[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 43 (Wednesday, April 13, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3548-S3549]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES


                Army 1st lieutenant charles wilkins, III

  Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, inscribed on an exterior wall of the 
Chapel at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in France, are 
the following words:

       These endured all and gave all that justice among nations 
     might prevail and that mankind might enjoy freedom and 
     inherit peace.

  Many years after the bloody battle on Normandy's shores and many 
miles from those sandy beaches and jagged cliffs, Army 1LT Charles 
Wilkins, III, of Columbus, OH, like the thousands of American 
servicemen who perished before him over 60 years ago, gave his life so 
that others, too, might enjoy freedom and inherit peace.
  On August 20, 2004, 1st Lieutenant Wilkins was killed near Samarra, 
Iraq, when a roadside explosive detonated near his Humvee. He was 38-
years-old.
  Today, I would like to pay tribute to this fellow Ohioan and to take 
a few moments to remember him here in the Senate Chamber. You see, 
Charles--or Chuck, as he was known to his family and friends--was a 
deeply devoted, unselfish man. He lived his life with a sense of duty--
always dutiful to his country, to his family, to his friends, and to 
his job. Chuck defined the term ``citizen soldier,'' balancing his 
service in the Ohio National Guard with his obligations to his family 
and his career.
  After attending both Bishop Hartley High School and St. Charles 
Preparatory School, Chuck graduated in 1985, and enlisted in the U.S. 
Air Force. After his discharge, he enrolled at The Ohio State 
University to study economics. While in college, Chuck joined the Ohio 
National Guard because, according to his sister Lorin, ``He wanted to 
be an officer.'' After earning his college degree, Chuck took a job as 
a transportation planner with the Federal Highway Administration, 
became a volunteer for Habitat for Humanity, and began attending 
Capital Law School--all while continuing his service in the National 
Guard.
  At any time, Chuck could have quit being a soldier and settled into a 
quiet life as a civilian. But, that wasn't the type of person he was. 
Rather, Chuck was the type of person who always gave 100 percent of 
himself. In addition to his full time job, his military 
responsibilities, and his law classes, Chuck served as a peer-advisor 
at Capital for first-year law students.
  As someone who also attended law school, myself, I know how difficult 
and time consuming study can be--and Chuck Wilkins was doing it with a 
host of additional fulltime commitments! One of his advisees remembered 
how helpful Chuck was:


[[Page S3549]]


       Without Chuck, I doubt I would have made it through that 
     very difficult first year [of law school]. He was always 
     positive and upbeat, and he was constantly encouraging [us] 
     to never give up. We could always count on Chuck to lift us 
     up when we were down. It was important to him to make our 
     first year journey a little bit better by sharing things that 
     weren't available to him during his first year. I'm glad he 
     took the time to make our first year law school world a 
     better place.

  Chuck Wilkins always made time for others. As one of his co-workers 
said, ``He was always looking out for somebody else, never for 
himself.'' It was this sense of selflessness led Chuck to Iraq.
  Chuck was a member of the 216th Engineering Battalion, based in 
Chillicothe, OH. When his original unit was passed over for deployment 
to Iraq, Chuck sought a transfer to a unit that was scheduled to deploy 
in February of 2004. The new unit needed officers, and the Iraqi people 
needed bridges and roads. Once again, Chuck gave of himself so that 
others would not go without. It was hard for Chuck to leave his career 
and his law school studies, but as his sister, Lorin, said, ``He was 
Army, through and through. He wanted to help rebuild Iraq so people 
could have the same freedoms we do.''
  As I said earlier, Chuck Wilkins wanted the Iraqi people to ``enjoy 
freedom and inherit peace.''
  Though his sense of duty compelled him to go, it still was hard for 
Chuck to leave his family--the family he loved so very much. Like any 
mother, Natalie Wilkins did not want her son to leave for war. She 
begged him not to go and to seek an exemption, but Chuck would just 
reply, Mom, I can't stay. I have to go with my men.'' While his deep 
sense of duty pulled him away from his loved ones here at home, Chuck 
remained a family man'' in every sense of that phrase. His sister, 
Lorin, says that Chuck was always there for the family. She said that 
even with his busy schedule, if you called him, he would be there.'' He 
took good care of his mom and dad and his sisters, always making sure 
that his family was provided for--whether he was home in Ohio or 
thousands of miles away in Iraq.
  Charles Wilkins, Jr.--Chuck's father--says that one of his last 
memories of his son is of him swimming in a pool, playing with his 
nephew, laughing. That is when Chuck Wilkins was happiest--that is when 
he was making others happy, making them feel safe and cared for and 
protected.
  We honor the fallen because they have honored us--with their service, 
with their sacrifice. Charles Wilkins not only gave himself to his 
country, he gave a little bit of himself to everyone he met.
  When Charles passed away, his mother said that the world lost a good 
man--a man whose llfe was bound by duty and good deeds. Our world is 
the lesser without him, but it is also the better for the time he lived 
on this earth. Charles Wilkins was a good citizen, a good soldier, a 
devoted family man, and a compassionate human being. Everyone who met 
him was touched by him in some way. He will be dearly missed.
  My wife Fran and I continue to keep his grandmother, Dorothy; his 
mother, Natalie; his father, Charles; and his sisters Lorin and Davina 
in our thoughts and our prayers.
  I yield the floor.

                          ____________________