[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 72 (Tuesday, May 18, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1011]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   IN HONOR OF THE GENESIS CLUB AND THE VISIT OF MRS. ROSALYNN CARTER

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                         HON. JAMES P. McGOVERN

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 18, 1999

  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in tribute to The Genesis 
Club of Worcester, Massachusetts and note the visit on May 19, 1999, of 
former First Lady Rosalynn Carter to the club.
  The Genesis Club was founded in 1988 by a small group of local 
business leaders and professionals whose family members were struggling 
with mental illness. Since its founding, The Genesis Club has developed 
a comprehensive model of support and rehabilitation in which 
participants are not patients or clients, but members who participate 
fully in management, employment, and therapeutic services and programs. 
The Genesis Club works to encourage and empower individuals with mental 
illness to function and maintain independence in their living, working, 
and social environments. Since its founding ten years ago, The Genesis 
Club has helped more than 800 individuals cope with mental illness 
through its supportive atmosphere, which fosters vocational and social 
development, embraces individuals, and leads to personally satisfying 
and socially productive lives. I and my fellow residents of Worcester 
and the Third Congressional District of Massachusetts are 
understandably proud of The Genesis Club, their programs, and their 
accomplishments.
  On May 19, 1999, The Genesis Club will warmly welcome former First 
Lady Rosalynn Carter, who, throughout her public service career, has 
been a driving force in the field of mental health. It was while Mrs. 
Carter was serving as active honorary chair of the President's 
Commission on Mental Health during the Carter Administration that the 
Mental Health System Act of 1980 was passed. In addition, in 1982, 
President and Mrs. Carter founded the Carter Institute, which strives 
to relieve suffering in our country and around the world by focusing on 
the cause and consequences of war, hunger, poverty, and human rights 
abuses. I thank Mrs. Carter for the support and encouragement her visit 
will bring to The Genesis Club.
  Therefore, I rise today both in tribute of The Genesis Club of 
Worcester, Massachusetts, and their efforts on behalf of those 
suffering from mental illness, and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, 
who, by her visit, honors both my district and The Genesis Club.

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