[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 146 (Friday, October 17, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2077]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   MOURNING THE LOSS OF STEPHEN WYATT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. RALPH M. HALL

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 17, 2003

  Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, the grim realities of the war in Iraq came 
home to the Fourth District this week with the death of Private First 
Class Stephen E. Wyatt, 19, of Kilgore, Texas. Stephen died on October 
13 in Balad, Iraq, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was in a 
convoy that was hit by an improvised explosive device and small arms 
fire. He was assigned to C Battery, 1st Battalion, 17th Field Artillery 
Regiment, Fort Sill, Oklahoma and had been in Iraq since April.
  Stephen enlisted in the Army on his 18th birthday, having expressed 
his desire to join the military at an early age. He looked forward to 
the opportunity to serve his country, to travel and broaden his 
horizons, and to pursue a higher education degree through the Army. 
Stephen was a 2002 graduate of Kilgore High School, where his teachers 
described him as hard working, determined, and likeable. He returned to 
his high school for a visit in the spring before being deployed to 
Iraq. While there, he spoke to a government class about how well he 
liked the military, and he encouraged students to sign up if they were 
interested.
  Stephen was described as an avid outdoorsman who loved hunting and 
fishing. His ultimate goal would have been to pursue his interest in 
wildlife preservation. Those aspirations ended on October 13 on the 
battle front in Iraq.
  Our prayers go out to his family and friends. His wife, Kelly Wyatt, 
is a service member stationed in Hawaii. They were married on 
Thanksgiving, 2002. His father, Charles Wyatt, and stepmother Lilmah 
reside in Kilgore. His mother is deceased. Friends and residents of 
Kilgore responded to his death with an outpouring of sympathy. Mayor 
Joe Parker signed a proclamation honoring Stephen, asking that flags in 
Kilgore be flown at half-staff for a week.
  Stephen's death is a tragic loss to his family and friends--and to 
all of us who mourn the loss of one so young who gave his life in 
defense of our Nation. We owe a debt of gratitude that can never be 
repaid to Stephen and all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice, 
generation after generation, in defense of the freedoms that we enjoy 
today. Without their service, and their willingness to place themselves 
in the line of fire, America would not be the great Nation that we know 
today.
  Mr. Speaker, as we adjourn today in the House of Representatives, let 
us do so by honoring Stephen E. Wyatt and extending our deepest 
condolences to his family and friends. America is free today because of 
the sacrifices of such young American heroes. Stephen Wyatt is one of 
those heroes, and we will never forget him.

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