[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 115 (Wednesday, September 22, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1674-E1675]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      HONORING ROBERT AND COLLEEN GOODALE, 2004 ANGELS IN ADOPTION

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JIM COOPER

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 22, 2004

  Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, I have the privilege today of recognizing 
Robert and Colleen Goodale, an extraordinary couple from Nashville, TN, 
who have opened their home and their hearts to children in foster care.
  I am proud to announce that the Goodales are this year's Angels in 
Adoption from the Fifth District of Tennessee. As many of my colleagues 
know, Angels in Adoption is an annual award sponsored by the 
Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute to honor families such as 
the Goodales who are among the nation's heroes of adoption.
  The Goodales have a story that is nothing short of amazing. After 
raising four biological children of their own, the Goodales decided to 
fill their empty nest by adopting children out of foster care. The 
first of these children was Richard, who came to the Goodales' home at 
the age of 2 for what was intended to have been a 2-week stay. Richard, 
who is severely mentally disabled, was in the process of being 
institutionalized at a local facility when he came to the Goodales' 
home. Richard, however, never left their care, and instead became their 
first adopted son. Now 18, Richard is still severely developmentally 
delayed and cannot speak. He also suffers from emphysema, and requires 
round-the-clock supervision and assistance. As nurses by profession, 
the Goodales have provided Richard with the ideal loving home.

[[Page E1675]]

  Shortly after Richard's adoption, the Goodales adopted two brothers, 
Jonathan and Christopher, who were 11 and 9 at the age of their 
adoption and are now 24 and 23. They then adopted another group of 
siblings, James, Tracy, Jerome, and Lorri. Now also grown, these 
children were 7, 5, 4 and 2 when they joined the Goodale family.
  The Goodales, who are white, are blessed with a diverse, multiracial 
family. Richard is African-American, Jonathan and Christopher are 
white, and the remaining four are biracial. Despite their commitment 
and perseverance, the Goodales have had to battle skepticism from 
caseworkers who initially believed these diverse placements to be 
inappropriate. Eventually, the Goodales even moved into an all-black 
neighborhood to demonstrate their respect for their children's racial 
heritage.
  The Goodales are a truly remarkable family, and I am privileged to 
have been witness to the strength of this family's love.

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