[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 46 (Thursday, April 17, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E696]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   HONORING TO PATRICK GRIFFIN TANNER

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. EARL F. HILLIARD

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 17, 1997

  Mr. HILLIARD. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the late Patrick 
Griffin Tanner, who tragically died last week at the tender age of 19 
in New Orleans. Patrick, a native of Washington, DC, was a tireless 
worker for the enrichment and betterment of his city, Nation, and 
world.
  In his short, yet tireless and noble life, young Patrick was involved 
in the Big-Brother program; a volunteer at the Ivymount School; a 
volunteer at the Chevy Chase Presbyterian Church; he worked in the 
Special Olympics; served as a volunteer for housing rehabilitation and 
disaster relief programs in several States, as well as in rural 
Virginia and the Anacostia neighborhood of Washington. At the close of 
his life, he was working in New Orleans for the Habitat for Humanity 
organization. He was indeed a well-rounded and giving boy.
  I knew of Patrick through my efforts as a Congressman to give him 
advice and encouragement for his desire to enter the U.S. Naval 
Academy. He would have been a credit to the U.S. Navy.
  When I dwell on how tragic it is to lose such a fine, upstanding 
young man, I must say that of all the benefits which education and 
virtue confer upon me, the contempt of the death of a young person is 
one of the greatest.
  In composing my remarks for Patrick's tribute, I recalled some 
remarks by the Roman poet Horace. Horace wrote the following in the 
year 65 B.C., but it seems as though when he wrote these remarks, he 
was thinking of Patrick Tanner. Horace wrote:

       The wise man who can command his passions, who fears not 
     want, nor death, nor chains, finally resisting his appetites 
     and despising the honors of the world, who relies wholly upon 
     himself, whose angular points of character have all been 
     rounded off and polished is indeed a free man.

  Mr. Speaker, Patrick Griffin Tanner is indeed a free man now. The 
chains and shackles of this world have indeed been lifted; his spirit 
has soared, his soul is at rest.
  In closing, I send my heartfelt wishes to his parents, John and Nancy 
Tanner, as well as to his sister, grandparents, relatives, and friends. 
Patrick will be sorely missed.

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