[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 133 (Thursday, November 18, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11469-S11470]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES


                          cpl. joseph l. nice

  Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, I rise today to honor Marine LCpl. Joseph 
L. Nice from Nicoma Park, OK, who made the ultimate sacrifice for his 
country on August 4, 2004. This fourth-generation soldier died 
defending the freedom he enjoyed and fighting to ensure it for others.
  Lance Corporal Nice moved to Nicoma Park, OK from Newark, NJ, in 
1998. He was a gifted young man--a musician, artist and sportsman, who 
used these gifts in the marching band and on the soccer team at Choctaw 
High School. From the age of 5, he had longed to follow in the 
footsteps of his father, his grandfathers, and his uncle in serving in 
the military. After weighing this tradition and putting on hold his 
plans to study law, Joseph Nice decided to join the Marine Corps in 
June 2003.
  Lance Corporal Nice was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st 
Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force stationed at Marine Corps 
Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms, CA. His unit was deployed 
to Iraq in February 2004, where Lance Corporal Nice and his fellow 
Marines faced daily attacks in the Anbar province. During one of these 
attacks on August 4, 2004, Joseph Nice was killed.
  I represent the State of Oklahoma in paying my condolences to the 
family of this American hero. A friend of his said about him: ``If you 
had a problem, he was always there for you.'' Through his service in 
Iraq, LCpl Joseph Nice demonstrated his worthiness to receive this 
highest compliment. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and 
friends today.


                       army spc. sonny g. sampler

  Mr. President, we also pay homage to Army SPC Sonny G. Sampler from 
Oklahoma City, OK, who died in the name of freedom in Iraq on 8 July 
2004. He moved to Oklahoma City from Altus, OK and began attending John 
Marshall High School.
  Specialist Sampler saw the Army as an opportunity for focus and 
direction and joined in 2001. He was deployed to Iraq with 1st 
Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division based in 
Schweinfurt, Germany. In serving his country, Sonny Sampler did not shy 
away from his other duties. In the words of Maj. Gen. Douglas Dollar, 
``This young man was willing to go to a strange land and fight for 
people he didn't know.'' It is the same young man who sold some 
belongings to pay for a flight from Germany back to the United States 
at Christmas to surprise his mother. Such a family man is to be much 
valued.
  Specialist Sampler was tragically killed when he was searching the 
Iraqi National Guard Headquarters for survivors, following an allied 
attack. When the ruins underwent an attack by insurgents, Sonny Sampler 
and five other U.S. soldiers died. He was 23 years old.
  Our thoughts and prayers are with this American hero's family and 
friends at this very difficult time. We should never cease to be proud 
of this man.


                         SGT DANIEL LEE GALVAN

  Mr. President, we also pay homage to Sgt Daniel Lee Galvan, who 
joined the Army to realize his childhood dream of working with 
helicopters. Earlier this year, Sergeant Galvan made the ultimate 
sacrifice for his country--his life. Sergeant Galvan was a dedicated 
defender of America who followed his father into the military. For this 
service and his sacrifice, I am proud to honor him in the Senate today.
  Daniel Galvan was born in Fort Ord, CA, but later moved to Moore, OK, 
where he joined the Army reserve after high school but enlisted in 1996 
to fulfill what he saw as his calling to be a soldier. Though he knew a 
career in the military would enable him to provide for his family, the 
paycheck was never his primary motivation. In the words of his wife, 
Sonya, ``He joined because he believed in the cause. He believed in the 
military. And he was proud to wear the uniform and honored to be an 
American.'' Sergeant Galvan was a helicopter crew chief with the 2nd 
Battalion (Assault), 25th Aviation Regiment, 25th Infantry Division 
(Light), based out of Schofield Barracks in Hawaii.
  On August 12, 2004, the Black Hawk helicopter that was transporting 
Sergeant Galvan and fourteen other soldiers in Afghanistan developed 
mechanical problems and crashed near the Pakistani border. The fourteen 
others were wounded, but Daniel Lee Galvan, an honorable Oklahoman and 
example for us all, paid the ultimate price. Sergeant Galvan left 
behind his wife as well as two children, his daughter Audrey, 13, and 
his son Joseph, 11. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family for 
the loss of such a special man.
  On behalf of the U.S. Senate, I ask that we pay tribute to Sergeant 
Galvan and the men and women like him, who know the true meaning of 
service and sacrifice. These men and women have tasted freedom, and 
wish to ensure that freedom for those who have never experienced it. I 
honor the memory of our sons and daughters who have died for this noble 
cause, and especially the memory of Oklahoma's son, Daniel Lee Galvan.


