[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 6, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S33-S34]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       IN MEMORY OF KEITH PUTNAM

 Mr. HOLLINGS. Mr. President, today I want to call attention to 
a brave and selfless deed by a heroic young man from Hanahan, South 
Carolina. On August 6, 15-year-old Keith Putnam sacrificed his own life 
to save two women

[[Page S34]]

and a small child from a speeding train.
  When Keith saw Maurica Hovey, her 3-year-old son John, and her friend 
Layonee Phillips stuck in the path of an oncoming train, he did what 
all of us hope we would have the courage to do in such a situation: he 
leapt from his truck and raced to aid those in danger. After saving 
Maurica, John, and Layonee, Keith returned to the abandoned car to make 
sure no one was left inside. At the moment he approached the car, the 
onrushing train slammed into it, sending it careening into Keith and 
fatally wounding him. Thanks to Keith's quick thinking and heroic 
action, all three of the people he saved from the train escaped without 
harm.
  Mr. President, I have seen many heroic acts in my lifetime, in World 
War II and in peacetime, but I don't believe I have ever seen a young 
man who has been more respected by his community than Keith Putnam. In 
every way, he was a model citizen. Just before his death, Keith had 
been made an usher at Peace Lutheran Church, which he attended every 
Sunday. A great patriot, Keith was dedicated to his country as well as 
his neighbors. In fact, he planned to attend my alma mater, The 
Citadel, and then serve as a pilot in the Air Force.
  Perhaps what was most noteworthy about Keith, especially in this day 
and age, was his willingness to help his neighbors and even total 
strangers without ever thinking of himself or asking for anything in 
return. Keith was committed to public service through large and small 
acts, whether helping strangers carry groceries to their cars or saving 
them from a fatal train collision. Since his death, his community has 
seen an incredible outpouring of emotion, as his neighbors, friends, 
and family express their grief at the loss of such an admirable and 
caring young man.
  Today, Mr. President, I would like to add my voice to theirs. It was 
not my privilege to know Keith Putnam personally, but his heroism and 
generosity are an inspiration and an example to us all. I hope the 
tremendous admiration everyone felt for Keith, and the knowledge that 
their son's life was exemplary in every way possible, will be of some 
comfort to Keith's family in their trying time of grief.

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