[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 57 (Monday, March 31, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E267]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING DELTA FOUNDATION, INC.

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 31, 2025

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
the remarkable contributions and enduring legacy of the Delta 
Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit 501(c)(3) community development 
corporation dedicated to transforming the Mississippi Delta region.
  The genesis and vision for the Delta Foundation began in the late 
1960's, during a time when many towns in the Delta, with memorable 
names such as Sledge, Alligator, Beulah, Nitta Yuma, Darling, Bobo, and 
Midnight, remained trapped in economic hardship. In these communities, 
the Great Depression's effects seemed never to have fully lifted. 
Tarpaper shanties and stick houses marked rural Hoovervilles, lacking 
indoor plumbing or paved roads. Open sewers, disease, and overcrowding 
were harsh realities faced daily.
  In 1969, a coalition of local community organizations resolved to 
transform this persistent despair into hope. Their vision took shape 
through the creation of the Delta Foundation--a development vehicle 
dedicated to building real assets, generating income, and cultivating 
human capacity within minority and economically underprivileged 
communities. The Foundation was designed to establish a solid 
foundation for long-term economic growth in the region.
  Through the representation of 14 civil rights and community 
organizations working in Mississippi, the Delta Foundation was formally 
chartered. Its core purpose was, and remains, the creation of 
businesses and jobs for its primary constituents: minority and 
economically disadvantaged residents of its target areas. Central to 
the Foundation's mission is the creation of for-profit enterprises 
aimed at increasing control and ownership of resources by the poor.
  For over forty years, the Delta Foundation has faithfully honored the 
vision of its founders. It has persistently supported economic growth 
and development across the Mississippi Delta and extended its reach to 
incorporate community development directly or through strategic 
partnerships. By challenging the enduring poverty of the region, the 
Delta Foundation has replaced hopelessness with hope, idleness with 
productive jobs, and reliance on welfare with financial independence.
  The impact of the Delta Foundation has been profound. Entire 
communities have been transformed, and the lives of thousands of 
individuals have been permanently changed. The Foundation has created 
ladders of opportunity where only poverty and dependency once existed.
  Today, the mission of the Delta Foundation is to provide community, 
social, human, and economic development activities to underserved, 
predominantly minority families, businesses, and communities. This 
mission is pursued tirelessly to eliminate poverty and build a future 
of opportunity and prosperity for the people of the Delta region.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the 
extraordinary accomplishments of the Delta Foundation, Inc. and its 
unwavering dedication to uplifting the Mississippi Delta and its 
residents.

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