Lois Frankel

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Deirdre M. Jacobs. Assistant City Manager for the City of Riviera Beach, on earning the prestigious designation of International City/ County Management Association (ICMA) Credentialed Manager (CM).

This historic achievement makes Deirdre the first municipal executive serving the City of Riviera Beach to earn the ICMA--CM designation and the only currently active Black woman serving as an ICMA Credentialed Manager in Palm Beach County. It is the latest milestone in a distinguished career spanning nearly four decades of municipal public service.

Deirdre is a graduate of Florida A&M University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Public Management, and Florida State University, where she earned a Master of Public Administration. Her career in public service began with internships in the Riviera Beach City Manager's Office and the Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners' Human Resources Department. In 1989, she formally began her municipal career as a Budget Analyst with the City of Tallahassee.

Deirdre later joined the City of West Palm Beach, where she rose through the ranks to become a Division Program Manager in Community Development. I had the privilege of working directly with her when she served as a Special Assistant to the Mayor during my tenure as Mayor of West Palm Beach.

I am especially proud of the work we did together to uplift families in Coleman Park, a historically under-resourced neighborhood. Our efforts included building new homes, rehabilitating existing homes' improving the community center, supporting seniors, and strengthening neighborhood services and resources. Deirdre brought dedication, compassion, and a deep commitment to improving the quality of life for the families we served.

Deirdre has brought the same commitment to public service to the City of Riviera Beach, where she was unanimously appointed Interim City Manager in 2019. During a pivotal leadership transition, she helped guide the City through a significant cybersecurity attack, maintained essential municipal services, recruited professional staff for key leadership positions, strengthened City operations, and advanced important infrastructure investments.

Today, she continues to serve Riviera Beach as Assistant City Manager, bringing decades of experience, professionalism, and a deep commitment to effective and responsive local government. Her designation as an ICMA Credentialed Manager reflects not only her expertise, but also her sustained dedication to the highest standards of public service. Her career is a testament to the impact of principled leadership and a powerful example for the next generation of public servants.

I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating Deirdre Jacobs on this historic achievement and recognizing her decades of distinguished public service. Deirdre's career reflects a lifetime commitment to professional local government and the communities we serve. Deirdre is not only a talented and dedicated public servant, but also someone who genuinely cares about people and works tirelessly to make their lives better.

I am proud to recognize her contributions to our community and call her a friend.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize my dear friend Addie L. Greene, a trailblazing public servant whose decades of leadership have left a lasting mark on Palm Beach County and the State of Florida. Addie and I had the privilege of serving side-by- side in the Florida Legislature, and I saw firsthand her strength, integrity, and deep commitment to the people she represented.

A dedicated educator before entering public office, Addie began her political career in Mangonia Park, where she served on the Town Council and became the town's first African American woman mayor. In 1992, she made history as the first Black person from Palm Beach County elected to the Florida Legislature, serving four terms in the Florida House of Representatives.

She continued her distinguished public service as a member of the Palm Beach County Commission from 2000 to 2009, including service as Chair. Throughout her career, Addie has been a steadfast advocate for working families, underserved communities, and greater opportunity and representation for all.

Addie Greene did more than make history--she opened doors and brought others through them. I am proud to call her my friend, and even prouder to have served alongside her. I thank Addie for her extraordinary lifetime of public service and for all she has done to make Palm Beach County a stronger, fairer, and more inclusive community.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Beyer for yielding and for bringing us together on this very urgent and important issue.

This is very personal to me because after college, my son, Ben, was commissioned as an officer in the United States Marine Corps. He served overseas in two war zones, first in Afghanistan and then in Iraq.

Like so many military parents, I lived with the fear of getting that knock on the door. My family was blessed. Ben came home safely, and later he returned overseas, this time working for USAID, America's civilian development and humanitarian agency.

Ben taught me something I have never forgotten. That is because he said when he came home: Mom, the way to peace is not just through bombs and bullets. It is through soft power, such as helping people, building relationships, creating opportunity, and preventing conflict before it starts. That lesson changed the way I looked at America's role in the world.

When I came to Congress, one of my missions was to help keep our sons and daughters out of harm's way by strengthening American soft power. Never has this mission been more urgent.

For 6 months, we have been in a costly war with Iran with no clear end in sight. It is a stark reminder that real security requires not only military strength but diplomacy, development, and humanitarian leadership.

I diverge because when Mr. Trump was elected, then came DOGE, and then USAID was eliminated. Programs were canceled, and thousands of experienced professionals were shown the door. Decades of experience and relationships were torn apart. The Trump administration dismantled one of America's most important national security tools.

Let me tell you, Mr. Speaker, what USAID looked like to Fatima, a mother in northeastern Nigeria.

For most of her life, Fatima walked long distances to collect water from a stream shared with cattle, or she bought water from vendors when her family could afford it. She worried whether the water was safe for her children. Then a USAID-funded project drilled a borehole and brought clean water directly to a tap at her home. There was clean water for her children. There were no more long walks just to meet one of life's most basic needs.

That is soft power.

Then there is Apsana, a 16-year-old girl in Nepal who had never attended a formal school. Her brothers went to school while she stayed home. Then a USAID-funded program brought teachers directly to girls like Apsana. For the first time, she was getting an education and a chance at a future beyond early marriage.

Then the U.S. funding stopped. All over the world, teachers stopped coming. The classrooms disappeared.

Here in Washington, we canceled programs. For Apsana and millions more, we closed the doors to classrooms with brighter futures. May I add, I think we went from 500 programs to 2.

I know what Americans are asking. Why should we care? Why should American taxpayers care about a mother in Nigeria or a girl in Nepal?

It is because helping them helps us. Clean water prevents disease. Educating girls creates stronger economies and more stable communities.

Of course, we should reform programs that don't work. We should demand results and accountability. Demolition is not reform. Foreign assistance is not simply a charity. It is national security. It stops disease before it reaches our shores. It restores and creates stability before the instability allows extremists to exploit it. It creates friends, allies, and future trading partners. It builds good will toward the United States without firing a shot.

For Fatima, American soft power meant clean water. For Apsana, it meant a chance to choose her own future. For America, it means fewer costly crises, fewer wars, and fewer of our sons and daughters sent into harm's way. That is what my son, Ben, learned after serving in war.

Sometimes, Mr. Speaker, a well, a vaccine, a bag of food, or a schoolbook could do more for American security than a bomb ever could.

To the thousands of USAID professionals who spent their careers preventing disease, fighting against hunger, educating children, empowering women, responding to disasters, and representing the very best in America, I want to say thank you. Thank you for your service, the lives you saved, the communities you strengthened, and the good will you built for our country because your work mattered, and your mission still matters. We may have lost an agency, but we will not abandon the mission.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues who are here, and I know they agree with me when I say we must work to restore America's humanitarian and development leadership, rebuild the expertise and partnership that were lost, and make sure that America leads not just through military might but through the power of our generosity, humanity, and diplomacy. I know that is what my son taught me, and the mission stays ahead.