[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 23 (Wednesday, March 6, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1592-S1593]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COMMEMORATING SENIOR AIRMAN JASON CUNNINGHAM
Mr. DOMENICI. Madam President, I rise today to commemorate a fallen
hero from my home State of New Mexico--I see Senator Bingaman so I
think it is appropriate to say ``our home State''--Senior Airman Jason
Cunningham. He lost his life this week while trying to save the life of
another serviceman in eastern Afghanistan.
I express my heartfelt condolences to Jason's wife Theresa; his
daughters, 2-year-old Hannah and 4-year-old Kyla; as well as his
parents Larry and Jackie. I know I speak for all New Mexicans when I
say how proud we are of your husband, father, and son, and that our
thoughts and prayers are with you.
Jason was a member of the Air Force's elite pararescue team whose
mission is to rescue downed pilots in hostile territory. He joined the
38th Rescue Squadron because it was his passion to save lives, and that
is exactly what Jason and his comrades were doing this week when he
came under heavy fire from the al-Qaida force.
During an attempt by our forces to land a reconnaissance team in a
mountainous region known to be inhabited by al-Qaida and Taliban, one
troop fell from a helicopter when it was hit by enemy fire. Later, it
was Jason and his rescue team who bravely went into the area where the
trooper and helicopter were down in an attempt to extricate him. A
heavy fire-fight ensued and Jason and five other Americans lost their
lives.
I know that words are of little consolation at such a difficult time
for Jason's loved ones, but I want his family to know that all New
Mexicans--this Senator, and I am certain my colleague, Senator
Bingaman--mourn with them today. I am sure that for Jason's heroics his
country will bestow upon him one of the most highly respected honors it
can give, the Purple Heart. Such valor deserves no less.
The loss of such fine Americans as Jason in the war on terrorism can
be heartrending, but as a nation we must honor the sacrifices of men
and women like Airman Cunningham and remain steadfast in our resolve to
protect our freedoms and liberty from terrorism.
President Bush has told us many times that this war would not be
quick or easy, and it would be good to remember that while we mourn the
loss of a good man like Jason Cunningham.
I ask unanimous consent that a detailed statement surrounding the
young man and his family headlined ``New Mexican Dies Trying to Save
Others'' from the Albuquerque Journal, be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
New Mexican Dies Trying to Save Others
(By Miguel Navrot)
Jason Cunningham was one of the best the Air Force had to
offer.
Cunningham served as a pararescueman--trained to rescue
downed pilots from the most hostile of enemy areas--in one of
the military's elite teams, sometimes compared to the Navy
SEALs.
Cunningham, who grew up in Carlsbad and Farmington and
recently lived in Gallup, once considered becoming a SEAL as
a Navy petty officer. He had passed the Navy's fitness test
but decided to move to the Air Force.
``I didn't want to kill people,'' Cunningham told Airman
magazine, an Air Force publication, in October 2000. ``I
wanted to save them.''
Cunningham, 26, died trying to save another serviceman
Monday. He was one of eight soldiers killed in renewed
fighting in eastern Afghanistan.
The remains of seven of those servicemen arrived Tuesday at
Ramstein Air Base, Germany.
Jason's parents, who live in Gallup, learned of their son's
death Tuesday morning.
``We're very proud of our baby,'' Jackie Cunningham said of
her son as she tried to hold back tears at a family news
conference on the lawn outside their blue ranch-style home.
``Jason died doing what he liked to do, save lives,'' said
his father, Larry ``Red'' Cunningham, choking on his words as
he read a brief statement.
Since last summer, Cunningham, a senior airman, was
stationed at Moody Air Force Base near Valdosta, Ga., with
his wife, Theresa, and two daughters, 2-year-old Hannah and
4-year-old Kyla. He was deployed Feb. 1, his family said.
``We last heard from him on Saturday,'' the father said.
Cunningham was the middle child of the family. Standing
next to his parents were his brother, Chris, 29, of
Washington state, and his sister, Lori, of Farmington.
The family said memorial services will be in Georgia and in
Carlsbad this week. A funeral and burial are planned for next
week in Camarillo, Calif., where his wife is from.
Cunningham was born and raised in Carlsbad. The family
moved to Farmington just before his high school years. After
graduating from high school, Cunningham went into the Navy
for four years before moving to the Air Force.
Cunningham began the Air Force's pararescue school, a
grueling 21-month training program that few finish, about
2\1/2\ years ago.
Training for pararescuemen, or PJs, concludes at Kirtland
Air Force Base. Cunningham graduated from the school on July
7, when he donned the group's maroon beret, Kirtland
officials said.
He belonged to the 38th Rescue Squadron.
Tech. Sgt. Tim Donovan, a supervisor for air operations
with the school at Kirtland, called Cunningham ``kind of
silly, kind of goofy,'' with a heart totally dedicated to the
pararescue mission.
``He had several setbacks that he overcame and persevered
through all the training,'' Donovan said. ``He never quit. He
was totally focused. . . .
``A lot of times you have kids who don't feel they have
their hearts into it or they're just in it for the beret or
they're doing it for something other than the motto (That
Others May Live). That wasn't him at all.''
Cunningham is the fourth pararescueman the Air Force has
lost in the past three months. The Air Force has about 300
pararescuemen.
``They're a small, tight-knit community, and all of them
will most assuredly feel the loss of one of their own and
mourn his passing,'' Kirtland spokeswoman 2nd Lt. Kelley
Jeter said Tuesday.
Theresa Cunningham spoke to her parents early Tuesday.
``She was hysterical. She talked to her mom and said,
`Jason is dead.' That's it,'' said her father, Lito D'Castro.
[[Page S1593]]
``He's a nice guy. He loves the service,'' D'Castro said
from Camarillo.
D'Castro said the last time he saw Cunningham was when he
visited Camarillo at Christmas-time.
Cunningham was one of seven Americans who died in the
bloodiest operation of the war in Afghanistan. They were
killed as troops were being taken into the battle area on two
different missions, the Pentagon said Tuesday.
Early Monday, a two-helicopter team was ferrying in
reconnaissance troops south of Gardez when one was hit by
enemy fire, said Brig. Gen. John W. Rosa Jr., deputy director
of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
One soldier fell from a helicopter and later died, Rosa
told a Pentagon news conference.
Cunningham was killed during a subsequent rescue mission
involving special forces on two helicopters. Once on the
ground, those forces got into a firefight in which at least
11 were wounded and six died.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Mexico.
Mr. BINGAMAN. Madam President, I join my colleague, Senator Domenici,
in expressing condolences to the family of Jason Cunningham. I also
read with great sadness the report of his death in Afghanistan. It was
emphasized in the report which I read that he was part of this para-
rescue team and that he had made a very conscious decision in choosing
his career path in the military to be on a para-rescue team rather than
on a different type of military team because he did want to commit his
life to saving other people's lives. That is the exact activity he was
engaged in in Afghanistan when he came under enemy fire and was killed
in that combat.
This is a reminder to all who serve in the Senate, as well as, of
course, to his family. It is an enormous responsibility we take on as a
nation when we send our best young people into battle to do the work of
this country, to put these men and women at risk, as has been the case
in Afghanistan. It is an enormous undertaking. His sacrifice is the
ultimate sacrifice and his family's sacrifice, as well. We join with
them in mourning his death.
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