Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the exceptional advocacy and service of community leader Venancio Chavez.

Born on May 18, 1962, in Hidalgo, Mexico, Mr. Chavez immigrated to Santa Ana, California, in 1986, where he soon became a community leader and advocate for educational equity in the Santa Ana Unified School District.

Mr. Chavez advocacy work was conducted through his membership with several Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs). As president of Garfield Elementary's PTA from 1995 to 1998, he worked for better safety and quality of life for the students and parents. He helped plant hedges that served a safety barrier and he also established a community garden.

His leadership continued as a member of the Villa Fundamental Junior High School PTA from 2001 to 2004. During this time, he advocated for equal opportunities for disadvantaged and disabled students. His advocacy led to the creation of the lottery system for incoming students for all fundamental high schools in the City of Santa Ana.

As PTA President at Century High School from 2004 to 2008, he increased parent attendance at PTA meetings by inspiring them to become more involved on campus. Additionally, he spearheaded efforts to create community yard sales to fundraise for the PTA. These efforts afforded the school a lighted marquee to provide seamless communication with parents.

One of his most lasting legacies is the founding of El Sol Science and Arts Academy, which opened in Santa Ana in 2001 with 1,000 students in preschool through eighth grade. El Sol Academy is a leading dual- immersion public charter school that offers an intensive academic instructional program that prepares students for high school and beyond. His goal of providing greater access to high education for Santa Ana's low-income families has been realized as El Sol students have gone on to attend the top colleges and universities throughout our nation.

Mr. Chavez continued his advocacy work with Orange Coast College as President of the school's Extended Opportunity and Services Program. In this position, Mr. Chavez endeavored to bring inclusivity within higher education by fostering community ties through campus engagement and provide students with equitable resources. Student and family engagement increased due to his efforts.

In 2012, Venancio Chavez graduated from Orange Coast College with his Associates degree, with a certificate in Special Education, and he later earned his certificate to become a veterinarian assistant. Mr. Chavez is a volunteer food distributor with Saddleback Church. He also supports the Ebell Club of Santa Ana and has dedicated more than 25 years of service to the French Park Plaza Homeowners' Association Board of Directors.

Venancio Chavez is a dedicated man who strives to assist anyone who may need help. Through his advocacy and dedication to public service, Mr. Chavez has uplifted his local community and helped improve equity and access to higher education for school children in the City of Santa Ana.

I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring the exceptional advocacy and service of community leader Venancio Chavez.

Madam Speaker, l rise today to celebrate the exemplary life of Kathy Moffat. Born and raised in Lincoln, Nebraska, Kathy Moffat has lived her life leading with knowledge, experience, and community connection while serving the City of Orange, California, as an Orange Unified School District (OUSD) Trustee.

In her early years, she attended the University of Nebraska where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education. After completing her higher education, she went on to pursue teaching education to the younger generation. She taught upper elementary grades for eight years in the states of Nebraska, Maryland, and Kansas before moving to California.

Kathy and her husband, Duncan, are parents of three grown children, who were all educated in OUSD K-12th grades, and grandparents of seven amazing grandchildren.

Devoted to education and to parent involvement, Kathy has served as a PTA member and leader on the local, state, and national levels for more than 35 years.

Kathy was first elected to the OUSD Board in 2001 in a recall election and then elected to a full term in 2002. She continued to serve on the board for nearly 22 years and has notably been re-elected 5 times.

Moffat's backing of strong academics has resulted in more student access and participation in Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) classes. Under Kathy's leadership, the district also started providing SAT testing to all interested high school students to decrease the financial burden on families in the City of Orange.

Kathy's community leadership roles include President of the Orange YMCA, Director on the Orange County School Boards Association, Director of the Leadership Orange Program of the Orange Chamber of Commerce, the Orange County Committee on School District Organization, and as an active member of her church.

Recent educational challenges have required dedicated leadership and strong guidance. Due to her impressive background and track record, Kathy Moffat has certainly met those challenges.

A champion of education, she has been a tireless advocate for the students and frequently visits school sites to support those in need. She is said to be one of the best friends' public educations has ever had.

Madam Speaker, it is my great privilege to honor this humble, hard- working woman. It is leaders like Kathy Moffat, who help make our country great by serving as role models to our children and to our communities.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the extraordinary career of Coach Art Venegas.

Coach Venegas is regarded as the premier collegiate women and men's throwing coach in the Nation and is world-renowned for his coaching expertise with elite world champion athletes.

