[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 15]
[House]
[Page 21538]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




        HONORING THE LIFE AND SERVICE OF MRS. REVA MAE JENNINGS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 6, 2015, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Woodall) is recognized 
for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.
  Mr. WOODALL. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the time.
  At 1:00 today, back home in Georgia, we are going to lay to rest Reva 
Mae Jennings.
  Reva Jennings is an institution in my part of the world, Mr. Speaker. 
This photo here, you can see, is in the midst of a parade. She helped 
to found the Republican Party in Forsyth County back when it could meet 
in a telephone booth. She used to say that she never minded being the 
only one who was right in a room.
  From the moment I decided to pursue this position, Mr. Speaker, Reva 
has been a fixture by my side. She passed away a week ago in a traffic 
accident.
  She graduated from the University of North Carolina, Mr. Speaker. And 
even though she was passionate about Georgia, she was passionate about 
her Tar Heels. If I had a Tar Heel blue suit, I would have worn it down 
here to the floor today in tribute to her.
  She defined her life by passion, Mr. Speaker. She has had every 
leadership position you can imagine in the Republican Party in our part 
of the world; president of the Georgia Federation of Republican Women, 
Mr. Speaker. She earned the title of Republican Woman of the Year. She 
traveled as a delegate from Georgia to the Republican National 
Convention.
  She believed in our community. She believed in our party. She 
believed in America.
  Mr. Speaker, I came to know Reva through her political activities, 
but they did not define her. Passion defined her, and there is nothing 
that she was more passionate about than her family.
  The wife of Dr. Bruce Jennings, Mr. Speaker, who passed away far too 
soon, the mother of three, the grandmother of her beloved grand twins.
  Mr. Speaker, the entire community is gathering this afternoon to say 
goodbye. It seems so cliche to talk about folks who are irreplaceable, 
but Reva truly is.
  You can't put a marker on commitment, Mr. Speaker. There was never a 
responsibility, never a responsibility in the community that Reva 
didn't step up and say: Pick me. It characterized the community.
  As Forsyth County became one of the fastest growing counties in the 
Nation, Mr. Speaker, her commitment was contagious.
  When car accidents take our loved ones, Mr. Speaker, it happens when 
you least expect it. No one was prepared to say goodbye to Reva. No one 
had said all the things that they had to say to Reva.
  But she used to pull me aside and take a picture out of her wallet, 
show me that beloved dentist that she married back during the Vietnam 
War. It was a picture they had taken in Hawaii, as I recall.
  I never remember her dating. She never remarried. She said: ``Rob, I 
got it right the first time.''
  As the entire community is struggling with Reva's loss, this is the 
image that I am left with, Mr. Speaker. She has waited decade upon 
decade to be united with her beloved husband, Bruce, and today, Mr. 
Speaker, we lay her to rest so that they can be together with their 
Maker once again.
  With that, Mr. Speaker, I offer my heartfelt condolences to the 
Jennings family.
  I yield back the balance of my time.

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