[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 15961-15962]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING CYNTHIA PALMER

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 29, 2012

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker and fellow colleagues I rise 
today to honor a worthy member of our society Mrs. Cynthia Palmer. Mrs. 
Cynthia Palmer was born in Los Angeles, California but was raised in 
Canton, Mississippi and attended Holy Child Jesus School. After her 
family relocated to Jackson, she attended Brinkley Jr. High School and 
Callaway High School where she excelled in all areas. Cynthia was 
chosen as the first Black ``Miss Callaway High School'' & the first 
black female ``Student Body President'' among many other honors. She 
attended Tougaloo College and majored in Business Communications and 
was listed on the Dean's List.
  Music has been a passion of Cynthia's from a very early age. 
Throughout her career, Mrs. Palmer has received world-wide acclamation 
while participating in various local, state, national and international 
events. She has toured in more than 35 of the 50 United States and has 
performed in the following countries: Alaska, Canada, Bermuda, West 
Indies, England, Germany, France, Brazil and Holland. One of the 
highlights of her travels was to sing in Cape Town, Umtata and 
Johannesburg, South Africa. In 2003, Cynthia was featured on the 
``Bobby Jones Gospel Show'' on The Word Network. She is a 3-time winner 
at the Mississippi Gospel Music Awards. One of the blessings of her 
career was being able to sing to women who are currently on Death Row 
at the Alabama State Prison.
  She has appeared on radio and television stations throughout the 
United States and abroad. She was the first gospel singer to sing at 
the Jewish synagogue in Dayton, Ohio. Cynthia has participated on 
concerts featuring such artists as Mary Mary, Byron Cage, Shirley 
Caesar, Richard Smallwood, Bishop Paul Morton, Rev. Marvin Sapp, The 
Canton Spirituals and Rance Allen just to name a few.
  She has recorded and self-produced 5 CD's, entitled ``Just Enough 
Faith To Try'', ``Anointed Psalms Of Praise'', ``A Soulful Christmas'', 
``Heaven Is The Place To Be'' and ``The Ultimate Collection''. Cynthia 
produced the highly successful CD titled, ``Gospel Praises, Volume 1'' 
for Message Magazine, the oldest black religious magazine in the 
country.
  In 2004, after relocating back to Mississippi, Cynthia founded the 
Canton Gospel Music Association (CGMA). One of the main focuses of the 
organization is to raise monies to pay for music lessons for up and 
coming musicians in addition to awarding scholarships to graduating 
seniors. To date, the COMA has awarded over $12,000.00 to over 60 
students.
  In 2005, she served as Executive Producer for ``The Gospel at 
Colonus'' presented by the Mississippi Opera. Most recently she served 
as Operations Director for the Return of the Freedom Riders, 50th Year 
Reunion celebrated in Jackson in May 2011. Most recently,

[[Page 15962]]

Cynthia worked at Jackson State University as the Resources and Media 
Technology Manager for the Margaret Walker Alexander National Research 
Center. Currently, she is the Executive Director of the Veterans of the 
Mississippi Civil Rights Movement, Inc.
  Mrs. Palmer, was presented with a Public Service Award by the 
Robinson-Watson Book Company for the State of Mississippi at the 20th 
Year Honors Awards Celebration Banquet on June 26, 2009. The Public 
Service recipient is involved in the community during the year (s) 
working with various groups or agencies. They have succeeded in 
exercising their unselfishness in making an impact on the general 
Mississippi community and society. She is also listed in the inaugural 
edition of ``Who's Who'' in Black Mississippi. She is a member of the 
board of Directors of The Mississippi Opera, United Christian Artist 
Association, Women For Progress and MADDRAMA Performance Troupe. Mrs. 
Palmer has been a contributing writer to The Mississippi Link Newspaper 
and the Metro Christian Magazine. In 2010, she was featured on the 
cover of the Metro Christian Magazine.
  Mrs. Palmer has served on the following committees: Jackson State 
University's Church Music Workshop of America, Commemorative Stamp 
Ceremony honoring Medgar Evers & Fannie Lou Hamer, Mission Mississippi 
Mayor's Prayer Breakfast and Governor's Prayer Luncheon, among others. 
In 2003, Mayor Alice Scott, of Canton, Mississippi presented the `Key 
to the City' to Mrs. Palmer and proclaimed October 3 as ``Cynthia 
Goodloe Palmer Day''.
  She is a singer, song writer, producer, entrepreneur, friend, humble 
servant and a lover of people. Her personal testimony is: `In all thy 
ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths' Proverbs 3:6.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Mrs. 
Cynthia Palmer for her dedication to serving others.

                          ____________________