Born in Tepic, Mexico, Venegas moved to California when he was age 11. He entered the world of track and field while attending St. Genevieve High School in Panorama City, where he was a shot put and discus performer.

Following his 1970 high school graduation, Venegas became a standout at Cal State Northridge, where he was a four-year letterman in the hammer throw and earned Division II All-America honors in 1974.

Prior to his legendary career at UCLA, Venegas coached at Long Beach State (1980 to 81) and at his alma mater, Cal State Northridge (1976 to 79). At Long Beach State, Venegas coached Bill Green, hammer thrower and former U.S. record-holder (255-0 ), who placed fifth at the 1984 Olympics. He also coached 1984 Olympic Trials shot put finalist Mike Smith (64-10).

As an assistant, and later, as head coach at UCLA, his efforts contributed to 21 consecutive wins against the University of Southern California. He also led the UCLA Women's Indoor Track and Field team to its first National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) title in 2000, and to a consecutive NCAA title in 2001.

After 31 years of coaching at UCLA, Venegas contributed his time and talents to training the nation's top throwers at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California.

Additionally, because of his expertise on throwing, he is a sought- after speaker and has delivered remarks to the 11th World Congress of the International Track and Field Coaches Association in Barcelona, Spain. In 1987, he was the featured speaker at the International Amateur Athletic Federation European Coaching Congress. He has also worked with the British and Spanish national teams.

In recognition of his extraordinary career, Coach Venegas was inducted into the United States Track and Field Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2022.

Outside of work, Art Venegas is an honorable man who takes great pride in Hispanic Heritage. He is always willing to help younger coaches new to the game and especially see other minorities through the coaching ranks.

He is devoted to his wife, the former Marlene Estrada, and their two children, Jessica and Yvette.

Madam Speaker and colleagues, please join me in acknowledging the long career and accomplishments of Hall of Fame Coach Art Venegas.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Law Enforcement De-Escalation Act that will add additional funding for our local police officers. In my local police agencies, they are asking for this funding, they are asking for additional training.

Today, the job of a police officer goes beyond protecting our family. Today, we are asking police officers, protect our families and address mental health issues and address substance abuse issues and address the issue of homelessness. We have watched in horror on television as situations get out of control because police officers are not trained to deal with these issues on a day-to-day basis.

It is time to make a difference. It is time to train our peace officers to do the job that we hired them to do, which is protect our families and to address the local issues, to address the new jobs that we have asked them to take on.

This bill will assure that our peace officers are trained and prepared to handle the situations they encounter on a day-to-day basis.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to please support additional funding that our local police officers and local police agencies are asking for.

Mr. Speaker, this is the oath a soldier takes when he is joining the military:

I do swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the

Constitution of the United States against all enemies,

foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and

allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of

the President of the United States and the orders of the

officers appointed over me.

Mr. Speaker, follow me here. A soldier takes this oath without any reservation, mental or otherwise. He fights for our country, for our Nation, he or she is honorably discharged, and is not a citizen.

Corporal Jose Angel Garibay lived in my district. Jose Angel was the first servicemember in Orange County to make the ultimate sacrifice for this country in Iraq after 9/11. He took the oath. Yet, he died as a noncitizen. He deserved to die as an American citizen.

And many, many other honorably discharged veterans, are deported, but they can come back once they die because they still have the right to be buried in a national cemetery.

Let's pay our debt to our veterans. We ask them to fight, to serve our country, to defend our freedom, and our moral obligation is to take care of all our veterans. Let's pay our debt to

our veterans. Let's pass the Veteran Service Recognition Act.

Madam Speaker, if I may, I just want to say that the Dreamer issue is not about immigrants, it is about America.

Dreamers are the perfect kind of immigrant that you want in this country. They follow the law. They pay taxes. They are either gainfully employed or have to be studying in order to qualify as a Dreamer under the DACA program.

Now, 70 to 80 percent of all Americas, Democrats and Republicans, support a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers. They are our friends. They are our neighbors, firefighters, police officers, and they also serve in the military.

Here is a poster of one of my constituents, Jose Angel Garibay. He was the first servicemember from Orange County to make the ultimate sacrifice for America after 9/11 in Iraq. He died as a Dreamer, as a noncitizen.

Later on, this body saw it appropriate to give him U.S. citizenship posthumously.

