[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 5 (Tuesday, February 3, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E70-E71]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 TRIBUTE TO THE LATE CAPT. JOSE CALUGAS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BOB FILNER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 3, 1998

  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, I rise today to pay tribute 
to Captain Jose Calugas, who passed away on January 18, 1998. Captain 
Calugas was the only Filipino World War II veteran to receive the 
Congressional Medal of Honor.
  Jose Calugas was a true hero! On January 16, 1942, he was a mess 
sergeant who voluntarily ran 1,000 yards across a shell-swept area to 
take command of a gun position where all the cannoneers had been killed 
or wounded. Organizing a volunteer squad of 16 men, he placed the gun 
back in commission and fired effectively against the enemy although 
this position was under constant and heavy fire.
  Born December 29, 1904 in the Philippines, he entered military 
service in the Philippine Scouts in 1930. Captured by the enemy forces 
after the fall of Bataan in 1942, Calugas survived the infamous Bataan 
Death March and more than two years as a prisoner of war. He remained 
in the United States Army after the war, and retired with the rank of 
Captain in 1957. He received his Bachelors Degree in Business 
Administration at the University of Puget Sound and worked for Boeing 
Aircraft in Seattle until his retirement in 1972.
  Upon receiving the Medal of Honor, Calugas, a naturalized United 
States citizen, said:

       When the situation confronted me, I did not have any 
     hesitation to fight and give my

[[Page E71]]

     life for the cause of freedom and my country. I feel great 
     being an American. I am proud to be such and I humbly say 
     thank you.

  Besides the Congressional Medal of Honor, Calugas was awarded many 
additional military decorations, including the Asiatic Pacific Campaign 
Medal, the Distinguished Unit Citation with 1st and 2nd Oak Leaf 
Cluster, the Philippine Liberation Ribbon, the World War II Victory 
Medal, and an Ex-Prisoner of War Medal.
  He also received many civilian awards, including the Honorary Citizen 
Award of Tacoma, Washington, the Key to the City of Tacoma, and the 
Medal of Honor Permanent Car License Plate Recipient, presented by then 
Governor of Washington, Dixy Lee Ray.
  He is survived by his wife, four children, 11 grandchildren and 5 
great-grandchildren.
  It is an honor to acknowledge the life and bravery of Captain Jose 
Calugas and his courageous action under fire to preserve the freedoms 
we all hold dear.

                          ____________________