[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 52 (Tuesday, April 1, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E631-E632]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                TRIBUTE TO LIEUTENANT COLONEL JOHN STEIN

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. LANE EVANS

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, April 1, 2003

  Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, last week the United States Air Force lost 
six servicemen

[[Page E632]]

and women in Afghanistan when their helicopter crashed while on a 
humanitarian mission to evacuate two injured children. Lieutenant 
Colonel John Stein of western Illinois was among those killed. I would 
like to take this opportunity to celebrate his life, commend his 
remarkable bravery, and extend my sincerest condolences to his family, 
friends, and loved ones. He will be missed.
  A Bardolph native, John Stein began dating his wife, Barbara (Nelson) 
Stein, while the two were students at Macomb High School. He graduated 
in 1981, she in 1980. Macomb High School principal Michael Sartore 
remembers Stein as a quiet, hard-working, dedicated student. A career 
military officer, Lt. Col. Stein resided with his family at Moody Air 
Force Base in Valdosta, Georgia. The couple has three children: Doug, 
17, Erin, 13, and Timothy, 11. His mother, Hazel Henry, still lives in 
Macomb.
  Lieutenant Colonel Stein was a helicopter pilot with the 41st Rescue 
Squadron at Moody Air Force Base, a part of the 347th Operations Group 
specializing in rescuing downed pilots behind enemy lines. Kelly 
Friday, a childhood friend, said that even in high school Lt. Col. 
Stein wanted to be a helicopter pilot. ``Any goal he set out to 
achieve, he mastered it,'' he recalled. ``He was very intelligent; 
anything he touched he mastered.''
  On behalf of the communities in western and central Illinois, I would 
like to extend my thoughts and prayers to the Stein family at this 
difficult time. Lieutenant Colonel John Stein's courage in serving his 
country will not soon be forgotten.

                          ____________________