[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 5642]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING REVEREND JON PEDIGO

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ZOE LOFGREN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 10, 2016

  Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 25th 
Anniversary of Ordination of our pastor and friend, Reverend Jon 
Pedigo.
  Reverend Pedigo currently serves as a pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe 
Church in East San Jose and has been a fixture in our community's 
spiritual life for over two decades. His dedicated and adroit 
leadership in the issues of immigrant and workers' rights, LGBT rights, 
and a focus on carving a path forward to a more peaceful world have 
been well known and a source of pride throughout our community. As a 
pastor at St. Julie Billiart Parish in South San Jose, Reverend Pedigo 
delivered his homily on the story of Bartimaeus in this way: ``Physical 
sight was Bartimaeus's issue,'' he said, ``but the real sin was the 
blindness in the seeing-people around him. Seeing-people see skin 
color, status, age, gender, weight, orientation, education level, etc. 
They do not see the real you.'' Reverend Pedigo has been and continues 
to be a strong advocate for equal rights and fairness before our laws 
and in our culture.
  As he now serves the community at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, a 
spiritual haven to many working class immigrant families, Reverend 
Pedigo helps draw together multiple generations of parishioners of 
diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds and preaches inclusivity 
and mutual respect in the face of the issues that sometimes divide our 
society. ``In a time of hate, we must be love,'' he has said. ``At a 
time of exclusion, we must be inclusive.''
  Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to honor Reverend Pedigo for his twenty-
five years of service to our community. Reverend Jon Pedigo is an 
exemplar of selfless service to others. With his dedicated work, he has 
served to improve the lives of the parishioners who come to him for 
solace, respite, and guidance. I know that his many friends and 
colleagues join me in recognizing this milestone in his life.

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