[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 6 (Tuesday, February 1, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: February 1, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
         REFLECTING ON THE FALLEN COMRADES OF THE 82D AIRBORNE

                                 ______


                          HON. THOMAS S. FOLEY

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 1, 1994

  Mr. FOLEY. I have included in the Record the moving remarks delivered 
by the Reverend Dr. George B. Wood to the members of the 82d Airborne 
Division Association at their 1994 national convention. Chaplain Wood's 
words were brought to my attention by my long-time friend and 
constituent James P. McNally of Ione, WA. His reflections were not only 
an inspiration to Mr. McNally and the other members of the division, 
but will be to everyone reading his hauntingly poignant message. His 
address has been reproduced from a recent issue of the division's 
magazine, Paraglide.

                     [From the Paraglide magazine]

                           Chaplain's Corner

                      (By Rev. Dr. George B. Wood)

       As a little boy I used to walk the beaches of Maine with my 
     father. Now and then a schooner would show up on the horizon 
     with its tourists, the major freight in those days. On 
     occasion I would ask my Dad where the ship was going. He 
     would point to where sky and ocean came together and say: 
     ``Over there.'' We would wave until they had disappeared.
       As with the departed, we did not know where they were 
     going, but we did know that the schooners had not disappeared 
     from this earth. As they had disappeared from our sight, they 
     had sailed into someone else's sight. I am certain they are 
     being welcomed on the other side.
       We are celebrating the 50th anniversary of those who 
     sacrificed their lives in combat action on the island of 
     Sicily. We were scattered for a hundred miles along the 
     southern coast. It was the first time we fought as a 
     divisional unit. It was the first time I buried men of the 
     Division. The 82nd Airborne Division proved itself to be an 
     effective fighting force in spite of the fact that the Air 
     Corps had yet to learn that the Drop Zone was a specific 
     place.
       Our comrades in death were the first to give their lives in 
     combat. But they are not to be forgotten. I want you to 
     remember them in life. I want you to hark back to the combat 
     experience, which you shared with them. I want you to close 
     your eyes. I want you to go back in the memory of time. I 
     want you to remember that you are here today, because someone 
     else is not here. For each of us it will be a different 
     memory. But the reality of life is that you can remember. 
     Now, with me, close your eyes and remember.
       I remember Lt. John D. Sprinkle, awarded the Distinguished 
     Service Cross, Executive Officer of ``D'' Co., of 505, who 
     was killed in Sicily by crossfire when he attempted to take 
     an enemy blockhouse single-handed.
       In the 2nd Battalion's battle for Arnone north of Naples, 
     Lt. David L. Packard, an ``E'' Co. platoon leader, was killed 
     in the action to seize the railroad yard along the Volturne 
     River.
       In contact with the 16th Regiment, Col. Gorham was killed 
     after he knocked out a tank and was after another with a 
     bazooka, for which he received the Distinguished Service 
     Cross.
       In the area of Avola, popular Mike Scambelluri of ``C'' Co. 
     was captured, and shot point blank, execution style. He 
     died on a sinking hospital ship.
       The night of July 11th, most of the 505 was witness to the 
     well-known and ill-fated jump of the 504, during which 23 
     transport planes were shot down by the friendly fire of the 
     U.S. Army.
       Sgt. Howard R. Krueger was killed in the action at Trois 
     Ponts in the Ardennes, having written the poem ``Death and 
     I'' in a foxhole on Hill 131 at the end of the Normandy 
     Campaign. Listen to his poem!
     Death and I
     Gaunt, stark, naked death
     What an ugly loathsomeness thou do possess.
     You creeping, crawling, cancerous thing.
     In every worldly place is found your sting.
     Oh, spare me not, I'm not afraid.
     You'll find me easily--all arrayed
     In splendid attire to attend my grave.
     Seek ye some other ripened fruit
     Surprise and wrest them, gather your loot
     Your sickle, your scythe, mower of life
     I fear you not, my armor is Christ.
       As General Yarborough, an airborne pioneer, said in words 
     descriptive of our departed comrades--they prove to 
     themselves that they possessed certain inner strenghts that 
     set them apart from their fellow human beings. To these 
     troopers we pay our respects, just as we respect each other. 
     To them we offer in gratitude each day God gives us.
       Sgt. Keueger expresses well the troopers' disdain for 
     death. After all, death is a nothing. Just as birth brought 
     us into this world, so death brings us a continuing life. So 
     our comrades speak to us from this continuing existence. If 
     you have a timeless memory, you can hear them speaking to you 
     even now:
       ``Call me by my old familiar name. Do not put on a long 
     face. Laugh as we have always laughed. Life means we are 
     joined in brotherhood. Everything is the same. There is an 
     unbroken continuity between us. I am just around the corner 
     of life. All is well! Life goes on.''
       Ladies and gentlemen, arise to honor our dead.

                          ____________________