[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 76 (Thursday, June 5, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H3549]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                      NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hulshof] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. HULSHOF. Mr. Speaker, as Members know, this is National Small 
Business Week. I want to take time out to recognize the thousands of 
men and women back home in Missouri's Ninth Congressional District who 
run and own small businesses. I cannot think of a more worthy group to 
honor.
  Small business, as is often said, is the backbone of our economy, 
accounting for 99.7 percent of the Nation's employers and for 47 
percent of all sales in this country. In fact, in the 12 calendar 
months between December 1994 and December 1995, employment in small 
business-dominated industries increased 2.7 percent, creating 1.25 
billion new jobs, or 75 percent of the total new jobs in the economy.
  There are many small businesses back in Missouri's Ninth 
Congressional District that deserve praise, but tonight I want to 
highlight one of them, the Twainland Cheesecake Co. and Cafe in 
Hannibal, MO, owned by Lynn Carr. Twainland Cheesecake Co. and Cafe 
employes 14 women in a cheesecake-making operation where they make 110 
types of cheesecakes. I am sorry, Mr. Speaker, I have not brought 
samples for the House. But I would extend a personal invitation for 
Members to come to Hannibal, MO to try some of Ms. Carr's famous turtle 
cheesecake. Nonetheless, Lynn Carr is an American success story.
  At age 29, Lynn Carr could not read. In the mid-eighties, for a 
period of time Lynn Carr was homeless. Lynn Carr spent most of her 
adult life either on welfare or in low-paying jobs. She continued to 
believe in the American dream. She prayed for a better life. She kept 
in her heart a ray of hope, a sliver of self-esteem.
  Eventually Lynn learned how to read and earned a GED, the equivalent 
of a high school diploma. She got a loan, she put her talents to work, 
and the rest is history in the making. She started a cheesecake 
business in Hannibal, MO's historic downtown.
  This is a success story, Mr. Speaker, but there is more. Lynn Carr 
has decided to launch her own private welfare-to-work program, giving 
other women a chance to succeed just like she did. Using her words, she 
says, ``Such as I have been given, I want to give back to the 
community.'' Lynn knows that some people will never break out of the 
welfare cycle. ``But,'' she adds, ``then you have people who were like 
myself who are just down on their luck and need a hand up instead of a 
handout.'' She went on to say, ``If we could just save one or two 
families and change their lives for the better, then it is all worth 
it.''
  To further give back to the community, Lynn Carr plans to open a 
larger factory employing up to 50 women. She wants to give jobs to 
unemployed and undereducated women living in poverty. She hopes to have 
a learning center and a day-care center on site. Women will enter the 
program by working in the day-care center, where they can learn 
parenting and nutritional skills. After several weeks, the women will 
then divide their time between the cheesecake factory and the learning 
center. In order to qualify for work, a woman would be required to get 
a GED certificate. While doing this, Lynn Carr hopes to inspire others 
with motivational programs.
  Mr. Speaker, motivation is not a problem once you get the chance to 
meet Lynn Carr. Lynn Carr is a living example of how an individual can 
lift themselves up one rung of the ladder at a time, become a 
successful business person, and then, to make the picture complete, 
invest in other individuals living in the community.
  Congratulations are in order for Lynn Carr and the thousands of other 
men and women who are responsible for the thriving small businesses in 
Missouri's Ninth Congressional District and across this great country.

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