[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 29 (Tuesday, March 9, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H884-H885]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              ARMY PVT. SHAWN PAHNKE MANHATTAN POST OFFICE

  Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 3537) to designate the facility of the United 
States

[[Page H885]]

Postal Service located at 185 State Street in Manhattan, Illinois, as 
the ``Army Pvt. Shawn Pahnke Manhattan Post Office''.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 3537

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. ARMY PVT. SHAWN PAHNKE MANHATTAN POST OFFICE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 185 State Street in Manhattan, Illinois, 
     shall be known and designated as the ``Army Pvt. Shawn Pahnke 
     Manhattan Post Office''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the Army Pvt. Shawn Pahnke Manhattan Post 
     Office.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Michigan (Mrs. Miller) and the gentlewoman from the District of 
Columbia (Ms. Norton) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. Miller).


                             General Leave

  Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that 
all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and 
extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 3537.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Michigan?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the second post office designation bill in honor of an 
Iraq war victim pays tribute to the courage and service of Army Private 
Shawn Pahnke.
  This legislation, H.R. 3537, names a United States Postal Service 
Facility after Private Shawn Pahnke of Manhattan, Illinois, the town in 
which Shawn grew up.
  Mr. Speaker, Shawn was another hero serving in Iraq to secure the 
freedom of all Iraqi citizens. Private Pahnke enlisted in October of 
2002 right after getting married to his wife, Elisha. He left with the 
First Armored Division for Freidberg, Germany, four days before the 
birth of his son, Dean, on March 20, 2003. Sadly, Shawn would never 
meet his son. While patrolling the streets of Baghdad in a Humvee 
armored vehicle, a single bullet was fired into the vehicle and struck 
Private Pahnke in the back, fatally wounding him.
  Mr. Speaker, Shawn's lifelong dream was to serve in the military. In 
the days after his son's death, his father, Tom, told about the letter 
Shawn had written to his family. These letters described how proud he 
was to be a soldier. His mother, Linda, said Shawn wanted to show the 
Iraqi people how wonderful freedom could be.
  Mr. Speaker, I commend the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Weller) for 
honoring Army Private Shawn Pahnke. This post office is a deserved and 
permanent token of appreciation from a grateful Nation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Committee on Government Reform, I am 
pleased to join my colleague in the consideration of H.R. 3537, 
legislation naming a postal facility in Manhattan, Illinois after 
Private Shawn Pahnke. This measure was introduced by the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Weller) on November 19, 2003, and unanimously reported by 
our committee on February 12, 2004.
  H.R. 3537 enjoys the support and co-sponsorship of the entire 
Illinois delegation.
  Army Private Shawn D. Pahnke was a soldier from Shelbyville, Indiana, 
who was killed by enemy fire in Baghdad on June 16, 2003. Shawn Pahnke 
grew up in Manhattan, Illinois and graduated from Lincoln Way High 
School in New Lenox, Illinois. Continuing his family's tradition of 
military service, Shawn's father was a Vietnam veteran and his 
grandfather served in World War II, Shawn enlisted in the U.S. Army. He 
was assigned to Company C, 1st Battalion, 37th Armored Regiment, 1st 
Armored Division, Freidberg, Germany.
  Sadly, at age 27, Private Pahnke was patrolling in a Humvee with 
other soldiers from his unit when he was hit by a sniper's bullet. He 
is survived by his wife, baby son, Dean, his parents and two older 
brothers. He was buried with honors and received a Bronze Star and 
Purple Heart.
  Mr. Speaker, I commend my colleague for seeking to honor the memory 
of a fallen soldier. I urge the swift passage of this bill.
  Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from the State of Illinois (Mr. Weller), the 
sponsor of this legislation, my distinguished colleague.
  (Mr. WELLER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)

                              {time}  1445

  Mr. WELLER. Mr. Speaker, I rise again today to pay tribute to another 
fallen brave hero from my home State of Illinois, a brave hero from the 
war on terror and Operation Iraqi Freedom, Army Private Shawn Pahnke.
  Under the legislation I am offering today, H.R. 3537, the Manhattan, 
Illinois, United States Post Office will be renamed after Army Private 
Shawn Pahnke. I also wish to thank my colleagues in the Illinois 
delegation for joining me as original cosponsors of this legislation.
  Private Pahnke was a main battle tank crewman with the United States 
Army 1st Armored Division's First Brigade. He was lost June 16, 2003, 
while patrolling Baghdad in a Humvee on a security detail. Shawn 
enjoyed playing baseball and was relatively new to the Armed Forces and 
had only recently been stationed in Iraq when he was taken from us.
  Shawn was the father to a newborn baby son, Dean, whom he never met. 
On the day of Dean's arrival, Private Pahnke spent most of the day on 
the phone with his wife, Elisha, talking her through labor and getting 
to hear the birth of his son and his son's first minutes in the world 
over the telephone. I have known Private Pahnke's father, Tom, for many 
years through his work as town administrator with the village of 
Manhattan, as well as his mother, Linda.
  Mr. Speaker, this is a good family, a patriotic family that is very 
proud of Shawn's service in the United States military. Private Pahnke 
was much like the other two soldiers we will be honoring today, as he 
comes from a small town. Shawn's loss was a loss felt by family, by 
friends, and by the entire community in Manhattan; and while we in this 
Chamber today can never replace the memory of a lost father, husband or 
son, by passing H.R. 3537 we can ensure that the memory of this 
American hero endures in his hometown; and perhaps one day, when he is 
old enough to understand, baby Dean Pahnke will realize his father was 
truly loved, not only by his family but by the community and the Nation 
he served.
  Our hearts and prayers go out to the entire Pahnke family.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to give H.R. 3537, renaming the 
Manhattan, Illinois, post office after Army Private Shawn Pahnke, their 
unanimous support.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I ask that all Members would 
support the passage of this important legislation, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Terry). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. Miller) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3537.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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