Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the career and accomplishments of the Executive Director of the Homeless Alliance of Western New York, Councilman Dale Zuchlewski, for the long- lasting impact he's sure to have had on many lives.

Graduating from SUNY Buffalo State College in 1977, Dale started his career as a legislative aide for the Buffalo Common Council, eventually becoming a compliance monitor for the City of Buffalo. During his tenure as a compliance monitor, Dale worked to ensure that applicable federal laws and policies were followed, that women and minority workers were hired and treated fairly, and much more.

In 1991, he was elected to the Buffalo Common Council, serving four terms. During his time on the Council, he chaired the Community Development and Education Committees, and was instrumental in kickstarting the revitalization of Elmwood Avenue in Buffalo. In 2000, Councilman Zuchlewski became a project manager for the City, working extensively with nonprofit organizations and the federal government to secure grants for helping the homeless and otherwise disadvantaged populations of Buffalo.

In late 2010, Dale became the Executive Director for the Homeless Alliance of Western New York. I've had the pleasure of working with Mr. Zuchlewski extensively during my time in Congress and have thankfully been successful in directing federal funds towards the organizations dedicated towards alleviating homelessness in Western New York.

Madam Speaker, I ask that my colleagues join me in thanking Mr. Dale Zuchlewski for his dedicated service towards those less fortunate, the Buffalo area, and the greater Western New York Community.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the retirement of Gaile Amigone. Gaile has been an art teacher at Nardin Academy Elementary in Buffalo since 1993. Her 30-year tenure has left an indelible imprint on Nardin Academy.

A 1975 graduate of SUNY Buffalo State College, Gaile spent much of her career teaching elementary art to kindergarten through eighth grade students. As a result of her encouragement to develop their creativity and talent, many of her students have gone on to study art at the high school and college level.

Aside from her classroom duties, Gaile was actively involved in the school community. She served as the director for yearly theatre productions presented to the Nardin Community and their families. She also dedicated her time to conducting After School Art Enrichment Programs for students who were interested in additional studio art immersion and instruction.

Gaile routinely welcomed her former students back into her classroom where they shared their growth and development with her, as well as their appreciation for her foundational role in their success as artists. It is clear that she has made a significant impact on many students' talents, creative abilities, and passion for the arts.

Wife of attorney Nicholas P. Amigone III, mother of three sons, and grandmother to nine grandchildren, Gaile is retiring with a legacy of dedication to the artistic and cultural enrichment of young minds.

I ask that my colleagues join me in thanking Mrs. Gaile Amigone for her service to the Nardin Academy community and the positive impact she has had on generations of Nardin students.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Lewis Webber, the President of Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees (SOAR) Chapter 4-6, for a lifetime of fighting for the working class.

Lewis Webber was born days before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December of 1941 so he was always ready for a good fight. Advocating for the workers at Bethlehem Steel was in his blood, as many of his relatives, including his father, were employed there. Growing up in a union household, he and his brother heard all the stories from their father about the strikes at Bethlehem Steel, including the famous 53- day 1952 Steelworkers strike, ending with a victory for the hard- working Steelworkers.

It was not a surprise that Lewis Webber and his brother would also go on to work many years of their lives at Bethlehem Steel. Lewis started working at Bethlehem Steel in October of 1964. He was of a member in three separate unions: United Steelworkers, Truckdrivers Union Local, and the United Autoworkers. As a member of the United Steelworkers, he recalls fighting to make sure that the proper withholding was taken out of the employees checks. Later, in 1985, Mr. Webber officially won a grievance against Bethlehem Steel, providing 22 workers an additional $238 a week for two years, and a pension for the rest of their lives.

When Bethlehem Steel shut its doors, the Western New York community was devastated; however, that didn't stop Lewis Webber from continuing to fight for those who had worked there. He joined the Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees (SOAR), Chapter 4-6 and put the skills he learned from earlier battles to work as he rose in the ranks of leadership becoming Trustee in 1997, Vice President in 2007, and President of the Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees in 2008. There are 430 members of SOAR who rely on his leadership today.

Lewis Webber always says that you can never fight these battles alone. His number one supporter was his wife, Beverly who unfortunately passed away in 2011. She was also Secretary of the Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees, Chapter 4-6. His children Rosemary, LuAnn, and Kathleen, grand-children, and great-grandchildren are always by his side, fighting the good fight.

