[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 5 (Monday, January 31, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H68-H69]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              TRIBUTE TO KURT WARNER, A REAL AMERICAN HERO

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Gutknecht) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GUTKNECHT. Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to talk about a tribute to 
a very special person. President Reagan once observed that those who 
say there are no more American heroes, well, they just do not know 
where to look.
  Paul Simon asked a haunting question in his song many years ago, 
``Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? A Nation turns its lonely eyes to 
you.'' America has always wanted heroes, and too often in sports we 
have found counterheroes.
  I want to pay tribute tonight to a real American hero, a gentleman by 
the name of Kurt Warner. The Warner story has been documented in the 
last week or so by many sports scribes, and I do want to ultimately 
submit for the Record an article which was written by the sports editor 
of our local newspaper, Bob Brown in the Rochester Post Bulletin.
  I guess I have a special feeling for Kurt Warner for a lot of 
reasons. First of all, his grandparents are from Faribault, Minnesota, 
which is in my district. Second, he went to the same college that I 
did, the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Third, he 
worked for the Hy-Vee grocery store in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and so did I. 
Fourth, I guess I would have to say, his wife, Brenda, spent several of 
her formative years living in a home on West Ninth Street in Cedar 
Falls, Iowa, right next to my parents.
  So I guess I have had a fairly special relationship, even though Kurt 
Warner and I have never met. But I have followed his career from the 
time he was at UNI, and I have come to appreciate not only his talents 
on the field, but the kind of human being that he really is. We saw 
that yesterday, and we have seen it as his career has developed.
  He has kept his head on straight. He has kept his focus on the things 
that were important in his life. The story is just such a powerful 
story. It could not have happened to a nicer individual.
  The story of Kurt Warner is one that every American should be proud 
of. He went to college and was red-shirted his first year, spent 3 
years on the bench, and finally got his chance to play at the 
University of Northern Iowa. He led his team to the midconference 
championship. He was not drafted by anybody in the NFL, but he was 
allowed to come to the Packers' training camp. He was cut. After he was 
cut by the Packers he returned to Cedar Falls and worked at that Hy-Vee 
grocery store I talked about earlier.
  The great thing about Kurt Warner is that he never lost his faith. 
Like the parable of the talents in the Bible, he understood that 
almighty God had given him special talents, and he was expected to make 
the most of them, so he stuck with those talents long after

[[Page H69]]

some of the experts would probably have encouraged him to give up.
  But the story of Kurt Warner goes on. Not only did he go on to lead 
the Rams this year to the NFL championship in the Super Bowl and to the 
MVP award, but I think the story is much more powerful. After the game 
was over, he gave tribute and paid honor to where the real honor 
belonged, and he gave all of the glory to his savior, Jesus Christ. I 
just want to say, it took a special kind of courage for him to do that.
  The story, as I say, goes on. Not only has Warner battled 
obstructions on the field to get where he is, but he has also had his 
share of off-the-field struggles, as well. His in-laws were killed in a 
tornado in Mountain View, Arkansas. Kurt and his wife Brenda's oldest 
son Zachary has been blind since suffering a head injury in an accident 
when he was a baby. Zachary is only able to see objects that are held 
very close to his face. He has been that way since he was an infant, 
when his father, Brenda's first husband, accidentally dropped the child 
during a bath.
  Zachary has head injuries, but Kurt went on to adopt the child. He 
says later in this interview, ``To go home and see how he struggles 
with everything he does helps keep things in perspective,'' Warner 
said. ``I have realized how special a child he must be to go through 
life with the excitement and the joy he has, even though he has to 
struggle doing everything he does.''
  The story of Kurt Warner is a powerful story, and we in America I 
think owe him a big thank you, because for one brief, shining moment, 
we were all privileged to watch a real hero perform his art and perfect 
our lives.
  On behalf of a grateful Nation, I would like to say a special thank 
you to Kurt Warner. Good luck to he and his wife Brenda. We wish them 
only the best. As Paul Harvey would say, lead on.
  Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record the article of January 29, 
2000, from the Post-Bulletin.
  The article referred to is as follows:

               [From the Post-Bulletin, January 29, 2000]

