[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 53 (Wednesday, April 27, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E797]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    HONORING THE SCHUSTER FAMILY AND THE NATIONAL KIDNEY FOUNDATION

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. RAHM EMANUEL

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 27, 2005

  Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the contributions 
of the Schuster Family to the prevention and treatment of kidney and 
urinary tract disease. On April 27th, the National Kidney Foundation of 
Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Vermont will host a 
dinner with President Bill Clinton in honor of Gerald and Elaine 
Schuster and their two sons Mark and Scott for their 35 years of 
tireless dedication to this important cause.
  In 1954, Dr. Joseph Murray performed the very first organ transplant 
in the world at the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. That same 
year, the National Kidney Foundation of Massachusetts, which would 
later expand to include Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Vermont, was 
founded.
  For more than half a century since then, the National Kidney 
Foundation and its affiliates have played a crucial role in the 
prevention and treatment of kidney and urinary tract disease. In 
particular, the Foundation provides patient services, funding for much-
needed research, free early-screening services, public and professional 
education, and organ donation information. In addition, the Foundation 
helps further the prevention and treatment of kidney and urinary tract 
disease.
  The Schuster Family has long played a vital role in the success of 
the National Kidney Foundation. As President of the National Kidney 
Foundation of Massachusetts, Elaine Schuster successfully advocated for 
including organ donation check-off on Massachusetts' drivers licenses 
in 1968, a move which has saved countless lives by giving every citizen 
an opportunity to get involved in an easy and direct way.
  In 1978, the Schuster family felt the impact of their work firsthand, 
when Mark Schuster donated a kidney to save his brother Scott's life. 
Twenty-six years later, Scott Schuster is a successful businessman and 
Chairman of the very Foundation that helped to make his life-saving 
surgery possible.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the 
dedication of the Schuster Family, and the important, lifesaving work 
of the National Kidney Foundation.

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