Mr. Webber joined our fight over a decade ago to help former Bethlehem Steel employees receive compensation under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program (EEOICP) and he continues to work with my office to ensure eligible retirees receive the benefits they deserve. Over $300 million has been paid out to workers and their families after they were exposed to radiation while working at Bethlehem Steel.

Lewis Webber offered many words of advice, including ``I am not doing this to make people millionaires; I am doing this to get them what they need to get by in this world. I am not doing this to help just the Steelworkers; I am doing this to help all Americans,'' and, ``Always fight using your brains, not your fists. At, the end of the day your knowledge of the contract will be more likely to help you win the battle.'' His words demonstrate his commitment to his fellow workers and his lifetime of experience advocating for the interests of Steelworkers.

Many Bethlehem Steel retirees and their families who live in Western New York are better off because Lewis Webber has never stopped and will never stop fighting for them. Madam Speaker, I ask that my colleagues join me in honoring the lifelong commitment that Lewis Webber has shown to the former employees of Bethlehem Steel, the greater Western New York community, and the United States as a whole.

Madam Speaker, today the House convened the first public hearing of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol and the very essence of American democracy.

In shocking, raw, and real testimony, four brave police officers shared stories of their harrowing experiences that day.

United States Capitol Police Sergeant Gonell, an 8-year veteran of the United States Army assigned to some of the most dangerous duties during Operation Iraqi Freedom, said he was more afraid to work at the Capitol on that day than he was in his entire time serving his country in Iraq.

The video is hard to watch, and the testimony is emotional, but the committee's work promises truth and transparency. The events of January 6 would have yielded more death and destruction were it not for the United States Capitol Police.

We are grateful for them and to the committee for working to provide the answers and accountability needed to make sure this event never happens again.

Madam Speaker, last year, in my hometown of Buffalo, New York, we experienced a 90 percent increase in gun violence; 355 people were involved in this.

As of July of this year, 46 people have lost their lives to gun violence. This morning, the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force heard from experts in community violence interventions. These experts affirmed what we know; that gun violence in our country is tearing families and neighborhoods apart. Their testimony adds support for our efforts to provide $5 million in the American Rescue Plan Act funding to groups in Buffalo to prevent and reduce violence before it occurs.

This funding will support trusted messengers, good messengers, credible messengers; a coalition of peacekeeping organizations who will work on our streets to stop violence before it occurs.

Congress passed the American Rescue Plan to deliver relief to communities ravaged by the pandemic. Now our communities are facing a spike in violence that began during the pandemic.

Madam Speaker, they need help, and they need help now.

Madam Speaker, for the past 16 months, the United States' border with Canada has been closed to nonessential travel, tearing loved ones apart, preventing people from accessing cottages that they own, devastating businesses and local economies on both sides of the border.

This week, the Canadian Government announced plans to reopen the border to fully vaccinated Americans on August 9. On January 21 of this year, we were promised a plan would be developed by the United States to address travel to Canada within 14 days.

Madam Speaker, 180 days have now passed. We are still waiting for that plan. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention publicly advised that fully vaccinated Americans are free to safely resume all pre-pandemic activity. It is time for the United States to align its border policy with the science, with the facts, and with the data. Action is long overdue. Open the U.S. border to our Canadian neighbors.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the INVEST in America Act.

This bill makes long overdue investments in the Nation building here at home and would deliver for my community in Buffalo and western New York.

It includes funding to convert the historic DL&W train station into a multiuse transportation hub. It supports the transition of a North Tonawanda highway near the Erie Canal into a walkable neighborhood. And it will transform an abandoned rail line in Buffalo into the vibrant Riverline trail.

The INVEST in America Act will add more than $400 million in annual funding to New York to fix bridges and roads, an increase of over 30 percent.

This bill does not, however, fix neighborhoods destroyed by highway building in the decade of the 1950s. We need to do more to restore those communities in those neighborhoods that were destroyed many years ago.

Now is the time to invest in America.

Mr. Speaker, for 34 years my community of Buffalo, New York, and our Canadian neighbors in Fort Erie, Ontario, would mark the first week of July with the Friendship Festival.

