[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 92 (Tuesday, June 25, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E959-E960]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            COMMEMORATING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF ACDI/VOCA

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN GARAMENDI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 25, 2013

  Mr. GARAMENDI. Mr. Speaker, it is my great pleasure to congratulate 
ACDI/VOCA on

[[Page E960]]

the occasion of their 50th anniversary. This outstanding organization 
was founded in 1963 with the mission of empowering people around the 
world to take advantage of economic opportunities and improve quality 
of life for their families and communities. To this date, ACDI/VOCA 
continues to fulfill this mission, as they help millions of individuals 
and families fight their way out of poverty. Their notable 
accomplishments include contributing to the launch of the Green 
Revolution in India, strengthening Ethiopian co-ops to bring their 
coffee into global prominence, and pioneering grassroots financial 
services across the former Soviet Union. With a staff comprised of 90 
percent locally-hired employees, and working through a network of over 
3,000 local partner organizations, ACDI/VOCA combines the best in 
international development expertise with powerful grassroots capacities 
to implement effective programming that has a real and sustained 
impact. Congratulations to ACDI/VOCA President and CEO Carl H. Leonard, 
as well as to the esteemed members of the Board of Directors: Mortimer 
Neufville (Chairman), Honorable Timothy J. Penny (Vice Chairman), 
Deborah Atwood, Dr. G.N. Saxena, Charles F. Conner, Kurt M. Ely, Jerry 
Fenner, Patricia Wilkinson Garamendi, William Harris, James. K. Hoyt, 
R. Bruce Johnson, and David Cobb. I commend ACDI/VOCA on their history 
of outstanding service and am confident that they will continue to make 
a difference in people's lives around the world long into the future.

                          ____________________