[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 4]
[House]
[Pages 5550-5551]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING DUNCAN CAMPBELL

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Tonight, in Portland, Oregon, there's a special 
ceremony as Duncan Campbell is honored at the 84th Annual Portland 
First Citizen Award Banquet. I'm sorry that duties require me to be 
here in Washington, DC, instead of with hundreds of Duncan's friends 
and admirers back home in Portland.
  This is a very special award for a unique human being. Duncan has a 
very compelling personal story, working his way through a childhood 
marred by neglect and alcoholism. He put himself through college at 
Portland State University and eventually did the same at law school, 
earning his degree at the University of Oregon. He founded the Campbell 
Group, a very successful firm, pioneering work establishing timber 
investment funds. He soon became recognized as an innovator and an 
industry leader, but his real story is his lifelong commitment to 
children.
  Shaped by his own difficult early experiences, Duncan has focused on 
ways that he can use his success financially and intellectually to 
advance the cause of disadvantaged children. He's done this in numerous 
ways, but I think his greatest achievement is the establishment of an 
organization known as Friends of the Children. He put part of the 
proceeds of the sale of his company to establish the program in 1993. 
Starting small, it was built around the principle that troubled young 
people need a constant adult presence supporting, guiding, and not just 
mentoring but really becoming a part of their lives. Over the years, it 
has proven to be spectacularly successful.
  Currently, there are 90 friends who are paid, full-time mentors, each 
serving as a caring adult--a constant presence for a handful of 
children. These friends are not just in Portland, Oregon, but in rural 
Oregon, in Sisters and Klamath Falls, and now in projects in Boston, 
New York, and Seattle.
  Duncan's vision is to focus on the children with the very highest 
risk factors. These children statistically would undoubtedly fail to 
complete school.

[[Page 5551]]

Most would have problems with drugs or alcohol, early unplanned out-of-
wedlock pregnancy, and almost all would fall into the criminal justice 
system.
  The results of his handiwork are overwhelming and compelling:
  Eighty-five percent of these children, who most experts agree would 
otherwise fall through the cracks or worse, graduate from high school;
  Ninety percent avoid involvement with the criminal justice system, 
even though 60 percent of these at-risk children are part of a program 
that have a parent who's been incarcerated;
  Despite the fact that 60 percent of these children were born to a 
teen parent, 95 percent avoid early parenting themselves;
  According to a report by the Harvard Business School Association of 
Oregon, every dollar invested in the organization results in more than 
$7 in reduced social costs for the community and untold richness for 
the children involved.
  This is an amazing program with compelling results. It was willed 
into existence by my friend, Duncan Campbell. Portland honors him this 
evening, but all Americans should honor not just the example but the 
specifics.
  Friends of the Children is a program that works and should be 
replicated. I will do all I can to help the Federal Government find a 
way for it to be a partner in this unparalleled success story. This is 
the best way to honor Duncan, his vision, and his commitment.

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