This event that invites citizens of both countries to cross our shared border and celebrate with music, culture, food, and festivities highlights the strong and lasting bond between the United States and Canada.

There will be no cross-border celebration this year on Canada Day and Independence Day. Not due to the pandemic, but due to the failure of both countries to plan for a safe reopening of the U.S.-Canadian border.

For friends and families living along the northern border, crossing isn't an annual event, it is a way of life.

Vaccines provide the bridge that allows people to come together again.

We need leadership to open those bridges and let us reunite.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the Innovation Centers Acceleration Act, introduced by my friend and colleague, Joe Morelle.

This bill creates an $80 billion national competition that could direct new resources for communities like Rochester, Buffalo, and western New York to foster innovation and create new jobs and opportunities.

I am also a cosponsor of the Endless Frontiers Act, a version which passed the Senate with the support of our Senators, that would create similar opportunities and competition.

For too long, Congress has lacked the vision to nation-build here at home. Now we can enact a plan to compete with China and foster new opportunity and growth.

Groups like the Northland Workforce Training Center, the M&T Bank's technology hub, and the Thomas Beecher Innovation Center are leading the way in creating tech ecosystems in my region.

Enacting this bill could help propel these entities to achieve their full potential for the benefit of the entire community that could last for generations.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Madam Speaker, yesterday, due to unforeseen circumstances, I was unable to vote in Roll Call number 162 on H.R. 1443. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call number 162.

Mr. Speaker, it was recently announced that the European Union is lifting travel restrictions to allow Americans to visit once again.

Over a year under the crush of a devastating global pandemic, highly effective vaccines have made this game-changing moment possible.

Still, our border between the United States and Canada remains closed, leaving people unable to access their property and keeping loved ones separated for over 15 heartbreaking months.

This move by the EU would allow my Buffalo neighbors to take a 9-hour flight to Paris, France, but they can't take a 90-minute drive to Paris, Ontario.

The administration has set a goal of returning to a pre-pandemic sense of normalcy by July 4. For many living along the northern border, normalcy includes the ability to cross to check

on their property and to see their family again.

It is time to open the U.S.-Canadian border.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of the late Tonawanda Town Supervisor Ronald H. Moline, a native of Western New York. Ron was well-liked and well-respected as an educator, and served as a member of the Tonawanda Town Board for more than a quarter-century.

A graduate of Sweet Home High School and the State University of New York at Buffalo, Ron began a career as a high school history teacher with Buffalo Public Schools in 1964. In 1981, he embarked upon a political career in the town of Tonawanda, winning a grueling race for a seat on the Town Board. After the incumbent Supervisor passed away two years later, Mr. Moline accepted appointment to the position, and subsequently won election to the seat in his own right. Ron would move back to a seat as Councilman in 1993 and would again become Supervisor in 2000.

As Supervisor, Ron worked to grow industrial parks in Tonawanda, and worked closely with companies including General Motors, Dunlop, DuPont, and Praxair to both maintain current jobs in Tonawanda and grow opportunities for both corporations and local workers. Ron was an innovator in local government as well, establishing a Yahoo chat room in 2001 for concerned citizens to communicate directly with elected Town leaders, allowing them to be, as he said, more ``close, available, and responsive to our constituents.''

Madam Speaker, I appreciate this opportunity to remember the life and accomplishments of Supervisor Ron Moline, and I ask that my colleagues join me in honoring his legacy and extending our condolences to his family and friends.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Dr. William Gillison. Born in Beaufort, South Carolina, Pastor William Gillison attended Lackawanna, New York schools and enrolled in the United States Army in 1965. Sixteen years later--in 1981--Reverend Gillison became the pastor of Mount Olive Baptist Church. During his time at Mt. Olive, the church's capacity increased tenfold, from 150 to 1,500.

Early in his career, Reverend Gillison founded the Mt. Olive Development Corporation, which continues to provide subsidized apartments for low income residents. Mt. Olive also operates as a distribution center for food and other essentials in Western New York. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it served as a testing and vaccination site. Interviewed by WGRZ, Pastor Gillison said that ``The pandemic has really magnified and exposed in many cases the deficiencies in especially black and brown communities.'' Mt. Olive helped to lessen the racial disparities in vaccine distribution, furthering its mission and serving thousands of local community members.

