[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 39 (Wednesday, April 13, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: April 13, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                          FOUR WINDS MONUMENT

                                 ______


                           HON. HENRY BONILLA

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 13, 1994

  Mr. BONILLA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of the 
accomplishments of the Four Winds Monument Committee in Del Rio, TX. 
The Four Winds Committee is an association of local citizens that 
unfailingly strives to honor those brave American service men and women 
who made the ultimate sacrifice for our beloved country: American 
heroes who gave their lives to defend freedom and the American way of 
life. The Four Winds Monument is ``dedicated to America's brave men and 
women who answered the call of duty, served across the Seven Seas in 
the defense of freedom, and especially to those who made the ultimate 
sacrifice: those whose lives were scattered to the Four Winds.''
  The Four Winds Monument will be a unique and touching memorial to 
those who have served their country so honorably. Men and women 
throughout the history of this great Nation have answered the call to 
duty and served with tremendous valor and integrity. The goal of this 
memorial is to honor both those living and those fallen who answered 
this call.
  The monument has been painstakingly designed to symbolize such a 
distinguished undertaking. It is comprised of four granite pillars 
which symbolize the four winds of the North, South, East, and West. 
These pillars also display the four shields of the Army, Navy, Air 
Force, and Marines. Large waterfalls are shielded by the pillars, yet 
the sound of rushing water and the mist in the air are reminiscent of 
the sounds heard by soldiers on the beaches of Tripoli, Normandy, 
Inchon, and Okinawa. The base of the monument is heptagonal in shape, 
to symbolically represent the Seven Seas, and is 50 feet in diameter to 
recognize our 50 States. There are also 13 circular steps surrounding 
the monument symbolizing the 13 original colonies. Furthermore, the 
names of those who served honorably in the U.S. military will, by 
request, be inscribed on the areas surrounding the pool and steps of 
the monument.
  Mr. Speaker, I would request that this Chamber stand in distinguished 
recognition of the Four Winds Monument, and that the Nation would honor 
the eminent reminder of freedom this monument so gracefully depicts.

                          ____________________