E1582 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks September 20, 2012 

unique document represents our founding fathers’ innovative strides towards democracy 

and has fervently outlived all of its predecessors. Our constitutional framers and those 

who have improved the Constitution through 

Amendments have ensured the preservation 

and enhancement of liberty, justice and equality. The Constitution has endured the test of 

time and now celebrates a remarkable 225 

years as the foundation of American government. The Constitution represents the ability of 

our country to come together for the greater 

good. The inalienable rights laid out in this historical document have shaped our amazing 

nation and served as inspiration for the development of future democracies. 

On August 2, 1956, President Eisenhower 

enacted a law that acknowledged the Constitution’s importance as the center of the 

America we now know and love and instituted 

an annual National Constitution Week to both 

celebrate the Constitution and promote its 

study. It is during this week that we acknowledge not only our framers with patriotic dignity, but also honor those who have ensured 

that this document continues to preserve 

equality throughout our nation. This dignified 

piece of American history deserves proper 

recognition, and I invite my colleagues to join 

me in renewing our vows to preserve, protect 

and defend this venerable document. 

f 

IN RECOGNITION OF DENZELL 

PERRY 

HON. LAURA RICHARDSON OF CALIFORNIA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Thursday, September 20, 2012 

Ms. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise 

today to honor an extraordinary young man, 

Denzell Perry. Today, Mr. Perry is being honored as the Pacific Region Youth of the Year 

by the Boys and Girls Club of America. Mr. 

Perry is from Watts, California, which is in my 

district. He embodies the core values held by 

the Boys and Girls Club. He leads by example 

and has already made a significant difference 

at his local center. 

Mr. Perry started going to the center at the 

age of six, and the relationships he built then 

have turned into lifelong friends and mentors. 

Now, he provides the same guidance and support that he received as a child. 

At his club, Mr. Perry was president of the 

teen service group and served as a junior staff 

member. Also, when Mr. Perry’s club wanted 

to help more teens receive assistance through 

its college access program, he designed a 

new Web site that really spoke to his peers. 

In high school, Mr. Perry was class president, a member of the Black Student Union, 

and a student member of the board of education. Now he attends University of California 

Irvine, majoring in criminal justice. I am confident that, with his strong work ethic and 

sense of social justice, he will transform his 

community and the lives of future generations. 

Mr. Speaker, he is the type of young man 

we should all look to for inspiration. He is a 

true leader in his community and has a bright 

future ahead of him. I am honored to have 

such an impressive young man in my district. 

I urge my colleagues to continue to support 

the Boys and Girls Clubs of America which 

has a tradition of producing great Americans 

such Denzel Washington, Magic Johnson, 

General Wesley Clark, and now continues with 

Denzell Perry. 

f 

A TRIBUTE TO WALTER HIGGINS 

HON. ROBERT A. BRADY OF PENNSYLVANIA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Thursday, September 20, 2012 

Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I 

rise today to honor Mr. Walter Higgins for his 

invaluable contribution to the infrastructure of 

Philadelphia. Since 1986, Walt has transformed several of Philadelphia’s vital roadways, enhancing the city’s travel efficiency. 

After graduating Monsignor Bonner High 

School in 1975, Walt studied Labor-Management Relations and Construction Management 

at Delaware Community College, Kutztown 

University, and The George Meany Center for 

Labor Relations at the National Labor College. 

Walt was the Traffic Control Coordinator and 

Foreman for projects such as the Vine Street 

Expressway Reconstruction, and the 1–95 

Center City Access Job. Walt also coordinated 

logistics with the City of Philadelphia, the 

Workforce and Penn Dot for several fast track 

projects. Philadelphians who regularly utilize 

the Walt Whitman Bridge, the Benjamin Franklin Bridge and the Patco High Speed Line understand the importance of Walt’s work on 

these projects. 

Walt has been a member of the Laborers’ 

Local 57 for more than thirty years and presently serves as the local’s Business Manager 

and the Vice President of the Laborers District 

Council of Philadelphia. He is a trustee on the 

Laborers District Council Pension and Health 

and Welfare Benefit Funds and sits on the 

Board of Directors of the Allied Trades Assistance Program. Aside from managing business, serving councils, and improving Philadelphia’s infrastructure, Walt enjoys spending 

time with his wife Adele, son Tom and his wife 

Kelly, and his three grandsons. 

Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to 

join me in honoring Mr. Walter Higgins and 

thanking him for his service to the city of 

Philadelphia. 

f 

NEIL GODLESKI AND SUZANNE 

MURPHY 

HON. TIMOTHY H. BISHOP OF NEW YORK

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Thursday, September 20, 2012 

Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, I 

rise to commemorate the tragic passing of Neil 

Godleski, nephew of my friend and constituent 

Suzanne Murphy of Southampton, New York. 

Neil, a rising senior at Catholic University, was 

fatally shot on August 22, 2010 while riding his 

bicycle home from a restaurant where he 

worked as a waiter. He was 31 years old and 

had returned to college with plans to pursue a 

career in science. His assailant was a 16- 

year-old boy who shot him six times with a .38 

caliber handgun and then robbed him. 

Suzanne’s family has been wrenched with 

grief over the sudden end of this young man’s 

life. More than 200 people attended his funeral 

in his hometown of Norwalk, Connecticut, and 

many others gathered at a candlelight vigil for 

him in his Washington, DC neighborhood of 

Petworth. 

While no vigil or memorial could ever begin 

to take away the pain of this loss, Suzanne 

has found a way to channel her grief and 

focus her energy. She has become an advocate for gun control, becoming part of a movement declaring the need to seek a new path 

emphasizing gun safety at a time when one in 

three Americans knows someone who has 

been shot In an average year, around 100,000 

Americans are killed or wounded with guns. 

Columbine, Virginia Tech, Trayvon Martin, 

and the recent episode in Aurora, Colorado 

are senseless tragedies still fresh in our minds 

that point to the need for responsible policies 

that protect all Americans from gun violence 

but also preserve the right afforded citizens by 

the Second Amendment. Reasonable people 

can agree that we can achieve even-handed 

protections that do not infringe on any American’s right to possess a firearm. 

Efforts to curb the influx of dangerous weapons into our communities, restrictions on assault-type weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines, and policies on handguns 

are the types of actions Congress can take to 

protect our communities from gun violence. 

We must also equip local law enforcement officers with the tools needed to keep guns out 

of the hands of criminals and others who wish 

to do our sons and daughters harm. 

Unfortunately, Suzanne Murphy and her 

family have experienced first-hand the tragic 

pain and loss that comes to a family in a 

shooting death. At Catholic University, Neil 

was a teaching assistant to his biology professor. The professor told Suzanne that one of 

Neil’s jobs was to keep an eye out for other 

students having trouble mastering the material. Neil especially liked tutoring and helping 

his fellow classmates. After his death, Catholic 

University awarded Neil his diploma with his 

class of 2011. His parents, Dan and Heidi 

Godleski, gratefully accepted it on his behalf 

Mr. Speaker, I applaud Suzanne’s efforts to 

reach out and bring awareness to the problem 

of gun safety. We must not let her nephew become just another chilling statistic in the battle 

to make our communities safer—leaving another family struggling to get past the pain and 

loss. 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with REMARKS