David Funderburk: “while the Romanian Government has sometimes gotten bad press in the United States for its slow transition to democratic…”

“while the Romanian Government has sometimes gotten bad press in the United States for its slow transition to democratic government and privatization, and its part-free elections and media--the Romanian people deserve recognition for their long suffering struggles and their contributions. This afternoon I want to give a tribute to the Romanian people. There are over one million people from Romania living abroad in Western Europe, North and South America, and Australia/New Zealand. They have made a name for themselves in all fields with some winning Nobel prizes. One of my colleagues in this House, Congressman Martin Hoke, has a Romanian mother. Nearly half a million people originally from Romania settled in America, living in every State. One Romanian-- Dr. Nicholas Dima--assisted me in preparing this historical sketch. There are Romanian settlements in North Carolina and Romanian professionals living in Durham, Buies Creek, Roanoke Rapids and other towns in the 2d district. Duke University has a Duke in Romania program, and professors and students from Romania can be found at many of our universities. Many Tar Heels have happily adopted lovely Romanian babies. One Romanian hero, Father Calcin, who spent 16 years in Communist prisons for his religious faith is here today.”