[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 10]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 13558]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[[Page 13558]]

                          EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS

   IN HONOR OF THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE EAST TOLEDO FAMILY CENTER

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MARCY KAPTUR

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 17, 2001

  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to recognize the 100th 
anniversary of the East Toledo Family Center in Toledo, Ohio.
  Begun by a cadre of East Toledoans who felt great pride about their 
neighborhood and wanted to further enhance opportunities for its 
residents, the East Toledo Family Center was born in 1901. It has 
established itself as a stalwart beacon in a community which saw 
continued and great change in its century of existence.
  Evolving with the neighborhood and its changing needs, the center has 
grown into a full service neighborhood center with 40,000 square feet 
of space providing educational, recreational, and social programs 
including preschool, school age childcare, youth enrichment, programs 
for teens to learn about themselves and their environment, human 
services case management on site, a family health clinic offering 
family and maternal health care, and a police substation. It also 
coordinates with community organizations offering special programs on 
site.
  Amazingly, the East Toledo Family Center serves more than 10,000 
people each year. Its longtime former director Warren Densmore, who led 
the center through unprecedented growth for 38 years, encapsulated the 
feeling and vision of the East Toledo Family Center: ``We want to 
create a feeling of neighborliness by helping individuals and groups to 
be interested in one another and to help each other try to better the 
conditions around themselves physically, culturally, socially, and 
morally. We try to develop our own leadership, so that when a community 
problem or need arises we can go to work on it, individually and as 
groups.'' It is a philosophy which is a guiding principle yet today. 
The East Toledo Family Center is governed by the community, of the 
community, and for the community. Therein lies both its strength and 
its success. The East Toledo neighborhood is center stage in the 
planning and implementing of all of the center's opportunities.
  Its mission is to ``provide quality programs and services to enhance 
the lives of individuals and families by meeting the emerging needs of 
our community. We will accomplish this by assisting seniors in 
maintaining independent lifestyles; preparing young people to do well 
in school, developing and fostering good character, and helping them 
become productive members of society; building strong family units 
within the community; coordinating services and cooperating with other 
agencies to improve the quality of life in the community.'' Anyone who 
has visited the East Toledo Family Center can attest to how well it 
lives its mission. It is truly a jewel in our city's crown.

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