SENATE RESOLUTION
8656

By Senators Hale, Hewitt, T. Sheldon, Rasmussen, Franklin, Fraser, McAuliffe, Kastama and Kohl-Welles

     WHEREAS, On June 29, 2002, Amanda Beers was named Miss Washington to represent Washington state in the Miss America pageant; and
     WHEREAS, Despite being born with 50 percent hearing, Amanda has proven to be remarkable by any standards, achieving success as a classical pianist and as a passionate, articulate spokesperson for people with hearing loss; and
     WHEREAS, There are more than 28 million deaf and hard-of-hearing citizens in the United States, and children with moderate hearing impairments can miss up to 50 percent of classroom conversations thus hampering their educations; and
     WHEREAS, Amanda has made a lifetime commitment to increase awareness about deaf and hard-of-hearing issues, to promote legislation to make hearing aids more available, and to assist those with hearing loss;
     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, By the Senate of the State of Washington, that Amanda Beers be honored for her leadership, dedication, and dream of ensuring early detection of hearing problems in children; and
     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That Danny and Julie Beers, her parents, be commended for their strong support of Amanda's efforts.

I, Milton H. Doumit, Jr., Secretary of the Senate,
do hereby certify that this is a true and
correct copy of Senate Resolution 8656,
adopted by the Senate
April 7, 2003

MILTON H. DOUMIT, JR.
Secretary of the Senate