[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 21]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 30810]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



IN RECOGNITION OF THE 5TH ANNUAL COVENANT HOUSE WASHINGTON CANDLELIGHT 
                                 VIGIL

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 17, 1999

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Covenant House 
Candlelight Vigil, where I will speak on Tuesday, December 4, 1999. The 
Vigil is a national event held every year in early December in some 20 
cities across the country. The Candlelight Vigil symbolizes community 
hope for the well being of all our children and highlights the plight 
of homeless, runaway, and at-risk children.
  The Vigil in Washington alone has 3,000 concerned adults and youth 
marching, bearing candles and flashlights in support of youth. They 
will march shoulder to shoulder for a quarter of a mile to the Covenant 
House Washington Community Service Center, setting a tone of joy, 
solidarity, commitment, and hope. Similar rallies are held 
simultaneously at Covenant House sites across the country.
  Since its inception in 1995, Covenant House Washington has invested 
over $13 million of private funding in our youth. They have given 
hundreds of youth a hand up by providing food, shelter, tutoring, life 
skills, job training, legal representation, and positive recreational 
opportunities.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring Covenant 
House Washington and their commitment to our most vulnerable young 
people and in recognizing the 1999 Covenant House Washington 
Candlelight Vigil.

                          ____________________