[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 17572-17573]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    RECOGNIZING ZORAIDA RIOS-ANDINO

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ALAN GRAYSON

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 19, 2013

  Mr. GRAYSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Hispanic Heritage 
Month, to recognize the public service of Zoraida Rios-Andino. Zoraida 
was born in East Chicago, Indiana. Her passion for social justice 
started when she was studying at Saint Joseph's College where

[[Page 17573]]

she received a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology and Education. As a 
student, she was the founder of an organization called ``Palante'' and 
was the assistant director of a college TV program, ``Know Your 
Community,'' which informs Latino students about issues affecting the 
Hispanic community. She is the proud mother of her two children 
Carolina Raquel and Gilberto Antonio. Her pride and joy is her 
granddaughter Analiz Diana Balderas.
  In 1979, Zoraida moved to Puerto Rico and worked for several 
community services companies. In 1986, she returned to Indiana and 
began advocating for the rights of the Puerto Rican and Latino 
community. She served as President of Madre Atrevete Muevete Ahora 
(MAMA) and Secretary of the Latino Historical Society. She was also 
active with the Northwest Indiana Voter Registration and Education 
Foundation, United Citizens Organization, and United Farm Workers. 
Zoraida was the co-founder and President of the National Conference of 
Puerto Rican Women and received their Lifetime Achievement Award in 
2000. She also received the Roberto Clemente Community Service Award 
from the Northwest Indiana Coordinating Counsel.
  After moving to Florida with her family, Zoraida became the founder 
and President of the National Conference of Puerto Rican Women's local 
chapter in Orlando. She is also a member of the Asociacion Borinquenia 
and La Casa de Puerto Rico. In 2008, she got involved with various 
social justice groups and served as Vice President for Frente Unido 436 
and Vice President of the National Council of Puerto Rican Rights. She 
is also involved with the Black, Latino, Puerto Rican Alliance for 
Justice and is founder and co-director of the Orlando chapter of the 
National Congress of Puerto Rican Rights. She is currently working on 
her project ``Boricua,'' a tool to unite the worldwide Puerto Rican 
community.
  I am happy to honor Zoraida Rios-Andino for her public service to the 
Hispanic community.

                          ____________________