[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 128 (Wednesday, September 23, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H8509]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1830
TRIBUTE TO YOSEPH GETACHEW, NATIONAL INDUSTRIES FOR THE BLIND EMPLOYEE 
                              OF THE YEAR

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Snowbarger). Under a previous order of 
the House, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goode) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. GOODE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Yoseph 
Getachew who will be honored on October 20, 1998, by the National 
Industries for the Blind as the 1998 Peter J. Salmon National Service 
Employee of the Year.
  At age 22, Mr. Getachew developed a massive, fast-growing brain tumor 
that cost him most of his vision. When hospitals in his homeland of 
Ethiopia were not able to perform the necessary surgery and when he 
lacked financial resources to have surgery elsewhere, Dr. John Jane at 
the University of Virginia offered to perform surgery without charge.
  Following recovery from surgery, Mr. Getachew was hired by the 
Virginia Industries for the Blind, where he uses a computer adapted to 
use speech software. Mr. Getachew is independent and self-sufficient. 
He has expressed appreciation to Dr. John Jane and the Department for 
the Visually Handicapped for their compassion, support and generosity.
  Mr. Speaker, please join me in congratulating Mr. Getachew.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a young man of courage 
and fortitude, Yoseph Getachew. On October 20, 1998, in St. Louis, 
Missouri, National Industries for the Blind will honor Mr. Getachew as 
the 1998 Peter J. Salmon National Service Employee of the Year.
  At the age of 22, Yoseph, then an engineering student in his homeland 
of Ethiopia developed a massive, fast growing brain tumor. Local 
hospitals were unable to perform the necessary surgery and Yoseph was 
forced to begin a desperate search for a capable neurosurgeon. Mr. 
Getachew lacked the financial resources needed to fund such treatment, 
but after writing to physicians and hospitals in both the United States 
and Great Britain, he finally received word from Dr. John Jane at the 
University of Virginia Medical Center who offered to perform the 
operation for free.
  Yoseph's condition was very grave by the time he arrived in the 
United States; the tumor had deprived him of most of his vision and 
left him deaf in one ear and a few days before the operation Mr. 
Getachew slipped into a coma. Dr. Jane's procedure removed the tumor 
and saved Yoseph's life, but as he recovered, Yoseph found himself in a 
daunting situation. Mr. Getachew was alone in America, lacking money, 
friends and family, and he was blind.
  A social worker for the Virginia Department for the Visually 
Handicapped approached Yoseph during his convalescence and arranged for 
a temporary home and rehabilitation training. Through the department, 
Mr. Getachew learned orientation and mobility, vocational and daily 
living skills, how to read Braille and use a specially adapted 
computer. Dr. Jane also stepped in with much needed financial support 
while he got back on his feet.
  In 1995 Mr. Getachew applied for and was hired by Virginia Industries 
for the Blind who had just acquired a service contract with the General 
Services Administration in Springfield, Virginia. In his job, Yoseph 
uses a computer adapted to use special speech software which enables 
him to process orders from government customers over the phone.
  Mr. Getachew has made a new life for himself here in the United 
States and has no plans to return to Ethiopia. ``The awareness level 
and support of people with disabilities is very high and the technology 
and specialized training has enabled me to become independent and self-
sufficient.'' Yoseph takes great pains to recognize those who supported 
him along the way. ``Dr. John Jane and the Department for the Visually 
Handicapped. . . . Their compassion, support and generosity helped me 
beyond all my expectations . . . I love America''.
  Mr. Speaker, please join me in congratulating Mr. Getachew on the 
receipt of this award. His courage and determination are an example to 
us all.

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