On the recordJanuary 13, 2016
It is with sadness in my heart that I rise to acknowledge the death of a great leader in our community, Dr. J.S. Stone, a graduate of Talladega College and a graduate of Meharry Medical School, who leaves his beloved wife, Gertrude, a dear friend, and three children. This was a great leader and a great medical professional, committed to service in our community, serving on many, many boards and sharing his great brilliance with all of us. He had a residency at Texas MD Anderson and hospitals in Philadelphia and became one of the first African Americans to participate in the Harris County Medical Society and to practice in hospitals that, for the first time, saw an African American doctor, such as St. Joseph, a community hospital that has remained historic in our community. Again, I want to pay tribute to him for his service in the United States military as captain. This is the kind of African American leader and a kind of American leader that stood tall, being born in 1930 in the face of segregation, but he never let the ills of the world overcome him. He became a servant of the people--not elected--but he became a servant in medicine and serving them. I honor him today and express my deepest sympathy to his family, his wife, his children, and to the entire community in Houston, for we have lost a fallen hero. He is a hero. I say well done, good and faithful servant. May you rest in peace, Dr. J.S. Stone. ____________________
