[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 125 (Wednesday, October 6, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1811]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       RECOGNIZING THE FARMWORKER HOUSING DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DARLENE HOOLEY

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, October 5, 2004

  Ms. HOOLEY of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Roberto 
Franco, who is stepping down as director of the Farmworker Housing 
Development Corporation, FHDC, after years of effective service to 
Oregon's farmworker community.
  FHDC is a non-profit community-based organization that was founded in 
1990 to help serve farm workers in Oregon's Mid-Willamette Valley by 
developing affordable housing for workers and their families. Despite 
many hurdles, under Mr. Franco's leadership at FHDC has been very 
successful in achieving its mission and now provides housing for over 
100 families. The group's major complex, Nuevo Amenecer or ``New 
Dawn,'' gives 93 families who otherwise might not have acceptable 
living quarters an opportunity to live in clean, decent, and dignified 
housing.
  But FHDC has done more than put a roof over the head of those it 
serves. Mr. Franco led a successful effort to create the Cipriano 
Ferrel Education Center, a multipurpose community facility that serves 
the needs of Nuevo Amenecer residents and others in the community. With 
the opening of the center last year, FHDC has begun offering 
opportunities for self-enhancement to those who wish to get ahead. 
Earlier this year I visited Cipriano Ferrel to address a group working 
to improve financial literacy and homeownership opportunities for 
Oregon's Latino community.
  Cipriano Ferrel includes a Head Start program, child care, and a 
computer lab that provides opportunities for both young and old alike 
to learn technology skills that will help them get ahead. In addition, 
Cipriano Ferrel provides adult educational programs, including literacy 
and language classes, homeownership education, preparation for becoming 
a U.S. citizen, and a microenterprise program that helps people start 
their own businesses. A recently announced grant by Microsoft to 
upgrade the computer lab will provide software and help fund an 
instructor, thus offering even more opportunities for Nuevo Amenecer 
residents and members of the community.
  I want to thank Roberto Franco and the Farmworker Housing Development 
Corporation for their work in offering low-income farm workers 
additional opportunities. Thanks to you, hundreds of families truly 
have experienced a New Dawn.

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