[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 19]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 25226]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       IN RECOGNITION OF THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF POINTS OF LIGHT

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                         HON. STEPHEN F. LYNCH

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 20, 2009

  Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 20th 
anniversary of the Points of Light initiative. Established by a call to 
service by President George H. W. Bush, Points of Light has led our 
nation to tremendous gains in service and volunteerism over the past 
two decades.
  The Points of Light Foundation has recently merged with Hands On 
Network to form the Points of Light Institute. On this special 20th 
anniversary, I want to commend this organization for its extraordinary 
work in the promotion of service, while transforming communities 
throughout America.
  In 2008, the Points of Light Institute and its 250 Hands On volunteer 
action centers engaged over 1.2 million volunteers in service and 
managed over 520,000 volunteer projects. The value of this service is 
beyond measure to the neighborhoods that have been positively impacted 
by this remarkable contribution to the health and welfare of 
communities throughout the United States.
  One of Points of Light's affiliates is Boston Cares. This year alone, 
Boston Cares has mobilized 18,250 volunteers who have donated over 
50,000 hours of service to 155 Greater Boston schools and nonprofit 
organizations. Throughout the year Boston Cares volunteers have 
consistently gone above and beyond, from a drive that raised a thousand 
pounds of food per day throughout the month of February for struggling 
food pantries, to generating an additional 2,000 volunteer hours during 
this summer's United We Serve campaign.
  Madam Speaker, I am pleased to commemorate this 20-year milestone for 
Points of Light and I congratulate them on 20 years of identifying and 
managing people-powered projects to tackle critical problems across the 
nation. I urge all of my colleagues to join with me in honoring Points 
of Light and Boston Cares.

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