[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 124 (Thursday, July 9, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E621]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 RECOGNIZING THE ASTRO JELLY DOGS' ACHIEVEMENT OF BEING SELECTED AS A 
                  GLOBAL INNOVATION SEMI-FINALIST TEAM

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                           HON. JAMIE RASKIN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, July 9, 2020

  Mr. RASKIN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the remarkable 
accomplishment of my constituents, the Astro Jelly Dogs, who were 
selected as a Global Innovation Semi-Finalist Team for the FIRST LEGO 
League Global Innovation Award. I congratulate Ryan Vollmer, Mary Jane 
Gibson, Tyler Carney, Samuel Perretta, Jack Stauder, Molly Richards, 
Benjamin Richards and their coach, Kelly Vollmer, on their passionate 
commitment to environmentally sustainable solutions and their 
impressive results. Through their innovation, the Grow Home, the Astro 
Jelly Dogs will renovate an abandoned row house to provide Baltimore 
City residents more access to fruits and vegetables.
  The FIRST LEGO League Global Innovation Award recognizes and 
celebrates the next generation of innovators. Teams identify a problem 
in their local community and then work to design a unique and 
environmentally sustainable solution. Teams are tasked with considering 
barriers to implementation, evaluating their invention and validating 
their invention with STEM professionals. 20 semi-finalist teams are 
chosen from 40,000 FIRST LEGO League teams from over 100 countries to 
receive further assistance and ultimately win a cash prize.
  Madam Speaker, I am honored to recognize the extraordinaiy 
achievement of these bright children and I hope my colleagues and 
constituents will join me in congratulating the Astro Jelly Dogs on a 
job well done

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