                        cpl nathaniel t. hammond

  Mr. President, I rise to honor the memory of a brave young American 
who gave his life defending the Nation. He felt a call to serve his 
country, to be part of something bigger than himself, and for that call 
he paid the highest price.
  Cpl Nathaniel T. Hammond was assigned to the Marine Reserves' 2nd 
Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division in Chicago. Nathan 
wasn't a native Oklahoman--he was born and raised in Brighton, MO, 
where he graduated from high school in 1998 and then joined the 
Marines, but he lived in Tulsa and had trained with the Anti-Tank 
Training Company, a Marine Reserve unit, in Broken Arrow.
  On November 8 in Babil province, Iraq, he was killed in an insurgent 
attack. He gave his life for the freedom of millions of Americans, and 
also for the peace and prosperity of the Iraqi people only now 
beginning to recover from decades under a totalitarian regime.
  Corporal Hammond had a long-held desire to serve the military as a 
member of the Special Forces, but even as a member of the Marine 
Reserve, he was ``doing what he wanted to do and what the loved to 
do,'' according to a childhood friend and fellow soldier. His parents 
have described how Nathan evinced the selfless attitude toward service 
to country that is so evident in all our military men and women.
  We are all glad Nathan Hammond was willing to serve. His loss is 
grievous to all of us. Our thoughts are with his parents and the rest 
of his family back in Missouri. At the same time, we recognize his 
valor and commitment. It is for men like Nathan Hammond that I am proud 
to be a part of this great country. He was a special soldier, a true 
Oklahoman, and a true American.


                        pfc nachez washalanta ii

  Mr. President, I honor the memory of a courageous young Oklahoman who 
died while defending his Nation. Marine PFC Nachez Washalanta II grew 
up in the great State of Oklahoma, went to school in Ardmore and Silo, 
and joined the Marines in April 2002.
  The road wasn't always smooth for Wash, as his fellow Marines called 
him. He grew up in a foster home with four other boys, and got his GED 
instead of graduating from high school. Eventually, Private Washalanta 
found a home with the United States Marine Corps. He was the driver of 
a light-armored

[[Page S11470]]

vehicle, and although he sometimes complained that he joined the 
Marines to fight and not to drive, he got his chance in Iraq.

  Private Washlanta was a member of the 1st Light-Armored 
Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary 
Force from Camp Pendleton, CA. He paid the ultimate price. When you 
think about these five great Oklahomans, as well as others around the 
country, and some 1,100 who have lost their lives, it is a shame that 
so many people in America do not understand what these soldiers 
understand.
  Mr. President, I have the honor of being, I guess, the second or 
third ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. 
Consequently, I may have made more trips over to Iraq and Afghanistan 
than anyone else. I am always approached by these young people. They 
say: Why is it, Senator, that the people back home don't appreciate 
what we are doing? These people are dedicated, and they know exactly 
what they are doing. Unfortunately, we have a media that tries to 
demean everything they are doing. And I give the assurance to these 
young people that even though it might be that the networks, CNN, and 
the New York Times and the Washington Post do not know and appreciate 
what they are doing, we do, the real people of America. And they are 
heroes.
  I think most of our young people realize our country is facing the 
greatest risk it has ever faced. This is not conventional warfare. This 
is not something that is predictable. Sometimes I say I look back 
wistfully at the days of the Cold War where we had two superpowers, and 
they were predictable. We were predictable, they were predictable. This 
is totally unpredictable, but it is a war that has to be won. I pay 
homage not just to those Oklahomans I mentioned today, but all who are 
there and many who have paid the ultimate price for our freedom right 
here in this country.


