[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 6295]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO MR. BENNIE GOODEN

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, March 3, 2009

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Madam Speaker, today I rise to recognize 
the life and legacy of Mr. Bennie Gooden, a dedicated civil servant who 
contributed so much to the lives of others in Mississippi. His 
dedication to public service began with his tenure as a teacher in 
Coahoma Agricultural High School and later Dean of Men at Coahoma 
Community College. Afterward, he transitioned to being the first 
Project Director for the HeadStart Program in Coahoma and Tunica 
Counties.
  Madam Speaker, not only did Bennie serve in the arena of education, 
but he was an advocate of affordable housing for all. In 1969, he led 
the Chapel Hill Baptist Church in the ownership and development of a 
100-unit housing development, Chapel Hill Heights. He was a Certified 
Real Estate Manager, CREM, and managed multi-family housing units 
throughout the Southeast in a career which spanned 35 years. One can 
understand why his name, particularly in the Mississippi Delta, is 
synonymous with ``housing.''
  Madam Speaker, Bennie amassed many honors and was involved with an 
impressive list of religious, civic and community endeavors in his 
life, which include: being a member of the Coahoma County Branch NAACP 
for more than 50 years, past President of the Aaron E. Henry Community 
Health Services Center, Inc., he served on the Advisory Board of the 
Lower Mississippi Delta Development Commission, he was appointed by 
President Jimmy Carter to serve on the Board of Directors of the 
National Institute for the Building Sciences, and he received the 
Medgar Evers Award for Outstanding Civic Community Leadership, and the 
Coahoma County Branch NAACP Spirit and Freedom Award.
  Without Bennie Gooden's support, I would not be in the position I am 
today. Madam Speaker, I'm grateful for his presence in my life and the 
lives of Mississippians all around our great state.

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