mr. speaker , i come from florida , and a lot of people think that only retirees and seniors live in florida , but i want to put a face on a couple that was very successful with in vitro fertilization . 
they are 47 years old . 
they had a daughter born as a result of in vitro fertilization . 
the child was born with multiple heart problems and had to have three surgeries before she was 2 years old . 
this couple believes that far more good can come from donating the remaining embryos for research . 
they have decided not to have any more children . 
and ultimately what we have not heard here is what the american people want . 
this is a couple that wants to be able to donate the embryos , which certainly they can do now , but they also want to have federal research dollars go toward this . 
this really is all about where taxpayer dollars go . 
and when you look at the huge book of pork that comes out every single year , when we go back home and say to our constituents , would you rather have some of this money going to , for example , some foreign countries that regularly turn their backs on us , or would you like to see some significant research done from embryonic stem cells that would be disposed of , the majority of our constituents are clearly going to say , use the money for significant research . 
we have to remember that this is not an either/or . 
certainly the umbilical cord research is a great science . 
we need to move forward with that as well as the embryonic stem cell research . 
remember , for this couple and her husband deciding to donate those embryos , they believe they will be saving other children 's lives . 
they believe they will be helping an aunt who has early-stage alzheimer 's . 
they believe they will be able to help spinal cord injury victims . 
that is what this research holds the potential for . 
no , we do not have the cures yet ; but unless we go forward , we never will . 
i fully support the castle/degette bill , and hope other members do , too . 
mr. speaker , i rise today in strong support of h.r. 810 , the stem cell research enhancement act of 2005 . 
i stand with 200 of america 's most respected research organizations in support of this bill . 
i would like to especially thank congressmen castle and degette for their tireless efforts on behalf of the millions of people who may benefit from enhanced stem cell research . 
i would also like to thank speaker hastert and leader delay for the debate today and for giving the 200+ cosponsors of this legislation a vote on the house floor . 
i rise today as a mother , as a concerned grandparent , and as someone who is worried that the untapped potential of stem cell research may be falling by the wayside . 
in my congressional district on the gulf coast of florida , i have had the pleasure of meeting holly , a 47-year-old mother of two . 
like many americans , holly and her husband had trouble getting pregnant , and their first daughter was born through in vitro fertilization . 
her daughter was born with a congenital heart condition , and had three surgeries before her second birthday . 
as with most in vitro fertilization procedures , holly and her husband had several embryos left over after the procedure . 
they chose to keep the remaining embryos frozen . 
this couple was then blessed by a second miracle daughter who was conceived without in vitro fertilization the happy couple decided not to have any more children , and had to make a choice about what to do with their frozen embryos . 
holly and her husband are well aware of operation snowflake and the adoption options for their embryos . 
but , like many other parents , they would rather donate their embryos for research to help prevent heart disease -- like their daughter was born with -- or cure cancer , alzheimer 's disease or parkinson 's . 
for holly and her husband , they decided that donating their embryos for medical research would be their best chance to save other children 's lives . 
increasing stem cell research could find potential cures for many diseases that affect so many american families . 
put another way , the issue of embryos and their ability to be used for stem cell research is kind of like a flashlight . 
until you put the batteries in , a flashlight will not produce light . 
likewise , only when an embryo is implanted in a uterus to grow , can life be sustained . 
embryos sitting frozen in a clinic help no one . 
the embryo does not grow in the frozen state , so human life is not being created and nurtured . 
in addition , when the couple stops paying the daily fees to store the embryos , unless they have the medical donation option , their remaining embryos will be disposed of as medical waste . 
that would be tragic . 
holly and her husband know this fact . 
they know that without the nurturing and love that a woman 's body provides , these embryos will be wasted . 
science tells us that after as short a time as eight years , these frozen embryos will begin to deteriorate , and lose their viability for implantation . 
mr. speaker , these embryos are too important to linger in a frozen test tube or to see discarded without helping mankind . 
additionally , i have yet to hear in this entire debate what opponents of h.r. 810 would do with those embryos that are not adopted , and eventually go to waste in a cryogenic freezer . 
would they want those embryos to be thrown out as medical waste , or instead help provide the basis for life-affirming scientific research ? 
holly and her husband know that the great potential and promise of stem cell research will not move forward without their donated embryos and their support . 
however , it is their respect for the culture of life that has brought them to this decision . 
they have weighed the choices available to them , and rather than donating the embryo for adoption , have chosen to let their embryos potentially save millions of lives . 
thousands of people around the country have made similar decisions to support life-affirming and life-enhancing research . 
h.r. 810 will give hope where hope does not exist . 
passage of this bill today will let the research on stem cells continue under ethical guidelines , and will provide millions of americans suffering from terminal diseases the hope that they have been denied . 
all these organizations listed on this posterboard , such as the american academy for cancer research and the american medical association , support h.r. 810 . 
i urge my fellow members of congress to vote yes on the bill 