                         Sgt Morgan W. Strader

  Mr. BAYH. Mr. President, I rise today with a heavy heart and deep 
sense of gratitude to honor the life of a brave young man from 
Brownsburg, IN. Sgt Morgan W. Strader, 23 years old, died on November 
12. After completing his enlistment, Morgan voluntarily extended his 
service, choosing to accompany his unit back to Iraq--a selfless choice 
that would cost him his life. Morgan was shot while conducting combat 
operations in the Al Anbar Province of Iraq. With his entire life 
before him, Morgan risked everything to fight for the values Americans 
hold close to our hearts, in a land halfway around the world.
  Before moving to Crossville, TN, Morgan attended school in 
Brownsburg. Morgan graduated from high school and followed in his 
grandfather's footsteps by joining the military. Morgan's father, Gary, 
told the Indianapolis Star that ``He was a Marine from the day that he 
was born . . . His grandfather was in the Army during Korea. He latched 
onto that and loved it.'' It was clear that from a young age, Morgan 
felt compelled to serve his country in the Armed Forces, just as his 
grandfather had done.
  Morgan was the thirty-seventh Hoosier soldier to be killed while 
serving his country in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was assigned to the 
Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines, Regimental Combat Team-1, 1st 
Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. This brave young soldier leaves 
behind his father and stepmother, Gary and Janet; his mother and 
stepfather, Linda and Timothy; his grandparents, Onza and Estelle 
Morgan; his grandfather, William Strader; his sisters, Amber, Jessica 
and Rachel; and his brothers, Brian, Chris and Matthew.
  Today, I join Morgan's family, his friends and the entire Hoosier 
community in mourning his death. While we struggle to bear our sorrow 
over this loss, we can also take pride in the example he set, bravely 
fighting to make the world a safer place. It is his courage and 
strength of character that people will remember when they think of 
Morgan, a memory that will burn brightly during these continuing days 
of conflict and grief.
  Morgan was known for his dedication to family and his love of 
country. When looking back on Morgan's life, his father, Gary, recalled 
to the Indianapolis Star a conversation that he had with his son 
shortly before his departure for a second tour in Iraq. Gary was trying 
to convince his son that he had done his part and his service was 
complete. Morgan told his father upon deciding to reenlist, `` Dad, the 
guys in my unit aren't experienced in this . . . I need to help them.'' 
Morgan died in the same fashion in which he had lived by putting the 
well-being of others before his own. Today and always, Morgan will be 
remembered by family members, friends and fellow Hoosiers as a true 
American hero and we honor the sacrifice he made while dutifully 
serving his country.
  As I search for words to do justice in honoring Morgan's sacrifice, I 
am reminded of President Lincoln's remarks as he addressed the families 
of the fallen soldiers in Gettysburg: ``We cannot dedicate, we cannot 
consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and 
dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power 
to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember what we 
say here, but it can never forget what they did here.'' This statement 
is just as true today as it was nearly 150 years ago, as I am certain 
that the impact of Morgan's actions will live on far longer than any 
record of these words.
  It is my sad duty to enter the name of Morgan W. Strader in the 
official record of the U.S. Senate for his service to this country and 
for his profound commitment to freedom, democracy and peace. When I 
think about this just cause in which we are engaged, and the 
unfortunate pain that comes with the loss of our heroes, I hope that 
families like Morgan's can find comfort in the words of the prophet 
Isaiah who said, ``He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord 
God will wipe away tears from off all faces.''
  May God grant strength and peace to those who mourn, and may God be 
with all of you, as I know He is with Morgan.

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