[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 121 (Tuesday, July 25, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1508]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                  LT. KURT S. OSUCH, AN AMERICAN HERO

                                 ______


                          HON. DONALD M. PAYNE

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 25, 1995
  Mr. PAYNE of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to 
Marine Corps Lt. Kurt S. Osuch of Linden, NJ, because as he put it, 
``Marines do what Marines have to do.'' A horrible tragedy occurred on 
July 4, 1995. A traffic accident claimed the lives of Evelyn Dotson, 
Gwendolyn King, Henrietta Lathen and Jeanne Sanford.
  Because of the brave actions of this fine American and marine, the 
list of fatalities is not as long as it might have been. It was in the 
early hours of July 4 that Lieutenant Osuch saved the lives of Matthew 
and Johnnie Buie. Mr. and Mrs. Buie were the only survivors of six 
members of St. Augustine Presbyterian Church in Paterson, who were 
traveling from a communion that morning when their van burst into 
flames after it was struck by a car heading in the wrong direction on 
the Garden State Parkway.
  Lieutenant Osuch, returning from a friend's house, noticed the 
burning van and unlike several other passing motorists, stopped and in 
a selfless act of courage, pulled the two survivors from the van's 
front seats to safety. Lieutenant Osuch said that he was just doing 
what anyone else would have done. The fact is, he responded 
extraordinarily.
  Lt. Kurt Osuch's sense of duty did not begin with this incident. 
Lieutenant Osuch, a graduate of Linden High School, enlisted in the 
Marine Corps in July 1982. Following boot camp he became an aviation 
technician. In July 1984, he entered the 2d Marine Air Wing at Cherry 
Point, NC. He was stationed in Okinawa between December 1984 and 
January 1986, where he served in the 1st Marine Air Wing. Following his 
duties in Okinawa, Lieutenant Osuch was a marine security guard in 
Beirut, Lebanon until June 1988.
  In August 1988, the Marine Commissioning Enlistment Program brought 
him to the campus of Auburn University. He graduated from Auburn in 
March 1991, joining the ranks of the 10 percent of marines who are 
selected for and complete the Marine Commissioning Enlistment Program.
  Lieutenant Osuch then became a field artillery officer in the 2d 
Battalion of the 10th Marines in the 2d Marine Division. He served in 
this capacity until January 1995. During this time, Lieutenant Osuch 
served his country in Mogadishu, Somalia, participating in Operation 
Restore Hope. He has also received the Navy Achievement Award for 
superior performance of his duties. Lieutenant Osuch currently serves 
as an operations officer and works at the Marine recruiting 
headquarters in Iselin, NJ.
  Mr. Speaker, we, in New Jersey, have been reminded how fortunate we 
all are that marines do what marines have to do. I urge all of my 
colleagues to join with me in acknowledging a real American hero. Lt. 
Kurt Osuch.


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