[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 32 (Tuesday, March 14, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E351]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      PAYING TRIBUTE TO SERGEANT FIRST CLASS CHRISTOPHER P. TOVAR

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JON C. PORTER

                               of nevada

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 14, 2006

  Mr. PORTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Sergeant First Class 
Christopher P. Tovar for his service in the United States Army. Last 
month Sergeant Tovar was selected to model a statue depicting a soldier 
from World War II, which is now on display at an American Legion 
Memorial in Brinkley, Arkansas.
  Sergeant Tovar entered the Army in Houston, Texas, on April 13, 1993. 
He enlisted as a Human Intelligence Collector and received Arabic 
Language training at the Defense Language Institute before being 
assigned to Fort Hood, Texas. Following that assignment, Christopher 
received further training in Mandarin-Chinese before being assigned to 
the 500th Military Intelligence Group, Camp Zama, Japan. There he 
worked as a liaison between the U.S. and Japanese police and 
intelligence agencies. Following the September 11th terrorist attacks, 
Sergeant Tovar accepted an assignment to the U.S. Army Recruiting 
Command to assist in bolstering the U.S. Army's pool of linguists.
  Sergeant Tovar was assigned to Headquarters, 6th Recruiting Brigade 
in North Las Vegas, Nevada, in January 2002. He serves the recruiting 
command as the Foreign Language Advocate for the region, assisting the 
recruiting field force to identify and contract foreign language 
speakers into the Military Intelligence Field. His duties in this 
position include conducting presentations at high schools, community 
colleges, and specifically for high school language departments, 
attending heritage speaker festivals and acting as liaison between the 
field force and higher headquarters for language positions in the Army. 
Within the headquarters, Sergeant Tovar serves as the First Sergeant, 
in charge of the day-to-day activities of the soldiers working within 
the headquarters command; as Master Fitness Trainer, in charge of the 
physical training of the soldiers; and as the Equal Opportunity 
Representative, responsible for maintaining a positive work environment 
and conducting required training under this program.
  Sergeant Tovar's awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, the 
Army Commendation Medal, the Army Achievement Medal, and the National 
Defense Service Medal. He was also awarded the Military Intelligence 
Corps' Knowlton Award for lifetime service to the Military Intelligence 
Corps.
  Sergeant Tovar and his wife of 11 years, Lauren, live in Las Vegas 
with their one-year-old daughter, Madison.
  Mr. Speaker, it is an honor to recognize Sergeant First Class 
Christopher P. Tovar on the floor of the House today. His exemplary 
service stands as an example to all military members and his continued 
service is greatly appreciated in this difficult time.

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