[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 16125]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              HONORING THE LIFE OF MICHELE MARLENE VENABLE

                                 ______
                                 

                     HON. DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 19, 2014

  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of 
Michele Marlene Venable and extend my condolences to her family.
  Michele, a resident of Florida's 23rd Congressional District and a 
long-time constituent of mine from the city of Hollywood, tragically 
passed away on November 8th after a battle with stomach cancer.
  All of us that knew Michele could tell you that she represented the 
very best in our community.
  She was dedicated to selflessly helping others, putting her community 
first, and empowering the most vulnerable.
  She was a beacon of light for so many.
  She will be tremendously missed, but never forgotten by our South 
Florida community.
  I will remember Michele most for her work as Director of Social 
Services at the Jubilee Center of Broward County.
  In this position, Ms. Venable coordinated delivering food, clothing, 
and vital personal items to Broward County's homeless and needy.
  She also worked to connect countless numbers of South Floridians with 
legal aid, veteran's services, Medicaid assistance, and emergency 
shelters.
  She has capably led the Jubilee Center over the past decade and 
raised it to new heights.
  It is worth noting that Volunteer Broward recently honored the Center 
as the ``Agency of the Year'' for all volunteer groups serving Broward 
County.
  This is a tribute to Michele's tireless and fierce leadership.
  She always demanded the best from herself and those around her in the 
service of others.
  Poverty and despair can be powerful forces in society, but they 
certainly met their match when confronted by Michele's force of will to 
bring hope to others.
  It is also not surprising that before her tireless efforts at the 
Jubilee Center, she served our community through her ministry work as a 
pastor.
  Anyone who has ever worked with her will tell you that Michele was 
driven by an astounding love for people.
  I and many of my Congressional District Office staff as well as my 
children, have had the honor of joining Michele every year to help the 
Jubilee Center serve Thanksgiving dinner to the less fortunate in our 
community--a job Michele did with grace and pride.
  This year on Thanksgiving we will again gather to help our 
community--Michele Venable's community.
  I am sure that we will all be missing Michele's warm smile and bright 
disposition.
  But we honor her memory if we carry on her amazing commitment to 
helping those less fortunate in our community.
  In this way her spirit of compassionate altruism lives on and 
inspires others to walk in her footsteps.
  In this time of Thanksgiving, I give thanks for Michele Venable and a 
life well lived in service to our South Florida community.

                          ____________________