My comments at a March 2023 fundraiser in support of the National Memorial to the Women Who Worked on the Homefront During World War II  Foundation

                                  

If you are ever tempted to get cynical about the younger generation, and think they lack respect for the generations who came before or maybe that they are self-absorbed, or lack interpersonal skills due to their technology addictions—here’s a cure. Get to know Raya Kenney. It might help restore your optimism for the future. That happened to me.  Since her fifth- grade class project, she has been doggedly devoted to the wonderful cause of creating a memorial in DC to honor the sacrifices of those millions of women who helped us win World War II through their work on the home front. Raya is unselfish. This has never been about her. Instead, she wants the few surviving Rosies, several of whom she has met, to live long enough to see this monument to their work come to fruition.  That is what motivates her!

 

And she doesn’t give up. I have seen the chronology of her efforts over the last eleven years. It is a testament to her persuasiveness, her people skills, and her determination. For instance, at the outset, she wrote every female Member of Congress to seek their support of this goal.  She had preliminary meetings with officials at the National Park Service, and other relevant Commissions to get their guidance on the steps involved in completing this process, including design and siting. She had to establish a non-profit to collect funds.  She enlisted the support of a major law firm (Covington and Burling) to do pro bono work on behalf of the project.  She got a bill introduced in the 116^th Congress and 117^th Congress to authorize non-government fundraising for the monument. She testified before Congress, secured cosponsors and lobbied for the bills—all while being a fulltime student, which she still is.

In the 116^th Congress which ended in 2020, the bill passed the House, but didn’t pass the Senate because of COVID and other factors.  BTW, in the 116^th Congress,

less than  10% of the over 10,000 bills introduced passed either the House or the Senate.  In January 2021, the new 117^th Congress began, and the legislative process had to start from scratch. The bill passed the House in December 2021.  I met Raya’s mom, Marnie, playing PB in the spring of 2022.  That’s when I got involved—kind of late in the process. By the way, after watching the high energy Marnie play PB, I have a good grasp of why Raya will never give up and this project will succeed. She comes by it honestly!

 

I worked as a Senate leadership staffer for 10 years, and have been a lobbyist for 25 years.  I have a sense of the Senate’s slow, obscure, and often frustrating processes and volunteered to help, as best I could, help navigate that process with Raya and her team. The bill passed the key Senate Committee in July  and was incorporated into the year- end spending measure, the Omnibus bill in December 2022—which became law at the end of the 117^th Congress. Of approximately 18000 bills introduced in the 117th Congress, only 362 became law.  That is a real testament to Raya! 

 

The hard work of fundraising, citing the monument , and the approval of its design is just beginning, but authorizing the non-profit to take those steps is the real significance of this law.  Tonight, we celebrate that great achievement!

 

Earlier, this year, I was honored to have been asked to serve on the Board of this non-profit.  I do very much appreciate your being here in support of this great cause and this amazing young lady!  If you haven’t already, I  hope you will consider making a contribution to this effort tonight.  You can do so through  this link https://wwiiwomenmemorial.org/