Jose shouldn't have waited until after he passed away to become a U.S. citizen because he made the ultimate sacrifice for his new country--the only country he knew, the United States of America.

Madam Speaker, I am proud to inform you that I represent probably the largest number of Dreamers in the country: Orange County, California. Orange County, the county that Ronald Reagan used to say was the place that good Republicans would go to die.

Not very long ago, my daughter came home with two of her very good friends, and they were both very scared and crying. They said: We are Dreamers. Are we going to be deported? What do we do?

Good, sweet, young ladies--students. I said: You keep studying hard. You keep working hard. You keep following the law. You keep being a good person and let us work on legislation in Washington.

Today, my simple ask from the Senate is: Do the right thing. Stop treating Dreamers as political footballs, you kick them whenever it is appropriate.

I ask the Senate to please pass the Dreamer legislation and give those 2 million Dreamers the opportunity to earn--not to be given--but to earn a pathway to the American Dream.

Again, 70 to 80 percent of Americans agree with this concept. Let's do our job. Let's continue to keep America as the greatest country in the world.

Madam Speaker, I rise to honor the retirement of Rancho Santiago Community College Trustee, Larry Labrado.

Larry has served on the Board of Trustees since 1994, and he's now retiring after 28 outstanding years. Prior to Larry's service on the Board, he was an educator with more than 26 years of experience in enrollment management. He also served as an outreach director at California State University, Fullerton.

Larry has devoted much of his career in advancing the education of local youth and Latino children and adults. He has earned numerous awards and held countless leadership roles over the past four decades.

He was named as one of 50 successful Latino Alumni from California State University, Fullerton and was also inducted onto the University's Education Opportunity Programs Hall of Fame.

I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Larry Labrado and the years of service he has given to Orange County and generations of students.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Korean War Veteran Norio Uyematsu.

Norio was born in Cupertino, California, the oldest of four children raised by parents Niroku and Shitsuyo Uyematsu, who immigrated to America from Hiroshima, Japan. Norio is a second-generation Japanese American, or Nisei, and he is now one of the few surviving Japanese American veterans who served in the Korean War.

During World War II, when he was age 11, Norio's family was imprisoned for three years in a Japanese American concentration camp in Heart Mountain, Wyoming. As they had no home to return to, the Uyematsu family relocated to Brigham City, Utah, in 1945. He graduated from Box Elder High School in Brigham City in 1948 and decided to enlist in the Army. He was only 17 and needed his parent's approval. His father signed his enlistment form immediately, but his mother would not sign until a month before his 18th birthday.

His service began January 3, 1949, when he went through basic and advanced training in Anti-Aircraft Artillery at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. In April of 1950, his planned transfer to Okinawa, Japan, was abruptly changed with the invasion of North Korea into South Korea. Instead, he was transferred to Camp Drake in Japan and was assigned to guard Misawa Air Force Base in Northern Japan.

In July of 1951, his unit was sent to Korea to guard Kimpo Air Base. Norio was then assigned to the 521st Military Intelligence Service to interrogate prisoners of war.

For his service, Norio, who achieved the rank of Corporal, was decorated with 10 medals. He was honorably discharged from the Army on July 27, 1952 and returned to Utah. From that day forward, Norio dedicated his life to remembering his fallen comrades and to keeping the Korean War veterans' memories alive

The Korean War, which began on June 25, 1950 and concluded on July 27, 1953, became known as the ``Forgotten War.'' But Norio never forgot that 33,600 American soldiers were killed in action fighting to prevent the North Korean Communist regime from taking over South Korea.

Of the 33,600 men who lost their lives defending South Korea, 247 of those soldiers were Japanese Americans. Because of their selfless sacrifice, the tide of communism on the Korean Peninsula was halted and liberty triumphed over tyranny. Today, the Republic of Korea is a free democracy because of the service of the 5,000 Japanese Americans and other honorable soldiers who fought in the Korean War. Now, a few months short of age 92, he is still working to make sure the sacrifices made by his fellow soldiers are remembered. To fulfill his mission, Norio has served as an active member in several veterans organizations: the Japanese American Korean War Veterans. the Korean War Veterans Association, the Nisei Veterans Coordinating Council, the Disabled American Veterans Chapter 100, the American Legion, and the Japanese American Veterans Association, and the Kazuo Masuda VFW Memorial Post 3670, of which he was a three term commander. To continue his ties to his Utah roots, he is also a member of the Salt Lake Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League.