Mt. Olive serves in every season. During the summer, the Church hosts a cookout and fireworks show for families. In the fall, it provides Thanksgiving dinners to 1,500 families. In the winter, through its Angel Tree Ministry program, it gives Christmas gifts to children of incarcerated men and women. Before he became president, George W. Bush visited Mt. Olive and was impressed with its work.

Pastor Gillison's experience with the government has not always been cordial. Working closely with attorney Johnnie Cochrane, Pastor Gillison fought to overturn a ban on bus routes to the Galleria Mall. This discriminatory practice prevented many people of color from shopping at the Mall, and even led to the killing of a worker who was forced to walk to her job at the Galleria Mall.

Pastor Gillison has served two terms as the President of the Baptist Ministers Conference and the Baptist Great Lakes Conference. He is the recipient of honorary doctorate degrees and has been recognized by national organizations for his ministry and service. He is particularly known for his interfaith communication; Pastor Gillison has traveled to Israel multiple times and formed relationships with both government and religious officials. None of this would have been accomplished without the help of his loving and devoted wife of 58 years, Antonia Gillison. She has been his greatest supporter. While being a pastor he has also maintained his strong fatherly presence with his children.

Pastor Gillison has advanced our community spiritually, politically, and economically. He has been a tireless advocate for those with no hope and no voice. His leadership has transformed Mt. Olive into an indispensable beacon of light for our community and his work has touched lives across the country and world. During his fortieth anniversary as pastor, we celebrate how much Mt. Olive has accomplished, and we pray for the community it serves. Though he has accomplished much, Pastor Gillison is just grateful for the opportunity to serve. As he would say, ``To God be the Glory.''

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the extraordinary accomplishments of the Western New York-based non-profit organization known as ``Buffalo Blues'' and their remarkable service and dedication to the Veteran community.

Buffalo Blues is a non-profit dedicated to using the power and reach of music to help Western New York Veterans and military families through fundraising and charitable donations. Founded by Bob James, Buffalo Blues forms an impactful partnership between the music community and Veteran groups. Musicians that partner with Buffalo Blues experience professional growth while also helping to raise funds and advocating for the needs of the Veteran community.

On May 6, 2021, Buffalo Blues announced that--with the help of over 200 musicians--they were able to donate over $100,000 to 18 Erie County charities serving WNY Veterans and military families. Through live musical performances, merchandise sales, and online livestreamed concerts, these 200 musicians used their talents to both raise funds for these local charities and bring attention to the issues that often face the Veteran community.

In addition to raising funds, Buffalo Blues has been gathering data on the needs of Veterans and Military Families. This research helps to ensure that the money they raise goes to where it is most needed in the veteran community.

When the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered opportunities for live, in- person performances, Buffalo Blues adapted with the changing times. Knowing that the difficulties that Veterans and military families face weren't going anywhere, they found an innovative solution by livestreaming musical performances online until it was safe to return to the stages of Western New York.

Madam Speaker, I appreciate this opportunity to speak today, and ask that my colleagues join me in recognizing the persistence and dedication of Buffalo Blues and their affiliated musicians. Their continual advocacy for

and service to Veterans and military families is commendable, and we thank them for their efforts.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to mark the sad occasion of the passing of Rosemary Lawley of Williamsville, New York.

Entering into her eternal rest a few short months ago, Mrs. Lawley was the matriarch of the Lawley family of Buffalo and western New York and was loved by all those who came into her life. She was a champion for those who had none.

Born Rosemary O'Connor in south Buffalo, she was a graduate of Mount Mercy Academy and nursing school at D'Youville College. Rosemary met the love of her life, Bill, and together, they raised six children who each continue in the footsteps of their parents, giving back generously to the western New York community.

Rosemary Lawley was one of a kind--a graceful and thoughtful woman whose commitment to faith, family, and community set examples for so many to follow, and, most particularly, her grandchildren and her great-grandchildren.

While her loss leaves an irreplaceable void at the top of the Lawley family, her legacy shines on through her family and through her many charitable works for which she is best known. I am honored to remember her on this beautiful day on the floor of the United States House of Representatives in this good and generous Nation and the Capitol of the United States of America.