       Warner Has Story To Tell: Quarterback's Tale is Memorable

       The story of this Super Bowl is Kurt Warner.
       What the St. Louis Rams' quarterback has gone through to 
     become the National Football League's Most Valuable Player 
     this season and to lead his team to the Super Bowl is 
     amazing, utterly amazing.
       Here are some things about Warner you might want to keep in 
     mind as you watch him play in Super Bowl XXXIV Sunday against 
     the Tennessee Titans.
       He went to high school and college just down Highway 63 
     from us. Born in Burlington, Iowa, he attended Cedar Rapids 
     Regis High School, lettering in football, basketball and 
     baseball. He played college football at Northern Iowa 
     University in Cedar Falls.
       He was redshirted his first year at Northern Iowa, sat the 
     bench for the next three years and started only as a fifth-
     year senior. Warner wasn't even on full scholarship until his 
     last year in college. He did pass for 2,747 yards and led 
     Northern Iowa to a Gateway Conference championship in 1993.
       Warner wasn't drafted by any NFL teams. He went to the 
     green Bay Packers' training camp in 1994. He was cut before 
     camp was over, but he was there long enough for Packer 
     quarterback Brett Favre to tag him with the nick-name ``Pop'' 
     Warner.
       After he was cut by the Packers he returned to Cedar Falls 
     and worked for six months stocking shelves at the Hy-Vee 
     grocery store there.
       Warner went on to play with the Des Moines-based Iowa 
     Barnstormers in the Arena Football League for the next three 
     seasons. He holds virtually all the Barnstormers' passing 
     records, including 79 touchdown passes in one season (1997). 
     He passed for 10,164 yards and 183 touchdowns in three 
     seasons in Iowa.
       Warner signed as a free agent with the Rams on Dec. 26, 
     1997 and then spent the summer of 1998 playing in NFL Europe 
     for the Amsterdam Admirals and led the league in passing and 
     touchdowns.
       Warner, a devout Christian, spent time in Amsterdam, a city 
     known for its red light district, leading a bible study 
     class.
       Warner rejoined the Rams for the 1998 NFL season, and spent 
     the first 14 games on the inactive list. He saw his first NFL 
     action of his career in the fourth quarter of Rams' final 
     game against San Francisco and completed four of 11 passes 
     for 39 yards.
       Warner was back with the Rams this season, only because the 
     Cleveland Browns passed him over in the expansion draft. The 
     line on Warner as he entered this season was: Has potential 
     to develop into a solid quarterback in the league . . . raw 
     talent with outstanding arm strength and accuracy.
       The Rams had signed Trent Green who played at Washington 
     last season, to be their quarterback, but he suffered a knee 
     injury in the preseason and was out for the year. In stepped 
     Warner and the rest is history. He led the NFL in passing and 
     with his 41 touchdown passes became only the second player in 
     NFL history to throw for more than 40 touchdowns in a season.
       Not only has Warner battled obstacles on the field to get 
     to where he is, but he has had his share of of-the-field 
     hurdles, too. His in-laws were killed in a tornado in 
     Mountain View, Ark., in 1996. Kurt and wife Brenda's oldest 
     Zachary, has been blind since suffering a head injury in an 
     accident when he was a baby.
       Zachary, is only able to see objects that are held close to 
     his face. He's been that way since he was an infant, when his 
     father, Brenda's first husband, accidentally dropped the 
     child during a bath. Zachary's head hit the side of the tub, 
     which damaged his brain and ruptured his retinas.
       The accident almost killed the child, and doctors warned 
     Brenda that if Zachary lived he'd never be able to see or 
     walk or talk. He survived, despite seizures in the hospital, 
     and when the Warners got married, Kurt adopted the boy, and 
     his sister, Jesse, 8.
       ``To go home and see how he struggles with everything he 
     does helps me keep things in perspective,'' Warner said. ``I 
     have realized how special a child he must be to go through 
     life with the excitement and joy he has even though he has to 
     struggle doing everything he does.''
       So that is the Kurt Warner story. It's difficult not to 
     pull for a guy like him.

  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield, I begin by 
congratulating my very good friend, the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. 
Gutknecht) for his very thoughtful special order. Representing Los 
Angeles, the former home of the Rams, I would like to extend hearty 
congratulations to Kurt Warner and Dick Vermeil and all associated with 
the Rams organization for their very impressive and exciting victory 
towards the end yesterday.

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