Norio also continues his volunteer activism by supporting community projects and attending events, including the July 27, 2022 dedication of the Korean War Veterans Memorial ``Wall of Remembrance'' in Washington, DC.

Throughout his life, Norio was supported in his work by his wife of 63 years, Hanako Rose Fujikawa Uyematsu, also from Brigham City. They raised three boys, Michael, Ronald, and Thomas, who gave them eleven grand-children and two great grandchildren. Rose passed away in 2020 at home in Anaheim, California.

For many, Norio Uyematsu's contributions to his community are not well known since he preferred to humbly work in the shadows. But his spirit of service will continue by the foundation he set reminding others of what Korean War veterans did over 68 years ago to defend Democracy and Freedom. The people of America and the Republic of Korea will be forever grateful.

Madam Speaker, this is not a Democrat or Republican issue. This is about stopping sexual predators.

For decades, Larry Nassar abused young girls on the U.S. women's national gymnastics team. At least 265 young women and girls--265 victims--were targeted and sexually abused by Nassar. It was all due to a nondisclosure statement that protected Nassar from justice.

Allowing sexual predators to hide behind nondisclosure agreements is wrong and is a crime.

Today, we have the power to stop sexual predators from hurting our loved ones.

I ask my colleagues, both Democrats and Republicans, to vote for the Speak Out Act.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the exemplary life of Cecilia ``Mama Chila'' Delgado, who celebrated her 100th birthday on November 16, 2022. Born in the small town of Cueramaro, Guanajuato, Mexico, Cecilia Delgado has lived 100 years with honor, integrity, respect and grace, while still residing in her own home in Anaheim, California.

The oldest of seven siblings, her parents, Pedro and Josefa Delgado, an immigrant farmer-working couple who were seeking a better life for their family, brought Cecilia to the United States when she was age 2 months. As a young girl, she entered public school and finished at Orange High School. Cecilia embraced her education by doing well in school, playing sports, and learning how to play the violin, guitar and mandolin. She still loves and continues to play her mandolin.

During the Great Depression, her family returned to Mexico to live. As an 18-year-old teen, Cecilia found a new life in a new country. She married Pablo Bravo and had five children. Unfortunately, her husband perished in a tragic work-related accident that left her as a 32-year- old widow.

With five young children, ranging in age from 1- to 10-years-old, Cecilia made a difficult decision to return to Orange County, California, where she had grown up and where she knew she could find employment to provide for her family. Being bilingual and biliterate, and extremely hard working, she immediately landed a job as a stitcher at Van's, a tennis shoe factory in Anaheim. She supplemented her income cleaning houses. By working two jobs, she provided her children economic stability, coupled with love and comfort, for the duration of their lives.

Mama Chila's success at achieving the American Dream has created a legacy for her 5 children, 12 grandchildren, 21 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren. Her greatest joy is her family, and she beams with pride and joy as she sees them living accomplished, productive lives, with nearly every child within the third generation graduating college or on their way to receiving bachelor's and master's degrees.

A caring, polite, smart, well-dressed, and classy lady, Mama Chila continually says that she may not remember what she had for dinner, but that ``nothing hurts,'' for which she is grateful.

This centurion woman is remarkable, and her family hopes she will live to be a 103-years-old like her padre, for whom she cared for, as well as her mother, until their eternal rest.

Madam Speaker, it is my great privilege to honor this humble, hard- working woman. It is women and madres like Cecilia ``Mama Chila'' Delgado who help make our country great by serving as role models to their children and community. She and her multi-generational family are a shining example of how immigrants seeking the American Dream have made our nation stronger.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Frances Munoz, our nation's first Latina judge. Judge Frances Munoz died on October 17, 2022, of natural causes. She was 92 years old.

Judge Frances Munoz has the distinction of being the first Latina female appointed or elected to the bench in California and the first Latina female appointed or elected as a trial court jurist in the United States. She served for 23 years in the Orange County Municipal and Superior Courts and an additional 15 years as an Assigned Judge.

From humble beginnings, Frances was born at the height of the depression on September 18, 1930, the fifth of eleven children, in the mining town of Miami, Arizona. The family moved to Puritan, Colorado, and her father continued to work in the coal mines until the mines ``played out.''

In 1941, the family moved to Corona, California, and joined the thousands of others working in farm labor. Frances and her siblings joined their parents in the fields during the summers picking tomatoes, grapes, and other crops in the Fresno area, sometimes sleeping outdoors.

