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[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 117 (Thursday, August 2, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5965-S5966]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

         RECOGNIZING THE SISTERS OF ST. JOSEPH OF BRENTWOOD, NY

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, We rise today to honor three great 
American heroes and their devoted organization. In Long Island, NY 
there are three American nuns that have been working to ease the burden 
of the poor and the sick and educate our youth for the past 80 years.
  Sister Francis Gerard Kress, Sister Edward Joseph Murphy and Sister 
Alice Francis Young are all nuns with the Sisters of St. Joseph of 
Brentwood, NY and have given this order and their community over 80 
years of service.
  Mrs. GILLIBRAND. The Sisters of St. Joseph first came to the United 
States to Carondelet, MO in 1836, and established a school dedicated to 
the education of deaf children. Mother Austin Kean, accompanied by 
Sister Baptista Hanson and Sister Theodosia Hegeman, came to Brooklyn 
in 1856 to found what is now, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Brentwood, 
NY. The goal of the Sisters of St. Joseph continues to be to foster 
love, unity and reconciliation among all people and with this earth. 
For over 150 years, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Brentwood, NY have 
been faithful in their vision to serve the world and its people. Since 
the creation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Brentwood order in 1856, 
there has been over 2,500 Sisters to serve, and currently there are 588 
serving or in retirement throughout the United States.
  There is not enough time in this Congress to fully describe the work 
and accomplishments of the Sisters of St. Joseph. But I would like to 
highlight some of the work of these three remarkable nuns.
  Sister Alice Francis Young joined the Convent of the Sisters of St. 
Joseph in 1932, and since then has proven to be a pioneer and integral 
force in early childhood education. Sister Young's career milestones 
include helping to start the first Head Start program in New York, 
working as a master teacher at St. Joseph's College in Brooklyn for 20 
years, and being a professor of child study at St. Joseph's for over 40 
years. She has helped educate thousands of children and given them the 
ability to reach their potential.
  Sister Francis Gerard Kress has been a Sister of St. Josephs for 80 
years, working on community activism and being a champion for health 
care and environmental protection. In September 1982, Sister Kress 
testified before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on 
Water Resources and in doing so shed light on her work around the 
environmental dangers that existed near Newton Creek in Williamsburg, 
Brooklyn, NY. Her work has since helped to protect a community from 
these dangers and enlighten the Nation to the importance of the Clean 
Water Act.
  Sister Edward Joseph Murphy is 99 years old and joined the Order of 
the Sisters of St. Joseph in 1932. She spent her life educating at the 
primary and secondary levels, helping children throughout this Nation 
improve their lives through education and community service, as well as 
help new arrivals to this Nation with English by way of her Orders' 
English as a Second Language programs. Sister Murphy also spent over 20 
years caring for the community and residents of Merrick, Long Island, 
NY by visiting homes, nursing homes and hospitals, bringing food and 
toys, and assisting in times of crisis.
  For the past 80 years, Sister Francis Gerard Kress, Sister Edward 
Joseph Murphy and Sister Alice Francis Young have dedicated their lives 
for the betterment of others in New York, the United States and around 
the world. We are humbled to have the opportunity to recognize the life 
and service of these amazing women and everlasting mark they left on so 
many.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, we would like the United States Senate to

[[Page S5966]]

recognize and honor the work of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Brentwood, 
NY; and the lifelong dedication of Sisters Francis Gerard Kress, Edward 
Joseph Murphy and Alice Francis Young for their 80 years of service to 
their religion, professions and country.

                          ____________________
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