[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 29 (Tuesday, March 9, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H885-H887]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            MARINE CAPT. RYAN BEAUPRE SAINT ANNE POST OFFICE

  Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 3538) to designate the facility of the United 
States Postal Service located at 201 South Chicago Avenue in Saint 
Anne, Illinois, as the ``Marine Capt. Ryan Beaupre Saint Anne Post 
Office''.
  The Clerk read as follows:

[[Page H886]]

                               H.R. 3538

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

     SECTION 1. MARINE CAPT. RYAN BEAUPRE SAINT ANNE POST OFFICE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 201 South Chicago Avenue in Saint Anne, 
     Illinois, shall be known and designated as the ``Marine Capt. 
     Ryan Beaupre Saint Anne 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 Marine Capt. Ryan Beaupre Saint Anne 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 on H.R. 3538, the bill under consideration.
  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 as much time as 
I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, like the last two pieces of legislation, H.R. 3538 names 
a post office after a courageous young man who died while bravely 
fighting for our Nation in Iraq. This bill designates a postal service 
facility in Saint Anne, Illinois, as the Marine Capt. Ryan Beaupre 
Saint Anne Post Office.
  Mr. Speaker, Captain Ryan Beaupre of Saint Anne, Illinois, was a 
pilot of a CH-46 helicopter that crashed in Kuwait on March 20, 2003, 
just days after the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Captain 
Beaupre died at the age of 30.
  Mr. Speaker, prior to serving in the Marine Corps, Ryan Beaupre was a 
standout student at Bishop McNamara High School and Illinois Wesleyan 
University. In his spare time in Saint Anne, he enjoyed exercising and 
he volunteered at a homeless shelter. He is survived by his father, 
Mark; mother, Nicky; two sisters, Alyse and Kari; and a brother, 
Cristopher. I want to assure the Beaupre family that the thoughts and 
the prayers of all Members of this House are with them. With passage of 
this legislation, the Congress can forever commemorate Ryan Beaupre's 
sacrifice with a post office that bears his name in his hometown.
  Mr. Speaker, serving in our Nation's military is perhaps the greatest 
contribution one can make for his or her country. Our Armed Forces 
serve the entire Nation at home and overseas with unparalleled loyalty 
and selflessness. Undeniably, Ryan Beaupre possessed these admirable 
characteristics. That is why I urge all Members to support this 
legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  As a member of the Committee on Government Reform, I am pleased and 
proud to join my colleague in the consideration of H.R. 3538, 
legislation naming a postal facility in Saint Anne, Illinois, after 
Captain Ryan Beaupre. The 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. 3538 enjoys the support and 
cosponsorship of the entire Illinois delegation.
  Marine Captain Ryan Beaupre was a soldier and a pilot from Saint 
Anne, Illinois, who was killed in a helicopter crash in Kuwait on March 
21, 2003.
  Ryan Beaupre grew up in Saint Anne. He graduated from Bishop 
MacNamara High School in Kankakee, Illinois, and graduated from 
Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Illinois, with honors in 
1995 and joined the Marine Corps in 1995 and was based at Camp 
Pendleton, California.
  Sadly, at age 30, Captain Beaupre's CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter 
crashed, killing eight British and four U.S. Marines. He is survived by 
his parents, a brother, and two sisters.
  Mr. Speaker, I note that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, a former 
Member of Congress and a committee colleague, has commissioned two 
memorials to honor Illinois servicemembers who have lost their lives 
during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Captain Beaupre, Staff 
Sergeant Hollinsaid, and Private Pahnke will be among the 
servicemembers honored. The memorials will be displayed in the State 
capitol rotunda in Springfield, Illinois, and the James R. Thompson 
center in Chicago.
  Again, I commend my colleague for seeking to honor the memory of a 
fallen soldier and urge the swift passage of this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Weller).
  (Mr. WELLER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. WELLER. Mr. Speaker, it has been an honor to have been the 
sponsor of H.R. 3538, as well as the two previous pieces of legislation 
honoring three fallen war heroes from my State of Illinois.
  This legislation, H.R. 3538, the Marine Capt. Ryan Beaupre Saint Anne 
Post Office Designation Act, is just like the two previous bills 
considered by the House. Under H.R. 3538, the Saint Anne, Illinois, 
post office will be named after Marine Captain Ryan Beaupre, another 
Operation Iraqi Freedom hero from the 11th Congressional District of 
Illinois; and, again, Mr. Speaker, I wish to express my gratitude for 
my colleagues in the Illinois delegation for joining me as original 
cosponsors of this legislation.
  Captain Beaupre was a helicopter pilot with the 1st Marine 
Expeditionary Force. He was lost on March 20, 2003, while piloting a 
CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter in Kuwait, 9 miles from the border with 
Iraq.
  Ryan enjoyed competing in cross-country and track. He was also a 
volunteer in the community, volunteering at Home-Sweet-Home mission, a 
homeless shelter and transitional housing program. He attended Bishop 
McNamara High School and Illinois Wesleyan University in my 
congressional district.
  I have had the opportunity to meet with Ryan's parents, Mark and 
Nicky Beaupre; and I can tell my colleagues that the Beaupre family is 
a very proud family, a very close family, and a very patriotic family.
  Ryan Beaupre loved to fly. He enjoyed being a pilot, and he enjoyed 
being a Marine. Mr. Speaker, the words we speak in this Chamber can 
never be enough to truly understand what Ryan Beaupre meant to those 
who knew him. So, Mr. Speaker, I offer these remarks from Ann Harding, 
assistant director of Career Services at Illinois Wesleyan University, 
from the school's memorial page to Ryan Beaupre:
  ``When I got the news about Ryan's death, I immediately went through 
my many photo albums of IWU students. Suddenly Ryan's face was 
everywhere. What a great smile! Ryan worked for me in the Career 
Center. We stayed in touch after he started his job at State Farm. 
While he worked for me, he talked about his interest in learning how to 
fly. We even discussed the Officers Training Program. When he accepted 
the job at State Farm, I figured he put the idea out of his mind. Then 
a year later he called and said he had given his 2 weeks' notice and 
was joining the Marines. `They're going to teach me how to fly,' he 
said.
  ``I was happy for him because he always kept his eye on his dream. To 
think he could have been as safe as I am in Bloomington, Illinois, had 
he not pursued the real dream. I admire Ryan and any one of you that 
goes after what you want. I know that until there was no time left, 
Ryan was doing everything right and to the very best of his ability. He 
was a smart and innocent man.
  ``To see so many alumni come back to the service on campus is a 
testament to a how close you all become in a short 4-year period. I 
will go to the services on Thursday in Saint Anne and be very proud to 
have known Ryan Beaupre.''
  Mr. Speaker, Ryan Beaupre died living a dream, a dream of flying, a 
dream of serving as a United States Marine, a dream of helping bring 
freedom and a better life to those in the Middle East.

[[Page H887]]

  The prayers of a grateful Nation and a grateful Congress go out to 
all the families that have lost a loved one in defense of America's 
freedom. I ask that the House honor the memory of Illinois' lost son, 
Marine Captain Ryan Beaupre, by passing H.R. 3538, renaming the Saint 
Anne, Illinois, post office after our fallen hero of the war against 
terror.
  I especially want to thank my two distinguished colleagues, the 
distinguished gentlewoman from Michigan and the gentlewoman from the 
District of Columbia, for joining me on the floor today to help with 
this legislation and also thanks to my colleagues as well as ask 
unanimous support for this legislation.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I ask that all Members support 
the passage of this important legislation, and I yield back the balance 
of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. 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. 3538.
  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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