[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 188 (Tuesday, November 28, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2249]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             A POINT OF LIGHT FOR ALL AMERICANS: MARIA OTTO

                                 ______


                          HON. MAJOR R. OWENS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 28, 1995

  Mr. OWENS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Maria Otto--whose work has 
greatly enriched the profession of child care. She has touched the 
lives of hundreds of children, parents, and aspiring day care 
providers. Her dedication and compassion have rendered her a worthy 
candidate to entrust the care of our most precious--the children. 
Furthermore, her competence has rendered her fit to train the future 
day care provider of the Nation. Maria Otto is an outstanding and 
caring citizen who deserves recognition as a great Point of Light for 
all Americans.
  In 1967, Mrs. Otto began her career in family day care as a family 
day care provider. In this capacity, she was responsible for the care 
and development of more than 200 children, under the sponsorship of the 
Wake-Eden Center in the Bronx. Maria Otto continued her career as a 
family day care specialist-trainer in 1986 when she joined the staff of 
Child Care, Inc. Here she assumed the challenging task of training 
hundreds of New York City family day care providers.
  Mr. Speaker, as commissioner of the New York City Community 
Development Agency responsible for the Community Action Program and the 
Headstart Program I had the honor of launching the Nation's largest 
family day care program utilizing unspent funds from the Headstart 
budget. Since that time family day care has expanded and improved 
steadily. As a New York State senator I participated in several 
successful efforts to achieve greater statewide recognition and support 
for family day care as an effective option for child care. At each step 
of the way Maria Otto was one of the leaders of the great grassroots 
army of family day care advocates.
  Throughout her career, Mrs. Otto has worked tirelessly to improve the 
professional status and recognition of thousands of family day care 
providers in New York City and State, and across the Nation. She 
organized the first Family Day Care Provider Associations in New York 
City and State, and is the founder of the current Family Day Care 
Citywide Association. As one of the cofounders of the National 
Association for Family Day Care, Mrs. Otto also assisted in organizing 
providers in Pennsylvania and many other states.
  Nationally recognized as one of the earliest experts in the field of 
family day care, Maria Otto served as a member of Governor Cuomo's 
Commission on Child Care. In recognition of her exceptional 
professional achievement on behalf of children, Maria Otto is a 
recipient of the New York State 1993 Decade of the Child Award.
  It is apparent that Mrs. Otto welcomes some continuity in her life. 
She is a current resident of the Bronx, NY, where she was born, living 
in the same house for 68 years. The daughter of immigrants from the 
Virgin Islands who arrived and settled in the Bronx in 1920, Mrs. Otto 
is a graduate of Jane Adams High School. She holds an A.A. degree from 
the College of New Rochelle-Bronx campus.
  Maria Otto's consistency is not only evident in her place of 
residence. She has consistently served the children in her care, their 
parents and her protegees exceptionally well. Mrs. Otto is as dedicated 
and committed today as she was decades ago when she first embarked on a 
career so vital to the American working family. Without a doubt, her 
work has led to the professional and respectful character of the modern 
family day care profession. It is an honor to salute Maria Otto as a 
Point of Light who continues to brighten lives for all to cherish.

                          ____________________