[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 6]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 8024]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




   IN RECOGNITION OF THE RETIREMENT OF ROLANDA DUCHESNE AFTER THREE 
       DECADES OF SERVICE AT GRANITE UNITED WAY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ANN M. KUSTER

                            of new hampshire

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, June 1, 2015

  Ms. KUSTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in recognition of Rolanda Duchesne on 
the occasion of her retirement from Granite United Way of New 
Hampshire. Rolanda is embarking on a well-earned retirement after 33 
years as a dedicated public servant, working to help her neighbors in 
need of assistance in New Hampshire's North Country. Be it flood or 
fire, hunger or shelter, dislocation or disaster, Rolanda's efforts at 
the United Way have brought relief and hope to hundreds of people in 
distress.
  Rolanda served for almost 30 years as the Executive Director of 
United Way of Northern New Hampshire, until it merged with the other 
regional United Way organizations throughout the state to become 
Granite United Way. Since then, she has served as Director of Community 
Impact for the Northern Region.
  Rolanda's commitment to service does not stop with her day job. She 
is the town welfare officer in her community of Milan, a Justice of the 
Peace, and a Notary Public. She is on the Advisory Board of Health and 
Human Services at White Mountain Community College, a Fellow at the 
University of New Hampshire's Carsey Institute, and a Member of the New 
Hampshire Charitable Trust's North Country Board.
  During her tenure in the North Country, Rolanda has witnessed a rash 
of mill closings, high unemployment, natural disasters, and an economy 
in freefall. Yet even when it affected her own family, she did 
everything in her power to meet the needs of the communities around 
her. People were warm during the cold winters, food banks were well-
stocked for the hungry, and children had clothes for school.
  Her life in service is one that is rarely matched. Thus, it is my 
honor to recognize and thank Rolanda for her outstanding citizenship 
and service to her neighbors, the Granite State, and the United States. 
I wish her a happy retirement and wish her the best of luck on the 
adventures to come.

                          ____________________