[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Page 707]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        REMEMBERING CAROL WALTER

  Mr. BLUMENTHAL. Mr. President, today I wish to remember Carol Walter. 
Carol was known throughout Connecticut and the Nation as a force for 
good and a supporter of the homeless. I worked with her for many years 
to address the homeless population in Connecticut, and no one advocated 
more relentlessly and tirelessly for this cause.
  An ambassador for social justice, she took positions at various 
nonprofits, including homeless shelters throughout the State as well as 
at the Connecticut AIDS Resource Coalition. In 2006, she was named 
executive director of the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness.
  At the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness, Carol introduced a 
new way of approaching homelessness. Carol regarded this unacceptable 
human condition as something that could be prevented and addressed it 
on a national scale through community organizing, advocacy, research, 
leadership, and education. She empowered the greater community, 
building grassroots leadership, advocating for new research and 
policies, and leading these efforts with grace and resolve. According 
to her colleagues at the Coalition, Carol truly listened to the voices 
of people who experience homelessness.
  She did not stop at the prevention and cessation of homelessness, but 
rather took the next step towards long-term sustainability. Carol 
dedicated most of her career to efforts to include securing permanent 
affordable housing and housing subsidies for the afflicted, providing 
support systems in the community, and offering career services to 
support independence and self-help. She worked to prevent and eliminate 
homelessness on local, State, and Federal levels. She partnered with 
local communities and Statewide organizations, such as Supportive 
Housing WORKS and Opening Doors Connecticut, to unify everyone in this 
collective effort.
  Carol was beloved by her family and friends, and will always be 
remembered as a beacon of light and hope. Her exuberance for her 
mission will be carried on by her colleagues, and her charity will 
inspire many others. I invite my colleagues to join me in honoring the 
tremendous work of Carol Walter and preserving her legacy so that 
others may see her tremendous importance and continue her efforts. 
Indeed, it is through the good works of others in the fight against 
homelessness that she would choose to be remembered.

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