[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 105 (Wednesday, September 8, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1524-E1525]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  TRIBUTE TO THE LATE RICHARD A. BLOCH

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DENNIS MOORE

                               of kansas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, September 7, 2004

  Mr. MOORE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to note the passing of Richard 
A. Bloch, of Kansas City, Missouri, who was a co-founder of H&R Block, 
Inc., and a passionate crusader for cancer patients.
  In 1955, Richard Bloch and his brother, Henry, relaunched a small 
family-owned bookkeeping service as H&R Block, focusing on income tax 
preparation. Richard Bloch was a primary force behind the company's 
rapid expansion in the two decades thereafter.

[[Page E1525]]

  Diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and told he had 3 months to live 
in the late 1970s, he was declared cured after 2 years of aggressive 
therapy. After that, Richard Bloch dedicated the rest of his life to 
helping others fight cancer. He and his wife, Annette, founded the R.A. 
Bloch Cancer Management Center and the R.A. Bloch Cancer Support Center 
at the University of Missouri, Kansas City, which became models for 
more than 100 similar organizations nationwide. As he once said, ``Our 
sole goal is to try to get people to fight. If they fight, they have a 
chance to win.''
  Another of his signature achievements was creating the Physicians 
Data Query, a computer program now used by the National Cancer 
Institute that provides treatment for all forms of cancer. To honor 
Bloch, the Federal Government named the Bethesda, Maryland, building 
that is housing the program as the R.A. Bloch International Cancer 
Information Center.
  Born on February 15, 1926, in Kansas City, Missouri, he is survived 
by Annette, his wife of 58 years, their four children, and fourteen 
grandchildren. Earlier, I had introduced House Resolution 376, which 
expresses the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to the 
Bloch Cancer Foundation; its text aptly summarizes the many public 
contributions made by Richard Bloch, and I include it here:

       Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with 
     respect to the Bloch Cancer Foundation.
       Whereas Richard and Annette Bloch are founders of the Bloch 
     Cancer Foundation, established in 1980;
       Whereas Richard and Annette have gifted to the University 
     of Missouri-Kansas City the Bloch Support Center, a center 
     which reaches out to cancer-stricken patients, their 
     supporters, and caregivers, through education, counseling, 
     and research designed to achieve the highest quality of life 
     while living with cancer, and, in addition, offers 
     professional education opportunities for students to receive 
     training and research skills that deal with the psychological 
     aspects of cancer;
       Whereas Richard Bloch, along with the National Cancer 
     Institute, implemented a computer program called PDQ 
     (`Physicians Data Query') that gathers information from every 
     cancer center in the United States and 22 foreign countries 
     and gives the state of the art treatment for every type and 
     stage of cancer in addition to all available experimental 
     therapies;
       Whereas Richard and Annette Bloch authored three books: 
     `Cancer . . . There's Hope' about Richard's battle with his 
     `terminal' lung cancer; `Fighting Cancer', a step-by-step 
     guide showing cancer patients how to fight the disease; and 
     `Guide for Cancer Supporters', geared exclusively to 
     supporters of cancer patients;
       Whereas Cancer Survivor Parks have been established to help 
     cancer survivors, to be a tribute to these survivors, and to 
     be a celebration of life in Kansas City, Missouri; Houston, 
     Texas; Dallas, Texas; Cleveland, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio; 
     Indianapolis, Indiana; Rancho Mirage, California; New 
     Orleans, Louisiana; Santa Rosa, California; Jacksonville, 
     Florida; Bakersfield, California; Phoenix, Arizona; 
     Baltimore, Maryland; Chicago, Illinois and Omaha, Nebraska;
       Whereas Dick and Annette's foundation has gathered a wide 
     variety of volunteers including doctors sharing their time, 
     computer specialists creating informative and helpful web 
     sites, home volunteers making calls to offer guidance and 
     hope to new patients, and in-house volunteers answering phone 
     calls, e-mails, and being there when called upon;
       Whereas Richard and Annette Bloch in 1980 founded the Bloch 
     Cancer Hot Line, an organization composed of more than 500 
     cancer survivors that has fielded over 125,000 calls in the 
     last 20 years, which on June 4, 2003, celebrated its 23rd 
     anniversary of giving hope, support, and information to those 
     who call;
       Whereas June 4, 2003, also marked the 18th anniversary of 
     the first Cancer Survivor Day Rally, held originally in 
     Kansas City, Missouri, and now held in over 700 communities 
     throughout the United States; and
       Whereas the Cancer Survivor Day Rally glorifies the 
     attitude that cancer and death are not synonymous and that a 
     cancer diagnosis does not represent a decrease in the quality 
     of life: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives commends 
     Richard and Annette Bloch and the Bloch Cancer Foundation and 
     their network of invaluable volunteers on behalf of 8,400,000 
     Americans living with cancer.

