[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 21 (Wednesday, February 25, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1598-S1600]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 92--CONGRATULATING AND SALUTING FOCUS: 
  HOPE ON THE OCCASION OF ITS 35TH ANNIVERSARY AND FOR ITS REMARKABLE 
COMMITMENT AND CONTRIBUTIONS TO DETROIT, THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, AND FOR 
                           THE UNITED STATES

  Mr. LEVIN (for himself and Ms. Stabenow) submitted the following 
concurrent resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                            S. Con. Res. 92

       Whereas Focus: HOPE began as a civil and human rights 
     organization in 1968 in the wake of the devastating Detroit 
     riots, and was co-founded by the late Father William T. 
     Cunningham, a Roman Catholic priest, and Eleanor M. Josaitis, 
     a suburban housewife, who were inspired to establish Focus: 
     HOPE by the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE is committed to bringing together 
     people of all races, faiths, and economic backgrounds to 
     overcome injustice and build racial harmony, and it has grown 
     to one of the largest nonprofit organizations in Michigan;
       Whereas the Focus: HOPE mission statement states: 
     ``Recognizing the dignity and beauty of every person, we 
     pledge intelligent and practical action to overcome racism, 
     poverty and injustice. And to build a metropolitan community 
     where all people may live in freedom, harmony, trust and 
     affection. Black and white, yellow, brown and red from 
     Detroit and its suburbs of every economic status, national 
     origin and religious persuasion we join in this covenant.'';
       Whereas one of Focus: HOPE's early efforts was to support 
     African American and female employees in a seminal class 
     action suit against AAA, resulting in one of the finest 
     affirmative action commitments made by any corporation up to 
     that time;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE helped to conceive of and develop the 
     Department of Agriculture's Commodity Supplemental Food 
     Program which has been replicated in 32 states, and through 
     this program Focus: HOPE helps to feed 43,000 people per 
     month throughout Southeast Michigan;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE has revitalized several city blocks in 
     central Detroit by redeveloping obsolete industrial 
     buildings, beautifying and landscaping Oakman Boulevard, 
     creating pocket parks, and rehabilitating homes in the 
     surrounding areas;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE's Machinist Training Institute has been 
     training individuals from Detroit and beyond for careers in 
     advanced manufacturing and precision machining since 1981, 
     and has sent forth nearly 2,500 certified graduates, 
     providing an opportunity for primarily under-represented 
     minority youth, women, and others to gain access to the 
     financial mainstream and learn in-demand skills;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE, with assistance from Michigan, the 
     Department of Housing and Urban Development, and other 
     generous private and public partners, has within the last two 
     years invested over $10 million to complete the renovation of 
     the industrial building housing its Machinist Training 
     Institute;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE has recognized that manufacturing and 
     information technologies are key to the economic growth and 
     security of Michigan and the United States, and is committed 
     to designing programs that would contribute to the 
     participation of under-represented urban individuals in these 
     critical sectors;
       Whereas, in 1982, Focus: HOPE began a for-profit subsidiary 
     that was initiated for community economic development 
     purposes and is now designated with Federal HUBZone status;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE created two pioneering programs--FAST 
     TRACK and First Step--designed to help individuals improve 
     their reading and math competencies by a minimum of two grade 
     levels in 4-7 weeks;
       Whereas these programs have graduated over 7,000 
     individuals since their inception, a new offsite training 
     facility in Detroit's Empowerment Zone in southwest Detroit 
     has been established to reach out to individuals in other 
     parts of the city, and the success of the programs has 
     inspired Michigan (in its State-wide FAST BREAK program) and 
     other States to replicate the efforts of Focus: HOPE;
       Whereas, in 1987, Focus: HOPE reclaimed and renovated an 
     abandoned building and opened it as a Center for Children, 
     which has now served over 5,000 children of colleagues, 
     students, and neighbors with quality child care, including 
     latchkey, early childhood education, and other educational 
     services;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE, through an unprecedented co-operative 
     agreement between the Departments of Defense, Commerce, 
     Education, and Labor, established a National demonstration 
     project--the Center for Advanced Technologies--in which 
     candidates earn associates and bachelors degrees in either 
     manufacturing engineering or technology, and engage in hands-
     on manufacturing within-real world conditions, producing 
     parts for DaimlerChrysler, Detroit Diesel, Ford Motor 
     Company, General Motors Corporation, the Department of 
     Defense, and others;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE has caused over $22 million to be 
     invested in renovating a previously obsolete building to 
     house the Center for Advanced Technologies, transforming the 
     building into a model facility for 21st century advanced 
     manufacturing, education, and research;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE has made outstanding contributions 
     toward increasing diversity within the traditional 
     homogeneous science, math, engineering, and technology 
     fields, and 95 percent of currently enrolled

