[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 23466]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               A TRIBUTE TO THE HONORABLE ROSEMARY STASEK

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ANNA G. ESHOO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 30, 2009

  Ms. ESHOO. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the extraordinary 
life and work of my friend and fellow public servant Rosemary Stasek 
who passed away at the age of 46 on September 24, 2009, in Afghanistan. 
Rosemary is survived by her beloved husband, Morne Du Preez of South 
Africa, her parents Patricia and Andrew Stasek of McAdoo, Pennsylvania 
and many other loved ones.
  Rosemary was born in 1963 and raised in northeast Pennsylvania. She 
graduated from Cornell University with a Bachelor's Degree in 
Economics, the first person in her family to graduate from college. She 
was a Dean's List student and manager of the football and wrestling 
teams.
  Rosemary served two terms on the City Council in Mountain View, 
California, located in the 14th Congressional District. She was elected 
to her first term in 1996, re-elected in 2000, served as Vice Mayor in 
1999 and as Mayor for the year 2000. She represented the City in many 
regional, statewide and national forums, specializing in issues 
pertaining to housing and homeland security. She was committed to many 
City initiatives and fought to protect the environment, youth programs 
and services, diversity, parks and trails and the public open space. 
She served on the City Council at a time when they took critical steps 
to meet the need for affordable housing in the community, downtown 
revitalization, increased transportation options, and new business 
developments. Current Mayor Margaret Abe-Koga notes, ``Our City was 
blessed to have known such a dedicated and talented person. Our 
community has benefitted from her tireless efforts and leadership on 
behalf of everyone, but especially those who are most in need. This is 
a loss that is felt throughout Mountain View and countless parts of the 
world she has touched . . .''
  In addition to serving on the Mountain View City Council, Rosemary 
had a broad history of political involvement, especially women's 
issues. She served on the Board of Planned Parenthood Advocates Mar 
Monte and the Santa Clara County Commission on the Status of Women. Her 
honors included being named a Distinguished Woman of the 14th 
Congressional District, the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Rights 
Freedom of Religion Award, and the Alameda National Women's Political 
Caucus Pro-Choice Champion Award. She was also a nominee for the 
Silicon Valley Women of Achievement Award and was a candidate for the 
California State Assembly in March 2002.
  In 1999 she was selected by the Secretary of Defense to participate 
in the Joint Civilian Orientation Conference, which took her to 
military installations across the country and aboard an aircraft 
carrier in the Pacific Ocean. She broadened her knowledge of military 
affairs, especially issues involving women serving in the Armed Forces. 
She served as a member of the U.S. Air Force Space Commanders Group.
  Rosemary also worked for over a decade in the computer industry as a 
web developer and system administrator for prominent high tech firms in 
Silicon Valley. As always, she was dedicated to making a difference for 
the next generation and spent six years as an instructor at De Anza 
Community College teaching Introduction to Microcomputer Networks. She 
was also a certified substitute high school teacher for social 
sciences, English and special education classes, and taught in the Palo 
Alto Unified School District.
  Rosemary's interest in international issues took her to Nepal, 
Ecuador, France, Britain, Holland, Germany, Italy, The United Arab 
Emirates, The Czech and Slovak Republics, Canada, Mexico, Thailand, 
Azerbaijan, South Africa, Venezuela, Tanzania and Vietnam. In 1998 she 
traveled to Cuba as a member of a special women's delegation.
  Rosemary lived in Kabul, Afghanistan working on reconstruction and 
development projects. She first traveled to Afghanistan in May of 2002 
as a member of a delegation of young Afghan-Americans working on 
reconstruction. She returned home after 2 weeks, but decided to return 
in June 2003 to work on a project to improve conditions for women in 
the Kabul prison, and in March 2004 she worked in maternity hospitals. 
In June 2004 she taught preservation, and in 2005 she spent most of the 
year living and working there as the logistics manager for the Kabul 
Beauty School. She returned again in February 2006 and had since 
resided in Kabul full time working on women's projects. Rosemary was 
also the Founder and Executive Director of A Little Help, a nonprofit 
that she began in 2002 which provides humanitarian aid in Afghanistan 
with a focus on women.
  Ever the fighter, she remained in Kabul to continue her work even 
after she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. It was there that she 
met Morne du Preez, a South African who works as a private contractor 
protecting diplomats. They fell in love and were married two years ago. 
She was an extraordinary leader, teacher, advocate and mentor with a 
heart of gold who inspired passion in those around her to think and see 
beyond themselves and make a difference in the world.
  Madam Speaker, I ask the entire House of Representatives to join me 
in honoring Rosemary Stasek. Through her countless contributions to her 
family, friends, colleagues, local community and the international 
community, she has left a lasting legacy of compassion, empowerment and 
excellence. She represented the best of America, strengthened our 
country and made the world a better place.

                          ____________________