Senate Resolution No. 179

BY: Senator BRESLIN

HONORING Reverend Peggy Funderburke upon the
occasion of her designation as recipient of the
Community Service Award by Family Promise of the
Capital Region

WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to recognize that
the quality and character of life in the communities across New York
State are reflective of the concerned and dedicated efforts of those
individuals who would devote themselves to the welfare of the community
and its citizenry; and

WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to honor
Reverend Peggy Funderburke upon the occasion of her designation as
recipient of the Community Service Award by Family Promise of the
Capital Region to be celebrated at its 4th Annual Doors to the Future
event on Thursday, October 18, 2018, at St. Sophia Greek Orthodox
Church, in Albany, New York; and

WHEREAS, Now in its fourth year, Family Promise of the Capital
Region (FPCR) has extended overnight hospitality to 27 families in the
Capital Region, offering them the individualized, community-based,
wraparound support needed to secure affordable housing and sustainable
employment; this valuable organization has also provided assistance to
numerous families who were on the verge of homelessness; and

WHEREAS, Peggy Funderburke, who was born on June 18, 1950, in
Albany, Georgia, is the granddaughter of a Methodist Circuit-Riding
Minister who served southwest Georgia; and

WHEREAS, Her father served in the United States Air Force for 33
years; this employment caused the family to move every two to three
years; and

WHEREAS, Peggy Funderburke received both her bachelor's and master's
degrees in Education Administration from Arkansas State University; she
taught third grade for three years in DeWitt, Arkansas; and

WHEREAS, In 1977, Peggy Funderburke moved to New York City; three
years later, she and two partners founded Triangle Fire Protection
Corp., a fire protection and suppression company working in high-rise
buildings in and around Manhattan; and

WHEREAS, Peggy Funderburke was the only woman in New York City in
1980 to have a controlling role in a construction company that was a
union shop; she held this position for the next 23 years; and

WHEREAS, Peggy Funderburke retired from Triangle to begin a new
calling, to be a Minister of Word and Sacrament in 2003; she attended
New Brunswick Theological Seminary and graduated Magna Cum Laude in May
of 2006; and

WHEREAS, In June of 2006, Reverend Peggy Funderburke was hired as
the Associate Pastoral Care Minister for Marble Collegiate's
congregation in Manhattan; and

WHEREAS, In August of 2008, Reverend Peggy Funderburke left New York
City to accept a call to minister at Bethany Reformed Church in Albany,
New York; since arriving in Albany, she has become associated with SHOW,
Inc. (a non-profit for incarcerated women), the Classis of Albany
(serving now as past president), the Regional Synod of Albany (now
serving as Chair of the Personnel Committee) and the Capital Area
Council of Churches; and

WHEREAS, A great community is only as great as those persons who
provide exemplary service, whether through participation in voluntary
programs, through unique personal achievement in their profession or
simply through a lifetime of good citizenship; and

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that when
individuals of such noble aims and accomplishments are brought to our
attention, they should be celebrated and recognized by all the citizens
of this great Empire State; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
honor Reverend Peggy Funderburke upon the occasion of her designation as
recipient of the Community Service Award by Family Promise of the
Capital Region; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to Reverend Peggy Funderburke.