[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 15524]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING BERTHA McMORRIS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Rush) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. RUSH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay a privileged tribute to a 
longtime resident of my district and a true friend of mine, Bertha 
McMorris, in honor of her 80th birthday.
  Though a Chicagoan by birth, Miss Bertha is also so very much more. 
She is a proud graduate of the DuSable High School and the Chicago 
Teachers College.
  Miss Bertha is a dedicated public servant who spent more than 20 
years at the U.S. Department of Education. In addition to her work as a 
public servant, Miss Bertha spent nearly a decade working at the 
Rainbow PUSH Coalition and is currently the proprietor of the newly 
founded Rainbow PUSH store.
  She also spent time as a past leader of Happy Companion, 
Incorporated, a community service organization founded by her late 
sister, Ms. Winifred Jackson.

                              {time}  1045

  For over 60 years, Miss Bertha has been a resident of the West 
Woodlawn community, which is located in my district. She has been a 
lifelong and faithful member of the Berean Baptist Church of Chicago, 
where she is currently a trustee of the church's credit union.
  Miss Bertha is also the proud mother of Mr. Lamell McMorris, a very 
successful entrepreneur and founder and chief executive officer of the 
Perennial Strategy Group and Perennial Sports and Entertainment Group. 
Lamell manages an in-house team of experienced government and public 
relations professionals, lawyers, and sports agents, offering a 
multitude of services to clients in a wide range of disciplines and 
specialty areas.
  Even today, Mr. Speaker, Miss Bertha stays very active, has a very 
big heart, and is so very kind to everyone whom she meets. She is aptly 
described as someone who brings cheer, who brings joy wherever she 
goes. She is indeed our own merry matriarch of Chicago.
  Mr. Speaker, I hope that by my coming to the floor today, that this 
very small gesture can bring a big smile to her face and help Miss 
Bertha enjoy her birthday a little bit more.
  To you, Miss Bertha, we all say happy 80th birthday, and may you have 
many more, and God speed.

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