Hilda L. Solis

Madam Speaker. I rise today to honor the career of Robert Sanchez, a guidance counselor formerly at La Puente High School in California.

While I was a high school student at La Puente I was fortunate enough to have Mr. Sanchez as my college guidance counselor. Each day he worked tirelessly to promote education in our school and in our community. During my senior year in high school, Mr. Sanchez took a vested interest in my education. He personally took time to explain the college application process to me and my family and helped show me how I could go to college.

At the time no one else in my family had attended college. College seemed to be an unattainable goal, and the college application process was both expensive and daunting. If not for Mr. Sanchez's counseling and guidance, I do not know that I would have been able to go on to pursue a college education.

For youths across our nation, high school teachers and counselors are a vital part of their education with the power to influence a student's decision to pursue higher education or not. I stand here today to honor those teachers and guidance counselors, like Robert Sanchez, who work each day in our schools, with little recognition or accolades, to place the dreams of knowledge and a better future back into the hands of our children.

Robert Sanchez has dedicated his life to motivating and educating countless youths in Los Angeles County and San Diego, California. Thank you, Mr. Sanchez, for never giving up on our children.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to recognize Benita Duran, a dedicated, hard working woman whom I am very fortunate to have had on my staff for more than eight years.

Benita joined my staff in November 2000 while I was serving as a member of the California State Senate. She stayed with me during my transition into service as a Member of Congress and has been my Deputy District Director since 2004.

During her time in my office, Benita demonstrated that she is a hard working individual committed to advancing the public interest. She demonstrated her passion for issues affecting underserved communities and the lives of working families daily in her work. True to her roots, the residents of El Sereno were first and foremost in her heart and mind.

Benita is strongly committed to our nation's servicemen and women, veterans and their families. She worked tirelessly to ensure that countless numbers of veterans received the medals and recognition they earned, and stood by the families of who lost their loved ones in service to our nation.

Benita was equally committed to helping all residents resolve issues which required Federal assistance. She paid personal attention to each case, whether it was helping resolve an IRS issue to helping people achieve the American Dream of securing their citizenship.

As my Deputy District Director, Benita managed my two district offices and staff in a mature, thoughtful, organized manner. Through her words and actions, Benita trained, mentored and inspired my staff to constantly challenge themselves to meet new goals while helping them along the way. I knew Benita could be counted on to deliver. I am grateful to have had her assist me in this capacity while my work kept me in Washington, DC.

Benita's passion, dedication and commitment to public service will be sorely missed. I am confident she will continue to excel in all future endeavors.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize California's 32nd Congressional District, which I have had the privilege to have represented for the last 8 years in Congress and which I am proud to call home.

I am proud that my six siblings and I were raised in La Puente. Like many, my parents sacrificed throughout our childhood so my siblings and I could live up to our potential to achieve whatever our talents would allow. Like other families throughout the San Gabriel Valley, my parents instilled in my siblings and me the value of hard work, public service and commitment to family. For most of my adult life I have continued to live in the San Gabriel Valley, calling El Monte home.

California's 32nd Congressional District is a culturally diverse district where residents live and work together as a community to ensure everyone has the opportunity to achieve success and dreams for their families. The communities in the 32nd Congressional District include: the cities of Azusa, Baldwin Park, Covina, Duarte, El Monte, Irwindale, Rosemead, South El Monte, West Covina, and portions of Monterey Park and East Los Angeles.

During my time in Congress I was proud to have been the first Latina on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, where I served as Vice Chair of the Environment and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee and as Ranking Member during my tenure, and was a member of its Health and Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittees. I also had the privilege to serve on the House Natural Resources Committee, the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, and the House Education and Labor Committee. In addition, I held several leadership positions, including being the first Latina to chair the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues. I also chaired the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Task Force on Health and the Environment where I spearheaded annual summits across the country on racial and ethnic health disparities.

Throughout my career in public service I worked hard to improve the lives of families by focusing on expanding access to affordable health care, protecting the environment, and job creation. In Congress I have won legislative victories to provide workforce training for green collar jobs; authorized a Federal study on ways to improve recreational and environmental opportunities for the San Gabriel River Watershed; removed barriers to U.S. citizenship for non-U.S. citizens serving in the U.S. military and reserves; banned pesticide testing on pregnant women and children; helped ensure health care access for Latinos suffering from HIV/AIDS; and promote domestic violence awareness, particularly in communities of color.

I want to thank the residents of California's 32nd Congressional District for electing me to represent them in Congress. I have served during some of the most trying times in California's history, and have worked to help build a better future for our State and country. It has been a privilege to serve and represent the San Gabriel Valley and East Los Angeles in the U.S. House of Representatives for the past 8 years.

I want to take this opportunity to thank my family, especially my parents, Raul and Juana Solis, my husband, and my sisters and brothers for all of their support over the years. They have always believed in me, and have been my source of strength and teachers of the commitment to justice, equality and public service. To my extended family, those I have worked alongside with both in California, thank you for your commitment to public service and justice, and your loyalty.

I also want to thank you, Madam Speaker, all of my colleagues in the House, and in particular California's Congressional delegation. I have enjoyed working with you all during my time in Congress, and I am looking forward to continuing to work with you to build a better country. Thank you and God Bless.