[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 73 (Friday, May 21, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E941]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO GLEN DOUGLAS

                                 ______
                                 

                     HON. GEORGE R. NETHERCUTT, JR.

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 20, 2004

  Mr. NETHERCUTT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Master 
Sergeant Glen Douglas' sacrifice and service to our nation, which 
spanned twenty-two years and three wars, the first of which was World 
War II.
  Glen Douglas is one of the most decorated veterans in our region, 
having received the Distinguished Service Medal and seven purple hearts 
among other honors.
  The following excerpts from the May 4th, 2004 weekly edition of the 
Colville Statesman Examiner are a testament to the sacrifice, courage, 
commitment and leadership Mr. Douglas displayed throughout the course 
of his service.

       Douglas's service to our country first began as an 
     infantryman in Europe with the 101st Airborne (Screaming 
     Eagles) in 1944 and then in the occupation army with the U.S. 
     Constabulary. Douglas then served in the Korean War with the 
     U.S. 2nd (Indianhead) Infantry Division from 1950-1953 before 
     he was med-evacuated after being wounded for the eighth time. 
     In the incidents prior when he had been wounded and 
     evacuated, he would be taken as far as Japan before he would 
     disappear from the hospital, get clothes and take a boat back 
     to his Infantry Division. ``I would get very angry having 
     somebody else lead the men and lose them.'' Douglas said, ``I 
     hardly ever lost a man when I was leading. After being 
     wounded for the eighth time, Douglas nearly lost his legs and 
     spent four years, four months and twenty-six days in the 
     Fitzsimmons Army Hospital in Denver before he was released. 
     He was told he would never walk again. But Douglas had his 
     own ideas. ``I was released December 23, 1957'' Douglas 
     remembered. By 1959, ``I was jumping out of airplanes 
     again.'' Douglas served two tours in Vietnam with the Special 
     Forces (Green Beret) and then again with the highly 
     classified Studies and Operations Group before retiring after 
     twenty-two years of service.

  I was pleased to learn that Mr. Douglas was recently selected by 
fellow veterans from local chapters of the American Legion, VFW, and 
Marine Corps League to receive an all expense paid trip to Washington 
D.C. in order to represent them during the upcoming dedication of the 
National World War II Memorial later this month.
  The Memorial is a fitting tribute to the great courage and selfless 
dedication of soldiers who fought in the Second World War and as we 
approach Memorial Day, I encourage my colleagues to reflect on the 
great sacrifices of men like Glen Douglas.

                          ____________________