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Floor Speech

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Mr. OBERNOLTE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and mourn the passing of a dear friend of mine and my wife, Heather, Roberta Darlene McCarthy.

Roberta, who was known to her friends as Bert, was born in Los Angeles and moved to Bakersfield, California, in 1946. She attended East Bakersfield High School, where she met her high school sweetheart and her future husband, Owen McCarthy.

Owen was a captain in the Bakersfield Fire Department, and Bert spent much of her time in service to her community. They were two people who deeply wanted to help their friends and neighbors, which was a core value they passed on to their children, Michelle, Mark, and last but certainly not least, one of this Chamber's very own, the 55th Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy.

Bert was instrumental in getting the Anti-Graffiti Program for Kern County started, and she volunteered for many charities in Bakersfield. Her passion for helping others meant that she often worked with some of the people who needed help the most, patients suffering from cancer.

She regularly volunteered at the Comprehensive Blood and Cancer Center in Bakersfield and at the American Cancer Society, where she helped patients and their families fight cancer and overcome the many difficulties related to treatment.

Bert was a strong mother and grandmother, whose family and their needs always came first. She loved her community and helping others, and she made everyone who met her instantly feel like they were talking to a family friend.

Bert had such a gregarious and warm personality that even people in Washington who didn't care for her son, Kevin--and there were a few-- cared for Bert. She was always willing to lend a helping hand to those in need. Her selflessness knew no bounds, and her acts of kindness reverberated far beyond the confines of her immediate circle.

Bert put her faith in God, and she knew one day she would be called to go up to Heaven and meet her creator.

Bert's spirit will continue to live on in the memories of her children and their partners, her grandchildren, and everyone her life touched, including me and my wife Heather.

Mr. Speaker, I urge that we not mourn her passing but, instead, celebrate the incredible legacy she left behind and carry forward her kindness, strength, and boundless love for others.

I will miss her.

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