[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 139 (Wednesday, October 8, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S10715]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SERGEANT ALVIN C. YORK

 Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, today is an historic day for it was 
79 years ago on this date, October 8, 1918, that Sgt. Alvin C. York 
faced a battery of German soldiers alone in the Battle of the Argonne. 
Sergeant York's bravery during World War I captured the imagination of 
the world. Here at home, he was heralded as a true hero, complete with 
the largest ticker tape parade New York City had ever seen. President 
Wilson and General Pershing offered their personal thanks, and Sergeant 
York received this Nation's Medal of Honor.
  But home for Alvin York, despite his new found fame, was the hills of 
Tennessee in Fentress County. The values instilled in him by his family 
remained with him throughout his life, and he used his platform as a 
hero of the Tennessee hills to better the lives of his neighbors and 
friends. Sergeant York founded an industrial and agricultural school in 
Fentress County, built a church and Bible school, and when money ran 
short, he helped to pay the teachers' salaries himself.
  Today, 79 years later, we salute the memory of Alvin C. York and his 
heroic deeds as a young soldier far from home on the battlefield in 
France. Despite his great fame, home and family were far more important 
to him. His heroism extends far beyond the battlefield. For the values 
that he lived each and every day as a citizen of Fentress County, TN, 
are values for all of us to emulate in our daily lives.
  Mr. President, the Sergeant York Historical Association, of which I 
am proud to serve on the board of directors, is committed to keeping 
the memory of Sergeant York alive. I commend the association for its 
efforts to ensure that the York homeplace, his grist mill, his papers, 
and the history of World War I are not forgotten, but will live on for 
generations to visit, enjoy, and appreciate a piece of our Nation's 
fabric.
  Sergeant York was a World War I hero, but in truth, he is a hero for 
all time.

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