[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 19]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 25856]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                            KATHRYN RUSSELL

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. THOMAS S.P. PERRIELLO

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 27, 2009

  Mr. PERRIELLO. Madam Speaker, today I recognize the untimely passing 
of Kathryn Russell, who was killed in a car accident on the evening of 
October 22, 2009. She will be sorely missed by her friends, family, and 
community as well as independent farming advocates throughout the 
country. My heart goes out to her husband Wayne and their children 
Holly, Lynn, Laura, Emily, Beth, Charlotte, Caleb, and Hannah.
  Kathryn returned to her grandparents' roots by beginning her farm 
over a decade ago and was a valued member of the North Garden community 
in Albemarle County, Virginia. As the owner of Majesty Farms and a 
founder and leader of the Virginia Independent Consumers and Farmers 
Association, she worked to protect family farms, locally grown food, 
and to promote ecological and economic sustainability. Kathryn took 
great pride in her work and believed strongly in the importance of 
community-based farming to create a vibrant local economy and a healthy 
citizenry. I can personally attest to her fearlessness and tirelessness 
in promoting traditional farming. She was an ardent skeptic of big 
government and corporate agriculture, and often saw through attempts by 
both to consolidate power at the expense of consumers and small 
farmers. While she was a strident advocate, she was also patient enough 
to help those of us who needed a little extra educating to get up to 
speed on these issues. Today, there are too few farmers like Kathryn 
Russell and her husband Wayne. I have strong hopes that she has passed 
on her legacy to her eight children and four grandchildren, and that 
they will maintain her memory by continuing the work toward lasting 
rural communities for generations to come.

                          ____________________