Judge Munoz inspired her younger siblings to study and pursue higher education. After high school, she went to work selling furniture and she paid for the college expenses of her siblings.

Undaunted, Judge Munoz pursued her own education by attending night classes at Los Angeles City College, UCLA and law school while managing Atlas Furniture stores during the day. In 1972, Judge Munoz received her law degree from Southwestern University School of Law where she was a member of the Law Review.

She moved to Orange County, where her brother Greg, a graduate from USC law school, had opened a practice. (Greg later became an Orange County Superior Court judge and served alongside Frances on the bench.)

In 1972, Frances joined the office of the Orange County Public Defender, where she was the first Latina and the second woman to be hired in that office.

In 1974, she and several Latino attorneys established the Orange County Mexican-American Lawyers Club, which was later renamed the Hispanic Bar Association of Orange County. One of their goals was to ensure that more Latinos, who were qualified and experienced, be appointed or elected to the bench. As a result of the efforts, today there are 19 Latino judges out of 124 Superior Court Judges on the Orange County bench and two Latino justices out of eight Appellate Court justices in Orange County.

On January 25, 1978, Governor Jerry Brown's office telephoned Frances Munoz to advise her that she had been appointed as a Judge in the Harbor Municipal Court in Orange County. She was not at her desk. She was in court representing a defendant in a felony jury trial.

As a Deputy Public Defender, she was known as a zealous advocate. But she was also noted for being civil with opposing counsel and respectful of the court. She was also acknowledged for creating and meticulously cataloging 3x5 cards in a small box. On each card she wrote out the facts and holding of the appellate court in key cases involving ``furtive gestures,'' ``search of trunk,'' and other criminal law issues. She would quickly retrieve a key citation during a motion or trial.

Within months of her appointment, she was opposed by a male Deputy District Attorney. Several Harbor Municipal Court judges, and multitudes of Orange County attorneys, court staff, bailiffs, police officers, and clergy rallied around her to host fundraisers and to support her in the retention election. Her ten brothers and sisters and their children and parishioners from her church, St. Joachim Catholic Church in Costa Mesa, canvassed neighborhoods to get out the vote. In that 1980 election, Judge Frances Munoz was retained with the largest plurality of votes of any challenged judge in the state. Four other judges in Orange County lost their seats that year. She was never challenged again.

In 1980 and 1990 she was elected the Supervising Judge of the Harbor Municipal Court and in 1990 was also recognized as the Outstanding Judge of the Year by the Orange County Women Lawyers Association. In 1976, she co-founded the Orange County Hispanic Education Endowment Fund which awards college scholarships to Latino scholars.

In 2001, Judge Munoz retired from the bench, but continued her public service as an assigned judge until 2016. She also served on the board of directors of THINK--Teaching, Helping, Instructing Kids and boards of other non-profit organizations.

Every Thursday she would tutor students at Santa Ana's Madison Elementary school. She was also a keen real estate investor who purchased several commercial and residential properties. She always accommodated nieces and nephews in her spacious Corona Del Mar home while they studied and earned their bachelors, masters or medical degrees at the University of California, Irvine.

Judge Munoz is survived by four sisters, Margaret Munoz, Vera Munoz- Harrison, Rosie Schirling, and Angie Quintana and 25 nieces and nephews and 45 great nieces and nephews.

Please join me in celebrating the long, accomplished life of Judge Frances Munoz. She will be remembered for her perseverance in the face of adversity, excellence as a law student, attorney and judge, for her lifetime dedication to public service and children's education, and for her compassionate and gracious spirit.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Michael Ray. He has been honored with the 2022 Spirit of Discovery Award for his incredible gifts of time, diligence, and unwavering commitment to The Discovery Cube's purpose of being a place of purpose, and working to inspire, educate, and impact.

As an Orange County native who attended Occidental College as an undergraduate and earned his MBA from USC, Michael Ray has played an integral role in shaping Orange County's science, technology, education, and cultural landscape for over 25 years. He was instrumental in founding the Discovery Cube Orange County and the Orange County School of the Arts, two long-standing institutions he fought for and worked hard to secure critical funding and lines of credit to assist with their initial launches and then successfully thrive.

