[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 101 (Friday, July 22, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1583]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E1583]]
                   IN HONOR OF SELF HELP ENTERPRISES

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JIM COSTA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 22, 2005

  Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Self Help 
Enterprises on the organization's 40th Anniversary of dedicated service 
to rural communities of California's San Joaquin Valley.
  Self Help Enterprises' (SHE) efforts are based upon the simple 
principle of providing the tools necessary for individuals to help 
themselves succeed. SHE assists rural residents, primarily farmworkers, 
in a variety of housing needs. Offering technical assistance, helping 
people to compete for scarce resources and empowering individuals has 
been the main focus of this community oriented non-profit.
  The beginnings of Self Help Enterprises can be traced back to 1964 
when President Johnson launched the ``War on Poverty'' with the passage 
of the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964. This legislation provided a 
much needed source of federal funding to help combat the devastating 
effects of continuous economic hardship. Self Help Enterprises 
originated in 1965 as the first rural self-help housing organization in 
the nation and shortly thereafter received its first of many grants 
from the United States Office of Economic Opportunity.
  Since then SHE has been instrumental in the housing development needs 
throughout eight counties located in the heart of the San Joaquin 
Valley: Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Stanislaus and 
Tulare.
  Self Help Enterprises' volunteers, benefactors and organizers have 
touched the lives of numerous families who are so often overlooked by 
the rest of the community. The 40th Anniversary of the founding of Self 
Help Enterprises is a time for us to not only commemorate past efforts, 
but also look toward the future for innovative and novel means of 
helping underserved rural residents.

                          ____________________