  Additionally, Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record an article 
surveying Richard Bloch's life and accomplishments that appeared in 
today's Kansas City Star:

              A Success in Business--and at Helping Others

                            (By Gene Meyer)

       Richard Bloch, a passionate crusader for cancer patients 
     and co-founder of the world's largest tax preparation 
     company, H&R Block Inc., died of heart failure Wednesday 
     morning at his home.
       He was 78.
       Bloch and his brother, Henry, relaunched a small family 
     bookkeeping service in 1955 as H&R Block, specializing in 
     what then was the newly emerging field of income tax 
     preparation.
       Although Henry Bloch may be more widely associated with the 
     company because of the advertising campaigns in which he 
     appeared, Richard Bloch is credited as a driving force in the 
     company's rapid expansion in the 1960s and later.
       ``Dick was a true entrepreneur, and his energy and talents 
     helped create the path that makes H&R Block the professional 
     and accessible company it is today,'' said Mark Ernst, the 
     company's current chairman and chief executive.
       ``His personal integrity and commitment to helping people 
     remain an important part of our company's culture,'' Ernst 
     said.
       In addition to his business accomplishments, Richard Bloch 
     in his later years touched tens of thousands more lives 
     through his courageous personal battles with cancer, and his 
     tireless advocacy for cancer patients.
       Bloch was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 1978, and 
     was told he had three months to live. But he fought the 
     disease and was declared cured after two years of aggressive 
     therapy. He was diagnosed in 1989 with colon cancer, which he 
     also fought aggressively and survived.
       Bloch always attributed his successful fight to the support 
     of his family, finding the right skilled medical help and 
     keeping a positive attitude.
       ``Our sole goal is to try to get people to fight,'' he said 
     in a story last year commemorating his 25 years of helping 
     other cancer survivors. ``If they fight, they have a chance 
     to win.''
       Bloch returned briefly to Block as chairman after fighting 
     his lung cancer, but sold his interest in the enterprise in 
     1982 to become a full-time crusader for cancer patients 
     everywhere.
       Henry Bloch could not be reached for comment Wednesday. A 
     spokesman said he was occupied with funeral arrangements.
       Richard Bloch and his wife, Annette, who survives him, 
     founded one of the first cancer hot lines in the U.S. in 
     1980, which has since logged more than 125,000 calls from 
     newly diagnosed cancer patients. The Blochs also founded the 
     R.A. Bloch Cancer Foundation Inc., plus the R.A. Bloch Cancer 
     Management Center and the R.A. Bloch Cancer Support Center at 
     the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
       The centers have become models for a national network of 
     more than 100 similar organizations across the United States 
     that provide medical, moral and other support for cancer 
     patients and their families.
       ``He was always one of our best volunteers,'' said Vangie 
     Rich, administrator of the cancer support center.
       ``He never hesitated to share his home phone number with 
     anyone who wanted to talk about cancer,'' Rich said.
       Bloch also conceived the Physician Data Query, a computer 
     program at the National Cancer Institute that provides the 
     latest treatment options for all types of cancers. He started 
     an annual Fighting Cancer Rally now held in several U.S. 
     cities on the second Sunday of each June. He financed the 
     Richard and Annette Bloch Cancer Survivors' Park in Kansas 
     City. And he wrote several books supporting cancer education, 
     awareness and support for survivors.
       He served on the advisory board of the National Cancer 
     Institute and was a member of the Institute of Medicine and 
     the President's Circle of the National Academy of Sciences. 
     Late in life, he pushed for laws making second opinions 
     mandatory for patients diagnosed with cancer.
       ``He definitely will be missed,'' said Anne Mueller of 
     Mission, whose husband, David, has survived four kinds of 
     cancer since 1978 and has worked with Bloch as a hot line 
     volunteer.
       ``He's been an inspiration to David and many others,'' Anne 
     Mueller said. ``Now we look at it as cancer with a small c, 
     not cancer with a big C.''
       Bloch was born Feb. 15, 1926, in Kansas City. He attended 
     Bryant Elementary School, Southwest High School and the 
     Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania.
       Funeral services are scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Friday at 
     Louis Memorial Chapel, 6830 Troost Ave.
       The R.A. Bloch Cancer Foundation, at 4400 Main St. in 
     Kansas City, can be reached online at www.blochcancer.or or 
     by calling 1-(800) 433-0464.

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