Vice President Kamala Harris is set to attend the memorial service for her “dear friend,” the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, in Houston later this week.
The “Celebration of Life” is planned for Thursday at Fallbrook Church, as indicated by Jackson Lee’s office.
Other officials from both the U.S. and abroad are also anticipated to be present at the service, as reported by Fox 26.
Jackson Lee passed away on July 19 at the age of 74 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. She is survived by her husband, Elwyn Lee, and her two children, Jason and Erica.
REP. SHEILA JACKSON LEE HAS PASSED AWAY AFTER A FIGHT WITH PANCREATIC CANCER
Sheila Jackson Lee attends the UNCF A Mind Is…Gala at Hilton Americas-Houston on November 18, 2023, in Houston, Texas. (Marcus Ingram/Getty Images)
She had also previously battled breast cancer, having been diagnosed in 2011, and announced the following year that she was cancer-free.
The congresswoman represented Texas’ 18th congressional district for 30 years. Before her congressional career, Jackson Lee served as a judge and was elected to an at-large Houston City Council seat in 1989.
Last year, she ran an unsuccessful campaign for Houston mayor, losing significantly to then-state Sen. John Whitmire, also a Democrat, before announcing her intent to seek re-election to Congress.
Harris remarked after Jackson Lee’s passing that the congresswoman was a “tenacious advocate for justice and a tireless fighter for the people of Houston and the people of America.” The vice president also recalled her as a “dear friend for many years, and a fellow member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.”
REP. SHEILA JACKSON LEE ANNOUNCES HER DIAGNOSIS OF PANCREATIC CANCER
Vice President Kamala Harris was assigned early in the Biden administration with tackling the root causes of mass migration from Central and South America. (REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt/Pool)
“As a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, I had the privilege to work closely with her on numerous issues and to witness her leadership firsthand. She was relentless — one of our nation’s strongest, smartest, and most strategic leaders in her approach to advancing progress,” Harris stated in a July 20 announcement. “There was never a trivial conversation with the Congresswoman. She was always advocating for the residents of Houston and for the American people.”
Jackson Lee, as noted in Harris’ statement, was “first and foremost, a leader devoted to serving the citizens of her cherished city.”
“Congresswoman Jackson Lee was also a national figure,” Harris’ statement continued. “As a staunch supporter of women’s rights, she played an essential role in reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, landmark legislation that transformed the lives of millions of women and girls across the nation. She also authored the law that established Juneteenth as a national holiday, a measure I was proud to co-sponsor as a U.S. Senator. She envisioned what could be — a nation that is fairer, more equal, and more liberated — and she committed her life to achieving that dream.”
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee attends “The Big Payback” Premiere during the 2022 Tribeca Festival at Village East Cinema on June 11, 2022, in New York City. (John Lamparski/Getty Images for Tribeca Festival)
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This marks the vice president’s third visit to Texas in the past month and her second since she was named the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, which included a trip to Houston last week.
Harris visited the Emergency Operations Center in Houston on Wednesday to gain insight into the recovery efforts following Hurricane Beryl. The following day, she gave addresses at the American Federation of Teachers’ 88th national convention.
Earlier this month, she was in Dallas delivering a speech at an Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. convention.
