[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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