[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 67 (Tuesday, May 20, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E984]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              MEMORIAL DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 20, 1997

  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in tribute, to the millions of 
men and women who have served this Nation in its Armed Forces. Call it 
by any name you wish, Remembrance Day, Decoration Day, Memorial Day. It 
is a time when this country recounts the price for the liberty and 
freedom it enjoys today. That cost was paid for in the numerous lives 
and countless sacrifices given to it, by the servicemen and women of 
this country. The courage and devotion they expressed are the finest 
example by which all Americans must measure themselves. It is their 
sense of responsibility and duty that has tied them to all the 
generations of Americans, past and present, who have answered their 
country's call to service.
  Who are these extraordinary people who have made such a difference in 
our lives? they are not the sons and daughters of kings or emperors but 
the hard working farm boys of the heartland, who sat in the muddy 
trenches of Europe in World War I. They are the former store clerks and 
factory workers who withstood the crushing siege of Bastogne in World 
War II. They are the courageous men and women who fought to stem the 
tide of communism along the 38th parallel in Korea. They are the 
devoted servicemen and women who fought in the steamy jungles and rice 
paddies of Vietnam. In our own decade they have been our own sons and 
daughters and in some circumstances our grandchildren who marched off 
to the desert to liberate the country of Kuwait.
  How does one thank these men and women who have suffered so much that 
many could live in freedom? Mr. Speaker the debt of gratitude we owe is 
immeasurable. These men and women, whose deeds and stories are 
countless, are the reason why this country has been able to remain a 
shining example of freedom and democracy for the world. To merely say 
thank you is not enough. This country's continued support for its 
veterans must be a priority. The words of the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs, Jesse Brown, ring strongly: ``I believe a Nation is judged by 
the way it treats its Veterans.'' It is this thought that we must bear 
in mind when issues arise in the Congress that may impact the veterans 
of this country.
  To ignore these issues is to do our veterans and their families a 
great disservice. Their sacrifice and commitment must be equally 
reflected in our effort to pay a debt that can never be monetarily 
repaid. Mr. Speaker, what price can you put on the life of a citizen 
who is willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice for his or her country in 
a time of war or national peril?
  It is fitting that on this occasion we reaffirm our support and 
gratitude to this special group of Americans whose devotion to duty was 
expressed in the highest manner. By their willingness to lay down their 
life for this Nation, they have assured the security and future for 
generation of Americans to come.
  Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure and honor to express my deep 
and heartfelt gratitude for the service of America's veterans. Call 
this day by what ever name you choose, it is a memorial to all the 
generations of men and women who have served this Nation and upheld its 
finest traditions of liberty and democracy. God bless our veterans.

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