In Remembrance of William Noel ``billy'' Lawless

Floor Speech

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Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in solemn remembrance of William Noel ``Billy'' Lawless, a member of the Irish Senate, immigration activist, successful entrepreneur, pillar of the community, and proud Irish American.

Born in Galway, Ireland, where he was raised on a dairy farm, Billy saw President John F. Kennedy give a speech as a young boy when our first Irish-American U.S. President visited Ireland in 1963.

After that experience, he knew he wanted to move abroad to the United States. In the meantime, he prospered in Galway, becoming a beloved part of his community, successfully owning and operating a restaurant and pub.

His boyhood dream of coming to America persisted. At 48 years old, he made it a reality. An accomplished rower in his own right, set to represent Ireland in the 1976 Olympic Games until he withdrew to care for his ill father, it was his daughter moving to the East Coast to row that helped him make the final decision.

Billy arrived in the U.S. in the late 1990s. He opened The Irish Oak pub in Chicago, Illinois. Billy would go on to open many successful restaurants and be a leader in the Chicago hospitality industry.

However, that was not the only thing that occupied his time. He had begun to hear a common story: people who had overstayed their visas but didn't want to leave the communities that they had grown to love so much in the United States. His Irish heritage informed his commitment to others who struggled for citizenship like himself.

Billy became a leader in the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and cofounded the Chicago Celts for Immigration Reform. In 2014, he introduced President Barack Obama at the Copernicus Center for a speech on immigration reform. That same year, both he and his beloved wife, Anne, proudly became American citizens, one of the world's great privileges.

For St. Patrick's Day celebrations, you could often find him honoring the holiday at the White House.

Billy used his voice and identity as an immigrant himself to help others. He successfully lobbied for a bill in Illinois that made driver's licenses available to individuals regardless of immigration status. He worked with the Illinois Business Immigration Coalition where he collaborated with business leaders to persuade elected officials to support immigration reform, creating a bipartisan base of support.

In 2016, he became the first senator based overseas in the Irish Senate after his appointment by Enda Kenny, then Ireland's Taoiseach, giving a voice to the Irish diaspora that enriches every corner of our diverse Nation.

His businesses and restaurants live at the center of Chicago's hospitality industry, and his legacy of fighting for immigration reform continues to have ripple effects throughout the Nation.

I am grateful for our years of friendship, strengthened by our shared commitment to our Irish culture.

While serving as a senator, our Buffalo Irish community welcomed Billy and Anne to see how we honored and lived our shared heritage. We visited the James Joyce Collection at the University at Buffalo, a literary treasure honoring the Irish novelist, and many Irish monuments in Buffalo, including the Fenian Invasion Monument and the Western New York Irish Famine Memorial.

I join the long list of those inspired and heartened by his compassion and dedication, which he used to make his community and our country a better place.

Billy Lawless was a consummate gentleman, a visionary, and a brilliant international leader.

He leaves behind his wife, Anne; his four children, Amy, Clodagh, Billy Jr., and John Paul; and his eight grandchildren.

May Senator Billy Lawless rest in peace and may his vision for ever- closer ties between the United States and Ireland continue to flourish.

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