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[Pages H1591-H1592]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING ALVARO CIFUENTES
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Soto) for 5 minutes.
Mr. SOTO. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to honor the life of my longtime
friend and mentor, Alvaro Cifuentes.
On March 2, Puerto Rico suffered a tragic loss.
Born in Mayaguez, Alvaro graduated magna cum laude from the
University of Puerto Rico in 1972, earning a bachelor's of business
administration.
He then went on to graduate from law school from the University of
Puerto Rico School of Law, earning a J.D., again magna cum laude, in
1975.
He came from a long line of wise politicos from Puerto Rico who
helped navigate the island over decades.
Alvaro practiced law for 17 years and became a managing partner at
the law firm of Goldman Antonetti in San Juan.
In 1992, he managed Pedro Rosello's successful race for Governor of
Puerto
[[Page H1592]]
Rico, a man who would go on to win two terms, a hard task in the
history of the island.
After serving as Governor Rosello's chief of staff for 3 years, he
moved to Washington, D.C., where he focused on building the Democratic
Party within the Hispanic community. From 2001 to 2005, he served as
the chair of the DNC's Hispanic Caucus, where he increased the party's
Hispanic membership by over 30 percent. As chair, Alvaro rebuilt an
unprecedented Hispanic campaign network and called for John Kerry to
work toward winning Hispanic votes.
In 2004, he earned the honor of being named one of the 100 most
influential Hispanics in the United States by the Hispanic Business
Magazine.
Anyone who crossed paths with Alvaro knew he was a true man of the
people and a fearless champion of Puerto Rico statehood. I remember the
first time we talked about how important statehood would be for Puerto
Rico.
He recalled the story of the mighty pung, a story in Chinese folklore
that talked about a huge bird that played with other smaller birds on a
tiny island and had a wingspan over 500 meters.
They would laugh at this giant bird, the mighty pung, with his
awkwardness. He found out, through the hawk, that through thermal
glides, he would be able to potentially fly like the other birds.
He set off, needing a year to reach the height required. When asked
about this difficult task and his inability to fly, he said: ``It is
okay. We have a long way to go.''
That is where Alvaro talked about statehood, about how it has been
over 120 years, and about how we have an island that is larger in
population than 26 States, yet it is taking over a century for us to
even get to this point, but it is okay. Alvaro passed before getting to
see it happen. We have a long way to go.
He is survived by three children, Alvaro, Carolina, and Natalia
Isabel.
Alvaro, you will be dearly missed by myself, by so many in Florida,
and on the island of Puerto Rico, but the fight will continue to live
on.
____________________
