Dr. Mamadou Diallo and Mrs. Laura Diallo

We are deeply saddened to hear about the passing of your brother and Pasadena District 3 Councilmember, The Honorable John J. Kennedy. Councilmember Kennedy was an amazing and kind man dedicated to the service of his community and our city. Our memories of meeting your brother began nearly 18 years ago. Laura Diallo met John J. Kennedy when she was serving as the Director of the Family Support Counseling Center at the Thomas Edison Elementary School in Altadena. At that time, John was serving as Director of Special Projects for Southern California Edison. During this first meeting, John demonstrated his passion and dedication to support the education of the at-risk youth and economically disadvantaged students at Thomas Edison Elementary School. Throughout the years, both of us had many opportunities to interact with John and witness his development and rise as a community leader and Pasadena Councilmember.

As a faculty member at Caltech and founder of a start-up company that focused on innovations for water treatment, I (Mamadou Diallo) will always remember and cherish John’s support and kindness by highlighting and publicizing my research accomplishments during community meetings, forums, and at council meetings as I worked on the development of new water treatment technologies to remove contaminants such as perchlorate and chromium from local groundwater sources. As a Senegalese-born Pasadena resident, I will always remember and cherish Councilmember Kennedy’s dedication and hard work that led to Pasadena and Dakar-Plateau (Senegal) becoming Sister Cities. In this sorrowful time, we extend to you and your family our heartfelt condolences. We will remember and celebrate Councilmember Kennedy’s rich life of service and dedication to his relatives, community, city, state and country.