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WHEREAS, Josie White, originally from Pittsburgh, lived in the outskirts of Manhattan, New York and worked near the Brooklyn Bridge where she witnessed the Twin Towers burning from her office window; and,
WHEREAS, when she travelled to work at 5:30 the next morning, she couldn’t understand why there were so many people already parked in the city and realized those were the cars of the people who never made it home on September 11; and,
WHEREAS, she was moved by the countless number of public safety personnel who were called upon to help during this tragedy, some becoming victims themselves, and chose to be included in the numerous volunteers who helped feed and comfort the workers; and,
WHEREAS, when Josie returned to Pittsburgh in 2004 to care for her ailing mother, she felt the urgency to thank Public Safety personnel on the anniversary of September 11; and,
WHEREAS, since her brother is a Fireman, she began several years ago organizing volunteers to deliver meals to the fire stations on September 11, with the goal of having enough volunteers to show her appreciation and thank all emergency personnel for their service because “not knowing if they are coming back” always haunts her; and,
WHEREAS, due to the increasing number of volunteers this year, she is able to reach out to the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and hopes to support the EMS Bureau in the near future as well; and,
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NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh does hereby commend and thank Josie White and her volunteers for their selfless act of kindness to our Public Safety Bureaus; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh does hereby declare Monday, September 11, 2017, to be “Josie White Day” in the City of Pittsburgh.