[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 47 (Wednesday, April 10, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E418]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      HONORING THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND SERVICE OF JEREMIAH LOWNEY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JOE COURTNEY

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 10, 2013

  Mr. COURTNEY. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride and admiration that 
I rise today to share with you the accomplishments of Jeremiah Lowney 
of Norwich, Connecticut.
  I am pleased that the White House is honoring Jeremiah Lowney as a 
Champion of Change, which is a well deserved honor. On April 5, 2013 
Jerry was honored with 11 other Rotary International Members that have 
improved the lives of thousands both in the United States and abroad. 
For over thirty years, Jeremiah ``Jerry'' Lowney has successfully 
applied his exceptional skills in orthodontia and medicine to helping 
those living in some of the world's most inhospitable conditions. After 
cultivating a fruitful career as an orthodontist, Jerry became focused 
on providing the most basic and necessary health services to those who 
needed it more than almost anyone in the world: the citizens of Port-
au-Prince, Haiti. In doing so, Jerry selflessly prioritized his own 
health concerns below those of his future patients: he was recovering 
from surgery and radiation following treatment of a rare form of cancer 
when he embarked on his first mission trip to Haiti in 1982.
  After dedicating three years of service toward Mother Teresa's 
Sisters of Charity providing free dental care to Haitians in Port-au-
Prince, Jerry was asked by Mother Teresa to branch out to Jeromie, a 
rural city in Southwestern Haiti suffering from severe deficiencies in 
both the quality and availability of health care. Jerry's tireless 
efforts led what was initially a small outreach group to blossom into 
the Haitian Health Foundation (HHF), a stalwart organization that has 
offered health care services to Jeromie and over 100 of the rural and 
remote mountain villages which surround it.
  Though the Foundation's successes are innumerable in quantity, some 
recent highlights include: a 90 percent immunization rate, almost 100 
percent reduction in diarrhea deaths, a national award for Vitamin A 
program which prevents child blindness, and a reduction in childhood 
deaths from bacterial pneumonia by more than 50 percent. In addition, 
the HHF maintains programs which distribute hot meals and take-home 
food for thousands of malnourished children, as well as a family 
sponsorship program that sends thousands of children to school each 
year.
  As a recipient of dozens of humanitarian awards, Jerry's efforts have 
certainly not gone unrecognized. Yet despite his philanthropic 
accomplishments, Jerry has never lost his quiet, humble sense of duty 
and compassion for those less fortunate. Jerry's unwavering 
determination, skills, and philanthropic nature have led him to 
extraordinary success in one of the world's most impoverished regions. 
His actions have improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of 
impoverished Haitians, who without him may never have been able to find 
adequate care. Jerry has offered more than health and dental services 
to these people; he has offered them hope. Despite his grueling 
schedule running a busy dental practice and managing the Haitian clinic 
he also is active in the Norwich community lending a hand to civic and 
charitable causes of every type. His family, his hometown of Norwich, 
and all of eastern Connecticut are proud of Jerry Lowney's remarkable 
success, and I applaud the White House for recognizing his 
accomplishments.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring the 
service and accomplishments of Jeremiah Lowney.

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