[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 68 (Thursday, May 8, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5943-S5944]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                       TRIBUTE TO MARLENE PERLING

 Mr. COLEMAN. Mr. President, I ask that the following article 
recognizing the generosity of Marlene Perling toward Zachary Wood and 
his family be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the article was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

              [From the Duluth News Tribune, May 8, 2003]

A Stranger . . . a Boy . . . a Gift; a Widow's Offer to the Family of a 
    Disabled 10-year-old Fulfills Her Wish and Zachary Wood's Dream

                          (By Chuck Frederick)

       International Falls, Minn.--Fourth-grader Zachary Wood and 
     his family are still numb, perhaps from pinching themselves 
     so much.
       Two weeks ago, Zachary's dad, Terry Wood, was raking the 
     yard when a neighbor dropped by, wondering if the family was 
     interested in a used van with a wheelchair lift. Zachary has 
     spina bifida and has used a wheelchair since he was a 
     toddler. A new van with a lift was definitely in the family's 
     future--perhaps next year, Terry Wood thought, when their 
     current car was paid off.
       The neighbor leaned in.
       ``You really should take a look at this van,'' he said. ``I 
     think you can get a really good deal.''
       So Terry Wood hoisted Zachary, 10, into the family car as 
     his wife, Tammy, and 15-year-old daughter, Jenna, hopped in. 
     They motored to nearby Rainy Lake. It was a nice van--full-
     size Ford, motorized lift, low miles and no rust.
       ``I'm supposed to show you the pontoon boat and house, 
     too,'' said the Woods' neighbor, a cousin of the home's 
     owner.
       ``Uh, sure,'' said the Woods, a bit puzzled. But they 
     decided not to pass up a chance to check out a beautiful 
     lakefront property.
       The boat and the house were, like the van, equipped with 
     ramps and sturdy, level surfaces that made it easy for 
     Zachary to get around. He wheeled across wide decks with 
     breathtaking lake vistas. Inside, he rolled under knotty pine 
     ceilings. The house even had an elevator.
       ``It's fantastic. Thanks for the tour,'' Terry Wood said. 
     He started to ask about the van and its price, but the 
     neighbor interrupted.
       ``Now, couldn't you kids just picture yourself living 
     here?'' he asked.
       ``Yeah, right, in our dreams,'' said Terry Wood, an 
     International Falls police officer for 13 years.
       ``Maybe if we win the lottery,'' said Tammy Wood, who works 
     at Rainy Lake Community College.
       The both laughed, but sometimes dreams come true.


                          summers on the lake

       David Perling was born in International Falls and grew up 
     in Iowa. When he was 15, he and some buddies were goofing 
     around on a wagon, throwing hay at each other. Perling weaved 
     to the side to avoid an attack, but lost his balance and 
     crashed to the ground. The wagon rolled over him twice, 
     paralyzing him.
       He went on to become an electrical engineer. Six years ago, 
     he and his wife decided they wanted to spend summers back in 
     his hometown and on Rainy Lake. His late uncle's place was 
     available. It would be perfect for escaping the triple-digit 
     heat in Arizona, where David and Marlene Perling lived for 
     more than three decades.
       They lived at Rainy Lake for six straight summers. It was 
     their place. The sun rises over Canada. The loons call.
       They planned to return this summer, too. But in January, 
     David Perling suffered a stroke and died. He was 61.
       A Rainy Lake neighbor called Marlene Perling in the spring 
     about buying the lakefront place. She didn't know what to 
     say.
       ``I can never put a price on this house. To me it's just 
     priceless,'' she said. ``But I also know that I could never 
     come up without David. I cried a ton of tears. I knew I just 
     couldn't sell this place.''

[[Page S5944]]

       She prayed for an answer. And then it came to her.
       ``I decided I wanted to give it to a family who could 
     benefit from it, who could enjoy it as much as David and I 
     enjoyed it those six years,'' she said. ``That's what I 
     decided I wanted to do. It was all a very sudden thing, but 
     it's also the right thing.''
       Marlene Perling's cousin Dorlyn Desens of International 
     Falls heard of her intentions. He immediately thought of the 
     nice family living across the street. How many times had he 
     seen the father lift the little boy from his wheelchair to 
     place him in the car? How much longer could his back tolerate 
     the strain?
       Desens spotted Terry Wood outside raking. He went over to 
     chat.


                           DREAM BECOMES REAL

       At the lake house two weeks ago, Desens put Terry and Tammy 
     Wood on the phone with his cousin.
       ``How do you like the van?'' Marlene Perling asked.
       ``The rest of the conversation is a blur to me,'' Terry 
     Wood said Tuesday. He agreed it went something like this:
       The Woods: ``Very nice. But we're not sure we can buy it 
     right now. We're still paying off our car and we just built a 
     house.'' Their house in town is 2\1/2\ years old.
       Perling: ``Well then, just take it.''
       The Woods: ``What do you mean? Just take the van?''
       Perling: ``Take it all. The house. The boat. The van. It's 
     all free. I just want you to enjoy it. Please enjoy it.''
       ``That's when our knees started shaking and Tammy started 
     crying,'' Terry Wood said. ``It's a pretty incredible story, 
     huh? We're still floating.''
       ``I know it's meant to be,'' Perling said. ``God 
     orchestrated this whole thing. He took me step by step. He 
     led me to this family. I asked God to show me a family who 
     could benefit from this. They are all that and more.''


                           ZACHARY CAN'T WAIT

       Zachary is most eager to go fishing with his grandfather. 
     The boy has had 29 surgeries since birth. His spinal cord 
     never developed completely. He suffers respiratory problems, 
     and his vocal cords are paralyzed.
       His prognosis is good, however; he's expected to lead a 
     full life, his parents said.
       But he has never been able to get in a boat with his 
     grandfather until now.
       On Monday, Marlene Perling and the Woods gathered in a 
     lawyer's office in International Falls. She signed over the 
     deed. She even decided to leave behind all the leather and 
     woodsy moose-motif furniture. It was too much of a hassle to 
     take back to Arizona, she said; the moving company wanted 
     more than $7,000.
       The Woods plan to move into their new home after school 
     lets out. With the place fully furnished, they plan to keep 
     only their most cherished possessions.
       The rest?
       ``Give it away,'' Tammy Wood said.

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