[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 36 (Monday, March 7, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E280]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 RECOGNIZING KIRK ADAMS FOR HIS YEARS OF SERVICE TO THE LIGHTHOUSE FOR 
                            THE BLIND, INC.

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ADAM SMITH

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 7, 2016

  Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Mr. Kirk Adams, 
President and CEO of the Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc., for his 
contributions and service to the blind community as he brings his 
leadership to his new role as President and CEO of the American 
Federation for the Blind.
  In 2008, Kirk became the first blind CEO and President of the 
Lighthouse for the Blind, an organization which provides independence 
and self-sufficiency through employment for people who are blind, 
deafblind, and blind with other disabilities. During his tenure as CEO, 
Kirk oversaw significant growth of the Lighthouse for the Blind's 
footprint across the country by expanding to eleven new locations. Each 
location added to the sustainability of the Lighthouse, while also 
empowering new groups of individuals to be gainfully employed.
  Prior to his executive role at the Lighthouse for the Blind, Kirk 
served as the General Manager of Administration and as the Director of 
Public Relations and Resource Development at the Lighthouse. Kirk is 
credited for crafting the Lighthouse's successful fundraising strategy, 
which has greatly magnified their range of services offered and the 
number of individuals who are lifted up through employment 
opportunities.
  Outside of his work at the Lighthouse for the Blind, Kirk is deeply 
involved in the community. He is a member of the Governor's Task Force 
on Disability and Employment and the Seattle Public Library's Strategic 
Plan Advisory Committee. He has served on the boards of the Aerospace 
Futures Alliance, the Association of Washington Business, and the 
American Federation for the Blind. He is also the former Treasurer and 
member of the Board of the National Association for the Employment of 
People Who Are Blind.
  Kirk graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelors of Arts degree in 
Economics from Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. He earned 
his Master's Degree in Not-For-Profit Leadership from Seattle 
University, and is working toward his doctorate in Leadership and 
Change at Antioch University.
  Mr. Speaker, it is with great honor that I recognize Kirk Adams for 
his admirable leadership and congratulate him on his role as President 
and CEO of the Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc. His unrelenting 
dedication to the blind community serves as an example of the 
tremendous impact one person can have.

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