[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 4] [Extensions of Remarks] [Page 5176] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]TRIBUTE TO BALLARD JUNIOR AND SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL ______ HON. TOM LATHAM of iowa in the house of representatives Thursday, March 25, 2010 Mr. LATHAM. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and congratulate students at Ballard Junior and Senior High School in Ballard, Iowa, for their efforts in raising money for St. Damien Hospital, the only free pediatric hospital in Haiti. St. Damien Hospital is facing many struggles with the devastation caused by the earthquake in Haiti. Jeriann McLaughlin, the service/ mentoring/tutoring coordinator at Ballard Junior and Senior High, learned of the struggles from Annie Kautza, who is a native of Iowa and the regional medical coordinator for NPH International, who runs St. Damien. Annie explained the severe structural damage the hospital sustained during the earthquake and the need for financial assistance to get back to business as usual and serve the additional children in need of care. Jeriann initiated a fun and competitive fundraising project called ``Penny War'' which took place for one week in February. This school- wide contest was implemented to see which advisor group could collect the most pennies. Containers for each advisor group were filled with pennies, and students could add other coins and dollar bills to their opposing advisor groups' to reduce that group's overall penny count in the Penny War competition. The advisor group with the highest penny credit and the group raising the most money earned a pizza party. In total, the Penny War raised over $2000.00, and the National Honor Society raised an additional $121.00. This collective effort at Ballard Junior and Senior High School is characteristic of what Iowa is all about--citizens motivated and dedicated to improving the daily life of people in need. I commend all the students, their families, and especially Jeriann McLaughlin who generated this heartwarming effort. I consider it an honor to represent Jeriann and all of those involved in the Penny War in the United States Congress and again I congratulate them for their great act of kindness and charity. ____________________