[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 57 (Friday, May 8, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S4561]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 TRIBUTE TO GOODWILL INDUSTRIES ON THE OCCASION OF GOODWILL INDUSTRIES 
                          WEEK, MAY 3-9, 1998

 Mr. GRAMS. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to 
Goodwill Industries on the occasion of Goodwill Industries Week, which 
began May 3 and continues through May 9. Goodwill Industries Week is a 
national celebration to honor those who have overcome barriers to 
employment and become independent members of their communities and to 
honor the organization that helps make those achievements possible.
  Goodwill Industries is much more than a business based upon the 
reselling of used merchandise at a discount price; it is an 
organization that is based upon volunteers providing leadership, 
advice, and assistance to those in need everywhere.
  Goodwill Industries was founded by Reverend Edgar Helms around the 
turn of the 20th Century under the philosophy of ``a hand up, not a 
hand out.'' Goodwill Industries was officially incorporated in 1910 and 
was originally envisioned by Rev. Helms as both an ``industrial program 
as well as a social service enterprise . . . a provider of employment, 
training, and rehabilitation for people of limited employability, and a 
source of temporary assistance for individuals whose resources were 
depleted.'' Today, Goodwill Industries has expanded upon Rev. Helms' 
original mission to include people with physical, mental and emotional 
disabilities, as well as those trapped by socio-economic barriers such 
as illiteracy, homelessness, advanced age, past substance abuse, lack 
of work experience or criminal history.
  Goodwill Industries has grown from its original location in Boston, 
Massachusetts' Morgan Memorial Chapel into a $1.2 billion nonprofit 
organization with 187 autonomous members in the U.S. and Canada and 54 
associate members in 37 countries outside of North America. In 1997, 
Goodwill served over 200,000 people nationwide who needed assistance in 
learning job skills and gaining employment.
  As for Minnesota, Goodwill first appeared in Duluth, in 1916, and 
three years later in St. Paul. During its first years in Minnesota, 
Goodwill provided jobs, low-cost merchandise, and training for young 
people with disabilities during the Depression era. During World War 
II, Goodwill Industries aided in the rehabilitation of disabled 
servicemen.
  Goodwill has continued to serve Minnesotans throughout the State and 
has found ways to remain a successful and a profitable industry. The 
Duluth Goodwill merged with the Duluth Sheltered Workshop in 1979 and 
continues to serve Minnesota's northland. The St. Paul Goodwill merged 
with the Easter Seal Society in 1984 and provides services for the rest 
of the State. With these changes, in 1997 alone, both of Minnesota's 
Goodwill Industries offices combined to process over 40 million pounds 
of donated clothing and household goods for salvage and sale. In 
addition, Goodwill served over 10,000 Minnesotans in need of 
assistance.
  Mr. President, I commend Goodwill Industries for its continued 
service to the American people and especially for its commitment to 
Minnesota. But most of all, I want to pay tribute to both the countless 
volunteers who provide a ``hand up, not a hand out'' and all of the 
participants who use these resources to better themselves.

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