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[Page H7383]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING THE LIFE AND SERVICE OF BARBARA KELLER
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
California (Mr. Ruiz) for 5 minutes.
Mr. RUIZ. Mr. Speaker, there are people whose empathy and compassion
glow like a beacon, and others whose shine like the sun.
That was Barbara Keller: A blazing star of kindness and an inspiring
local leader who lived to serve others, championed causes that uplifted
the sick, the poor, and fought for the rights of the LGBTQ community.
For 3 decades, Barbara called California's Coachella Valley home.
Barbara and her husband, Jerry, brought award-winning restaurants to
the Coachella Valley. But it was Barbara's generosity and commitment to
serving others that made her so remarkable.
Barbara was a champion for combating HIV/AIDS through her leadership
as the first female president of the Desert AIDS Project. Barbara was
moved by the deaths and suffering of many HIV-infected friends living
on the margins, facing injustice and discrimination in their struggle
to live. She brought hope and healthcare to so many individuals living
with, affected by, or at risk for HIV or AIDS.
As a doctor, I had the honor of working with Barbara on the Desert
AIDS Project in our shared advocacy for the health of local and
medically underserved communities.
Barbara's annual Steve Chase Awards fundraisers were a fixture of the
Coachella Valley, as was her incredible gala dress fashion, second only
to her beauty and class.
Barbara also lent her compassion to defending the health of patients
while working with the AIDS Assistance Project and the Loma Linda
Children's Hospital.
During her years of service to our communities, Barbara also helped
grow our desert's art scene through organizations like the Palm Springs
Art Museum and the McCallum Theatre.
Barbara's generosity in her public life was complemented by her
extraordinary kindness in her private life.
My wife, Monica, and I knew Barbara as a dear, dear, friend and a
wonderful role model to our daughters, Sky and Sage. I was constantly
personally touched by her loving nature, her unwavering support and
encouragement, and her dedication to her higher purpose.
Barbara most treasured her family, and her greatest pleasure was
being a loving wife, a mother, a daughter, and grandmother.
Barbara devotedly cared for her aging father, Marvin Cohn, until he
passed away in March at 106 years old, never once telling him she was
undergoing intense chemotherapy for breast cancer. Barbara's death soon
followed the following month on April 15, 2019.
Barbara and her husband Jerry's marriage was a love story few can
claim and a touching example of the power of true love.
Barbara leaves behind her devoted husband, Jerry, her son, Brad, her
daughters, Lindsay, Lisa, and Kelly, and her seven grandchildren,
Taylor, Rebekah, Graham, Ridley, Greta, Eva, and Levon, and her sister,
Carole.
While Barbara's passing deeply saddens me, her memory will live on in
my heart and in the hearts of the countless individuals whose lives she
touched.
In an era of ``me first,'' ego-driven, selfish ambition, Barbara
reminds us that love, kindness, and genuine service to others is
possible. She is the embodiment of good, humility, strength, and outer
and inner beauty. Her legacy lives on in the countless lives she
improved and inspired. And she was a giant, a social architect,
designing a healthier, kinder, more just community.
Knowing Barbara, and calling her my friend, was an incredible,
unique, and beautiful blessing in my life. And her story must be told
and recorded in our national records, so that generations to come can
learn the vast potential of our national spirit.
She will be missed.
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