[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 16316]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        THE VALUE OF YOUTHBUILD

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                           HON. BARNEY FRANK

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 18, 2005

  Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, earlier this year I heard 
from dismayed leaders of the organization known as YouthBuild, who had 
learned that funding for this extremely valuable program had been left 
out of the appropriations bills brought to the House. Because I know of 
the value of this program, I had several conversations with both 
Democratic and Republican leaders of the Committee, and I am very 
gratified that after these discussions and consultations, funding for 
this program was added to the Treasury, Transportation HUD Bill on the 
floor of the House, with bipartisan--indeed unanimous--support.
  Mr. Speaker, at a time when it has become fashionable to denigrate 
``government'' in general, we too often lose sight of the very valuable 
services performed by particular government programs. Thoughtless 
critics of ``government'' have in my judgment created a mathematical 
impossibility--a whole that is smaller than the sum of its parts. That 
is, if we take into account the value of various government programs, 
we get a result that greatly exceeds in the contribution it makes to 
our quality of life the view of government's value that we too often 
hear expressed.
  Recently, in the Brockton Enterprise, Courtney Randon wrote an 
excellent article that illustrates how valuable the YouthBuild program 
is, and how it has helped achieve a number of goals--giving job skills 
to young people, and advancing the concept of homeownership for people 
who would have economic difficulty otherwise in owning a home. The 
story of Maribel Arce and YouthBuild is an inspiring one, and 
demonstrates just why it was so important that the House acted as it 
did to restore funding for this program. I ask that the article be 
printed here.

              [From the Brockton Enterprise, Jul. 1, 2005]

                    It's Great Because It's My House

                          (By Courtney Randon)

       Brockton. Maribel Arce was filled with a mix of emotions as 
     she became a first-time homeowner on Thursday.
       ``I'm so excited. I still don't believe it,'' Arce said. 
     ``But I'm nervous. It's the first time I'm talking to a big 
     crowd.''
       That crowd, which included directors, students and sponsors 
     of the Old Colony YMCA's YouthBuild, a program in which 
     students build homes for low-income families who qualify, had 
     gathered to watch Arce accept the keys to her new home.
       YouthBuild built the house on Laureston Street, where Arce, 
     her three teenage daughters and her mother will live.
       Arce and her family earned the right to purchase the house 
     by graduating from the Brockton Housing Authority's Self 
     Sufficiency program, where she learned money management and 
     savings skills.
       ``Self Sufficiency is an excellent opportunity,'' Arce 
     said. ``They offer things I wouldn't know if I didn't go.''
       Maribel, a single mother of her daughters, age 13, 16 and 
     18, learned that she qualified to purchase the house, valued 
     at about $260,000, in March for $182,500, but she also 
     learned she was not the only candidate.
       Two other families were also eligible, and all three were 
     entered into a drawing last month.
       ``I was a little scared because I knew it wasn't 100 
     percent or even 50 percent that I'd get the house,'' Arce 
     said.
       When she won, Arce said, ``At first I didn't believe it. I 
     didn't believe it when they said my name.''
       For the next month, until the house was completed, Arce 
     would stop by and visit the house to see the progress.
       ``Every day I came, three times a day,'' she said.
       Now, she is looking forward to throwing her first party in 
     her new home.
       ``It's great because it's my house, I don't have to share 
     it with anybody,'' she said.
       Her 16-year-old daughter, also named Maribel, is excited 
     that she gets to decorate her new room the way she wants.
       ``I want it in all angels. I couldn't paint at the 
     apartment,'' she said.
       The Arces are moving from their three-bedroom apartment on 
     Park Street, where they lived for 10 years.
       ``We have a big yard now,'' Arce said. ``Our dog will have 
     space outside now.''
       The younger Maribel Arce said of her mother, ``I'm proud of 
     her. I'm so happy we have our own house.''
       Through the five-year Self Sufficiency program, Arce, who 
     works as an instructor aide at Training Resources of America 
     in Brockton, earned enough money for a down payment on the 
     house and qualified for a bank mortgage.
       Cynthia McDonagh, who runs the Self Sufficiency program, 
     said Arce became an exemplary student in the program and 
     McDonagh wants Arce to come back and talk with future 
     classes.
       ``If they need me, I can talk to them,'' Arce said. ``I 
     think people should take advantage of it. There are so many 
     benefits.''
       Arce and her family were presented with keys at the 
     ceremony by a graduating student of YouthBuild.
       Arce said she was grateful to all the people involved in 
     YouthBuild and all the students that built the house.

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