[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 123 (Thursday, July 27, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1523]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



[[Page E 1523]]


          HONORING THE PARENT PROJECT AND RUDY AND MONA GOMEZ

                                 ______

                       HON. ESTEBAN EDWARD TORRES

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 26, 1995
  Mr. TORRES. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Parent 
Project. The Parent Project is an organization managed by the parents 
of children who have Duchenne and Becker, a severe form of muscular 
dystrophy.
  Duchenne is an incurable disease that causes the muscle cells to 
disintegrate. The disease affects only boys, afflicting about 1 in 
every 3,500--or more. Progressive muscle deterioration starts in the 
feet and slowly moves up the body, turning children into invalids, 
until the muscles in lungs and heart atrophy and die. Few boys with 
Duchenne have survived past their early twenties.
  Because much about this disease is little known or understood, the 
Parent Project has assembled top medical researchers to advise them on 
what research and clinical trials offer the best hope for treating, and 
optimistically curing, Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies. The 
Scientific Advisory Board [SAB] serves as a clearinghouse for 
coordinating and monitoring constantly evolving developments within the 
scientific community. Thanks to recommendations made by the SAB, the 
Parent Project is able to fund viable research immediately. And as 
parents know, time is critical to saving the lives of their children.
  What makes the Parent Project unique, and important, is that it links 
parents, patients, family, and friends with scientists who are 
investigating a treatment--and hopefully a cure--for Duchenne and 
Becker muscular dystrophies. It's a relationship that is critical to 
the success of obliterating this devastating disease.
  The goal for the Parent Project is to raise $40 million to find a 
cure by the year 2000. The Parent Project is run by parent volunteers 
who raise money in different ways, be it by raffles, walk-a-thons, bake 
sales, dinner parties, and silent auctions. This Saturday, July 29, 
1995, at the Naval Reserve Center in Santa Barbara, Rudy and Mona Gomez 
will host a fundraiser for the Parent Project.
  Mr. Speaker, it is with great admiration that I rise in recognition 
of the Parent Project and Rudy and Mona Gomez for their perseverance in 
raising money to find the cure for this childhood robbing disease. I 
also ask that my colleagues join me in saluting these committed 
parents.


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