At the Discovery Cube Orange County, Michael has been involved with each major phase of the organization's development and growth, dating back to 1985, the beginning of the Cube. Back then, Michael was a part of the Art Spaces Irvine Board that hired legendary market consultant Buzz Price (who assisted with the initial creation of Disneyland) to determine if Orange County was a large enough market to create and support a science center. The result was positive, and the idea of the Discovery Science Center (now the Discovery Cube) was on its way. Along the journey, Michael met with various local elected officials, state legislators, and government officials to build public support for the project. Combined with the work of other early board members, the Science Center successfully opened its doors officially in Santa Ana in 1998. Michael has been a Cube Champion at each major campus expansion campaign and is still very active today as the Cube enters a new chapter of growth.

Michael was also the founding chairman of the Great Park Conservancy and, early on, was an advocate for bringing Discovery Cube's programming to the park. He also helped co-found the Sage Hill School in Newport Beach and, along with the late Richard O'Neil and David Stein, the Democratic Foundation of Orange County.

I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Michael Ray and all the work that he has done for everyone in the community.

Madam Speaker, I rise today and honor Silvia Martinez de Tafolla, a constituent I am immensely proud of, and celebrating her 82nd birthday. Silvia was born to Jose Martinez Valades and Carment Martinez Solorzano in Irapuato Guanajuato, Mexico on May 4, 1940. She studied in Mexico for the occupation of Secretary.

At the age of 24 Silvia married a hardworking and responsible gentleman named Miguel Vargas Tafolla. Their union brought 2 wonderful children, Silvita and Miguel Angel who are her reason for living and source of unconditional support.

After 14 years of marriage, the family was separated 2 years, as Miguel immigrated to the United States, while the family stayed behind in Mexico. Silvia and her daughter then immigrated to the United States through a difficult and dangerous journey, leaving her youngest son behind in Mexico. All the family was final reunited in Anaheim, California. Silvia and her family have made Anaheim their home for the past 40 years. Silvia worked as a sales representative. After 55 years of marriage, Silvia's husband Miguel passed away, and with the love for her children she has been able to carry on.

I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Silvia Martinez de Tafolla, her ability to persevere to reach the American Dream and celebrate her 82nd birthday.

Madam Speaker, today we honor the life of Tuan Le, an exceptional and

selfless man who uplifted the voices of those in need and who was committed to the notion of bettering the life of others.

Born on June 30, 1962 in Saigon, Vietnam, Tuan was the son of Nhan Le and Hoa Duong. Tuan emigrated with his family to the U.S. in 1975 after the fall of Saigon and settled in Southern California. As a stranger in a strange land, Tuan learned to adapt to his new home and country. He graduated high school and enrolled in Cal Poly where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree. A family man, Tuan was born as the fourth child in the household of seven siblings and was no stranger to family ``comedy'' and ``drama.'' He remained unfazed by life-altering events surrounding him. He loved good food and good parties. Above all, he was a selfless man who was always available to lend a sympathetic ear to anyone who needed it.

Tuan was a jack of many trades. While in school, he worked in various stores where he liked their merchandises in order to get the employee's discount. After college, he ran a law office with his brother Kenny and then tried out his luck as an office manager for a dental office in Northern California. He went back to Vietnam and lived there for a while to reconnect with his roots. While there, he managed and owned several businesses as well as dabbled in the entertainment industry.

His compassion was boundless. By nature, his advocacy led to leadership and support for organizations such as GAPSN, GVA and VROC. Wherever he lived, he created a support network for young LGBTQ+ individuals struggling with life challenges. He provided emotional support, shelters or food to especially LGBTQ+ youths of color. No matter your ethnic background, if someone refers you to Tuan, he would find ways to assist you. He generously gave times to family and friends, consoled those in time of needs and participated or organized charity events serving the vulnerable children and the poor and disabled elderly in Vietnam. There were many facets of Tuan that we came to know and each piece of him made up the person we all trust, love and respect.

Beside his father, Tuan was predeceased by his brother Duc Le. He is survived by his mother, lifelong partner Ngo Duc Anh, siblings and many nieces and nephews. I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing this distinguished man and all the hard work he has done for the betterment of his community.

I thank Tuan for the lifelong dedication he has demonstrated in helping others.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to congratulate Katella High School in my district for winning the National Green Ribbon Award.

Katella High School is one of 36 high schools nationwide to win this honor. Katella High School has also been recognized as a California Green Ribbon School not once but twice; in 2020 earning the bronze award, and in 2021 earning the silver award.

From a Colonist to the Knights, congratulations. Keep up the good work.