[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12576]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    CONGRATULATING MARTHA DE NORFOLK

  (Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I congratulate Martha De Norfolk, a 
single mother in my congressional district who has worked to found and 
maintain the Arthogryposis Foundation. In order to help her disabled 
child Bryant Amastha and other local children, Mrs. De Norfolk has 
dedicated her time and effort to the success of this foundation.
  One in every 3,000 babies is born with arthogryposis, which limits 
the motion in joints and causes severe muscle weakness. In the classic 
case of this disease, hands, wrists, elbows, shoulders, hips, feet and 
knees are affected.
  Most people with this disease are of normal intelligence and are able 
to lead productive lives. However, if not treated through physical 
therapy or surgery, this disease can become fatal as the body deforms 
so that internal organs are unable to function properly.
  With the help of the foundation that my constituent Martha De Norfolk 
is working to establish, children suffering with this disease will soon 
have financial assistance and support groups on which to depend, and 
local doctors will have access to education on this disease and its 
treatment, and that is why I congratulate her today.

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