[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 19]
[House]
[Page 27018]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1815
                          HOMES FOR OUR TROOPS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Clarke). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Jones) is recognized for 
5 minutes.
  Mr. JONES of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I rise this evening to 
commend Homes for Our Troops, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, for 
its remarkable service to military men and women who have returned home 
with serious disabilities and injuries.
  Homes for Our Troops was founded in 2004 to assist severely injured 
service men and women and their families by raising donations of money, 
building materials and professional labor, and coordinating the process 
of building a new home or adapting an existing home for handicap 
accessibility.
  Homes for Our Troops has been awarded the Seal of Excellence by 
Independent Charities of America, and all services provided by the 
organization are at no cost to the veteran it serves.
  This Saturday, I happened to be fortunate enough to witness firsthand 
the great work of this organization when U.S. Sergeant Edmundson and 
his family received keys to their new home in New Bern, North Carolina.
  Sergeant Edmundson was severely wounded on October 2, 2005 in an IED 
attack in Iraq. His injuries include shrapnel wounds to his abdomen and 
right leg, and fractured vertebrae. Sergeant Edmundson has not been 
able to walk since the explosion, and he still cannot talk. He has 
worked very hard the past 2 years to regain quality of life, and just 
recently returned to his family after a 6-month rehabilitation stay in 
Chicago.
  After Sergeant Edmundson was discharged, he and his family relocated 
to New Bern, North Carolina. Sergeant Edmundson and his family were 
selected to receive a new home after they encountered John Gonsalves, 
the president and founder of Homes for Our Troops. Sergeant Edmundson 
was at a recovery center in Washington, DC, when he met Mr. Gonsalves.
  Thousands of dollars in donations from businesses and members of the 
Craven County community poured in to support the efforts of Homes for 
Our Troops to build a home for this hero and his family in New Bern, 
North Carolina.
  This Saturday, my heart was touched so deeply as I saw the joy of 
Sergeant Edmundson, his wife Stephanie, and his little girl, Gracie, as 
they were welcomed into their home.
  This story is only one example of many individuals and groups across 
this Nation that are doing God's will for our men and women in uniform. 
I feel humbled to have met Sergeant Edmundson and his family, and all 
of those who have formed such a caring support system for them. These 
contributions and acts of service are what truly shows the goodness and 
the greatness of America.
  Madam Speaker, with that, I close by asking God to continue to bless 
our men and women in uniform and their families, and ask God to 
continue to bless America.

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