RICHMOND, Calif. (AP) — The nation’s oldest park ranger on Friday was awarded a Congressional Record statement at the museum and national historic park where she works.
KNTV reports (http://bit.ly/2d8xXMH) that Rep. Mark DeSaulnier presented 95-year-old Betty Reid Soskin with the statement at the Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National Historic Park in Northern California.
The Congressional Record, the official record of the United States Congress, has been published daily since 1873. Soskin was officially read into the record on July 5.
“If anyone knows Betty, she’s a special person and a special soul,” DeSaulnier said. “Lincoln once said, ‘In the end it’s not the years in your life that count; it’s the life in your years.’ In Betty’s case it’s both. She is a phenomenal spirit.”
Soskin grinned as she took the framed plaque. She then talked about the history of WWII, segregation and her current efforts to bring more artifacts into the museum where she works full time.
Friday’s honor adds to a long list of awards for the Richmond woman.
Soskin was named California Woman of the Year in 1995.
Last month she celebrated her 95th birthday in Washington D.C. during the opening of the new Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Last year, Soskin received a presidential coin from President Obama after she lit the National Christmas tree at the White House. In June, Soskin was the victim of a brutal home invasion and robbery where the coin and other belongings were stolen. Soskin recovered and returned to work just weeks after the attack. The coin was also replaced. A documentary about Soskin is in the works.
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Information from: KNTV-TV.
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