[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 31 (Thursday, March 11, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E346]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               EMPLOYER SUPPORT OF THE GUARD AND RESERVE

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. C.L. ``BUTCH'' OTTER

                                of idaho

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 10, 2004

  Mr. OTTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the enormous 
contribution to America's continuing freedom that is provided by 
employers who support our ``citizen soldiers'' in the Guard and 
Reserve.
  In today's perilous world, each of us knows that the price of freedom 
is eternal vigilance. The men and women of America's Guard and Reserve 
are the vanguard of that vigilance. They are clerks and cashiers, 
merchants and mechanics, doctors and lawyers. Most importantly, they 
are our friends and neighbors, our sons, daughters, fathers and 
mothers.
  They represent the best among us. Along with the full-time members of 
our armed services, those volunteers help ensure that we all have the 
fullest opportunity to exercise the liberties for which generations of 
American heroes have made the ultimate sacrifice.
  Mr. Speaker, in recent months we all have seen National Guard and 
Reserve units from our own states and districts called to active duty 
for the war on terrorism. We all have heard the public declarations of 
support for those activated troops and the families they leave behind. 
But the true measure of that support lies not in words but in actions. 
And there is no greater comfort for our Guard and Reserve personnel 
than the certainty that they will be able to return to their civilian 
jobs when they come home, and that their loved ones will continue 
receiving the benefits of that employment while they are gone.
  The employers who provide those assurances, who guarantee the jobs 
and benefits of America's Guard and Reserve personnel, should be 
counted among the heroes of the war on terrorism. They are shouldering 
an important part of the burden of defending our homeland from those 
who envy and despise us for the freedom to choose liberty, tolerance 
and diversity. America is blessed with employers who have the foresight 
to understand the great value of having a force of trained and 
qualified personnel ready to answer their nation's call to arms with 
the sure knowledge that they are appreciated and financially protected.
  So I encourage my colleagues to join me, Mr. Speaker, in recognizing 
and applauding the essential role played by employer support of the 
Guard and Reserve, and the invaluable service they provide to the men 
and women who bear the weight of battle. The Three Star program 
launched by Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve committees across 
the country is one way to acknowledge the understanding and support of 
those employers who are enabling a new generation of American heroes to 
go into harm's way unencumbered by concerns for their families' 
financial well-being. They deserve our patronage, and our thanks.

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