor 
on the UCSC campus.
  Jack Baskin is a model citizen and a highly respected member of the 
community. Thousands of individuals have benefited from his generosity 
and dedication to higher education and community health care.
  Mr. Speaker, Jack Baskin's life is an eloquent statement about what 
one committed citizen can do. We ask all our colleagues to join us in 
honoring him for all he has done to strengthen our community and to 
make our country better.

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