Requiescat in Pace, Hon. John LaFalce ’57.

We mourn the loss of LaFalce, who served Western New York in the United States House of Representatives for 28 years. He was 85.

A Democrat from the Town of Tonawanda, he served in the State Senate and State Assembly before representing a Buffalo-area House district from 1975 to 2003. He made his mark in financial policy, support of small businesses and legislation that cleans up the nation’s toxic waste dumps even to this day.

LaFalce, who grew up in Kenmore, was a member of the CHS Distinguished Alumni Hall of Honor.

In 2003, upon his retirement from Congress, he was honored at an event in Scaccia Auditorium during which he was presented with Canisius High School’s highest honor, the St. Peter Canisius Award. The event was attended by hundreds of Western New York leaders and CHS alumni, was emceed by Mark Russell ’50, and featured a video message from Tim Russert ’67.

Pictured here are his 1957 yearbook photo, as well as one from the Behrens Debating Society yearbook page that features him giving “it his all.” He is also pictured with CHS supporter Richard Lehner at a school event in 2015.

As a student, LaFalce was very active in Speech and Debate and Student Government as well as drama and theatre.

LaFalce believed that much of the foundation for his emphasis on social justice, and his work in Congress, was developed while a student at Canisius, according to a 2003 CHS Newsletter.

“There’s absolutely no question that the foundations for my political philosophy (began at Canisius), because it has been steeped within the social teachings of the Church and the rights of men and women,” LaFalce said. “I am grateful that I even went to Canisius High School.”

When asked about his advice for students, he said: 

“Develop your mind and your body. Open your mind to all the experiences that you can while you’re going to Canisius High School. Don’t just be a jock, or an academic nerd. Try to be both, if you will. I think this is the Jesuit ideal: The development of the whole person.”

According to Roll Call, LaFalce was the first high school graduate in his family after he paid his own way through CHS; he would later earn an undergraduate degree from Canisius College and a law degree from Villanova University.

"LaFalce attributed his political views to his working-class childhood in Buffalo," wrote Roll Call. "His father was a laborer at General Mills and his mother worked at a bakery."

LaFalce was a leading minority member on the Banking panel, where he was instrumental in crafting the Financial Services Act of 1999 and the Corporate Accountability Act to protect consumers and investors.

As chair of the Committee on Small Business, he provided vital support for small businesses, especially those owned by women. Prompted by the pollution in the Love Canal neighborhood of Niagara Falls, he led the passage of the Superfund legislation that cleans up toxic waste dumps.

Survivors include LaFalce’s wife, Patricia, and son, Martin LaFalce ’99, a professor of law at St. John’s University who was named Mr. Canisius in 1999.

#AMDG

* * * 

Coverage of John LaFalce '57: 

The Buffalo News: John J. LaFalce, hard-working WNY congressman for nearly 3 decades, dies at 85

Roll Call: John LaFalce, New York Democrat who shaped financial legislation, dies at 85 

The Washington Post: John LaFalce, New York congressman who shaped finance law, dies at 85

WKBW: 'I wouldn’t have had the opportunity': Women business owners remember John LaFalce's legacy