[[Page S1600]]

     degree candidates are African American, representing perhaps 
     the United States' largest producer of bachelor-degreed 
     minority graduates in manufacturing engineering;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE's unique research and development 
     partnership with the Department of Defense has resulted in a 
     nationally recognized demonstration project, the Mobile Parts 
     Hospital, whose Rapid Manufacturing System has recently been 
     deployed to Kuwait in support of the Armed Forces' current 
     operations in Afghanistan and Iraq;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE began a community arts program in 1995, 
     presenting multicultural arts programming and gallery 
     exhibitions designed to educate and encourage area residents, 
     while fostering integration in a culturally diverse 
     metropolitan community, and over 43,000 people have viewed 
     sponsored exhibits or participated in this program;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE established an Information Technologies 
     Center in 1999, providing Detroit students with industry-
     certified training programs in network administration, 
     network installation, and desktop and server administration, 
     and has graduated nearly 475 students to date, and has 
     initiated, in collaboration with industry and academia, the 
     design of a new bachelors degree program to educate 
     information management systems engineers;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE's initiatives and programs have been 
     nationally recognized for excellence and leadership by such 
     organizations as the Government Accounting Office, the 
     Department of Labor, the International Standards 
     Organization, the National Science Foundation, the Cisco 
     Networking Academy Program, Fortune Magazine, Forbes 
     Magazine, the Aspen Institute, and many others, and former 
     Presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton have visited 
     Focus: HOPE's campus;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE is currently led by Eleanor M. 
     Josaitis, its co-founder and chief executive officer, and she 
     has received honorary degrees from 11 outstanding 
     universities and colleges, was named one of the 100 Most 
     Influential Women in 2002 by Crain's Detroit Business, has 
     been inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame, has 
     received the Detroit NAACP Presidential Award, the Arab 
     American Institute Foundation's Kahlil Gibran Spirit of 
     Humanity Award, as well as many other awards;
       Whereas through the generous partnerships and support of 
     individuals from all walks of life, Federal, State, and local 
     government, and foundations and corporations across the 
     United States, the vision of Focus: HOPE will continue to 
     grow and inspire;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE has been blessed with an active board 
     of directors and advisory board from the senior most levels 
     of corporate and public America, and has benefited from an 
     annual average of 25,000 volunteers and countless colleagues;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE has been a tremendous force for good in 
     the City of Detroit, the State of Michigan, and the United 
     States for the past 35 years;
       Whereas Focus: HOPE continues to strive to eliminate 
     racism, poverty, and injustice through the use of passion, 
     persistence, and partnerships, and continues to seek 
     improvement in its quality of service and program operations; 
     and
       Whereas Focus: HOPE and its colleagues will continue to 
     identify ways in which it can lead Detroit, the State of 
     Michigan, and the United States into the future with creative 
     urban leadership initiatives: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) congratulates and salutes Focus: HOPE for its 
     remarkable commitment and contributions to Detroit, the State 
     of Michigan, and the United States; and
       (2) directs the Secretary of the Senate to make available 
     enrolled copies of this resolution to Focus: HOPE and Ms. 
     Eleanor M. Josaitis for appropriate display.

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