[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 98 (Thursday, July 15, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1379]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   IN RECOGNITION OF LAURA DOMINGUEZ

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. CHARLES A. GONZALEZ

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 14, 2004

  Mr. GONZALEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Laura 
Dominguez, a very special young woman whose life can teach us all about 
the power of perseverance and love. Laura is a bit quiet until you get 
to know her, but once you do, you find that she is smart, witty, and 
brave. You also learn of her loving family: her parents, Rosie and 
Abel, and her older brother Abel Aaron.
  In July 2001, Laura and her brother were driving home from summer 
school. There was an oil slick in the road that made the car 
uncontrollable. Laura broke her neck at the C-6 level, qualifying her 
as a quadriplegic. At that time, doctors told her that she would never 
walk again. Laura was undaunted by this prognosis.
  Ever since that day, Laura and her family have demonstrated an 
unbelievable amount of fortitude and perseverance. They have consulted 
with a number of spinal cord specialists with the hope of watching 
Laura walk again. Laura spent six months in St. Louis and one year in 
California so that she could receive the best treatment available. It 
was in California that the Dominguez family learned of a surgery being 
done in Portugal in which tissue from one's sinus area is transplanted 
into the spinal cord at the injury sight. In March 2003, Laura traveled 
to Portugal and became the tenth person in the world, and only the 
second American, to undergo this surgery.
  By July 2003, 70% of the lesion in Laura's spinal cord looked like 
normal spinal cord tissue. Since that phenomenal surgery, Laura has 
also regained feeling down to her hip level and she has begun to regain 
some feeling and movement in her legs. Now Laura, once seen as a lost 
cause by some members of the medical community, has regained her 
ability to stand with the use of a walker.
  Laura is in Washington, D.C., today to share her story, so that we 
may put a face to the abstract debates that occur in Congress regarding 
the benefits of stem cell research. Laura is also a living symbol of 
hope for the more than 200,000 people in the United States who are 
living with a spinal cord injury. Her story demonstrates the seemingly 
unattainable feats that can be accomplished when one has faith in 
oneself, and the unwavering love and support from family and friends.
  I wish Laura and her family many blessings as she continues to push 
her body and her mind to overcome her physical challenges.

                          ____________________