[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 127 (Wednesday, September 19, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6444-S6445]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  RECOGNIZING THE LOWELL MILKEN CENTER

 Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. President, today I wish to commemorate the 
Lowell Milken Center's 2012 National Projects Kick-off. Located in Fort 
Scott, KS, the Lowell Milken Center discovers, develops, and 
communicates the stories of unsung heroes who have made a profound and 
positive difference on the course of history. The Lowell Milken Center 
was opened in 2007 as an international nonprofit organization focused 
on creating a better future by developing projects that teach respect 
and understanding. This approach has been built upon student-driven, 
project-based learning so that Americans and people around the world 
may learn that each of us has the responsibility and the power to take 
actions to improve the lives of others.
  During its 6 years of operation, the center has hosted over 15,000 
visitors and reached over 550,000 students in 5,000 schools by telling 
inspiring stories of unsung heroes to influence change in behaviors and 
attitudes. In May, I had the pleasure of visiting the Lowell Milken 
Center. During my visit, I was able to meet the center's visionary and 
founder Norm Conard and its program director Megan Felt. Both are 
outstanding Kansans who have helped shape the way we approach history 
and learning. Ms. Felt has been honored nationally and internationally 
for her projects with students, and she is the founder of the 
internationally acclaimed work, ``Life in a Jar: The Irena Sendler 
Project.''
  Irena Sendler was a devout Catholic who helped save the lives of 
2,500 children during the Holocaust in Poland. She smuggled children 
out of a Warsaw ghetto and placed them with families not threatened by 
the Nazis. Toward the end of the war, she was arrested, severely 
beaten, and almost died for her actions to save these children.
  In 1999, three high school students from Uniontown, KS, uncovered the 
remarkable story of Irena Sendler after Uniontown High School teacher 
Norm Conard tasked his students to compete in a National History Day 
contest. The students investigated an article published in 1994 
mentioning Sendler and uncovered a heroic story that had gone virtually 
unreported. The students eventually met their hero and began exchanging 
letters.

[[Page S6445]]

  This relationship inspired the students to write a play about 
Sendler's life and work. ``Life in a Jar: The Irena Sendler Project'' 
continues to be performed in Uniontown, KS, and has been preformed 
across the U.S. and in Europe. Fortunately, this project brought 
Sendler much overdue national attention in Poland, and in 2007 Sendler 
was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. In 2008, Irena Sendler passed 
away at age 98.
  The Lowell Milken Center continues to pursue those often missed in 
history books and to promote cross-cultural understanding in the world. 
It is an honor to represent the Lowell Milken Center in the United 
States Senate, and I commend their efforts to promote the unsung heroes 
who changed the world through the 2012 National Projects Kick-
off.

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