[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 54 (Thursday, April 3, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E504-E505]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        HONORING DON GEAN FOR HIS SERVICE TO THE PEOPLE OF MAINE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. CHELLIE PINGREE

                                of maine

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 3, 2014

  Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize a 
tireless and visionary leader in my state who is retiring after several 
decades of working to improve the lives of homeless Mainers.
  In 1985, Don Gean took over as director of the York County Alcoholism 
Center, which was housed in a crumbling former jail. Today, that 
organization is called the York County Shelter Programs, an innovative 
network of facilities and services that serves 400 clients. Among its 
facilities are a bakery where clients learn vocational skills while 
preparing the food served at several shelter sites; a working farm that 
produces eggs for the bakery and houses one of the largest solar arrays 
in the state; and 36 residences for transitional housing. Under Don's 
leadership, the organization has come a long way from a condemned jail.
  Early on in his tenure, Don resolved that his organization needed to 
do more than provide beds and meals if it was going to make a lasting 
impact on its clients. To that end, he developed a range of vocational, 
medical, mental health and substance abuse programs to give people the 
support, tools, and self-confidence they needed to turn their lives 
around. Today, the shelter's recidivism rate is an astonishingly low 
5.3 percent. It has become a model program for dealing with the 
challenges of homelessness.
  But the best way to mark Don's legacy is in the words of the people 
he served. One man who first came to the shelter in 2007 now owns his 
own home and regularly volunteers for the organization. ``This is a 
lifesaving organization,'' he said. ``Don is a big part of saving 
people's lives, but he won't tell you that. He'll take no credit.''
  I had the pleasure of serving with Don in the Maine State Legislature 
in the early 1990s, where he became a statewide leader on the issue of 
homelessness. He was then and continues to be a practical, shrewd, and 
effective advocate, but above all a kind, good-hearted person who 
reminds us that no one in our society should ever be written off.
  I wish Don all the best in his retirement and thank him 
wholeheartedly for his incredible work.

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