[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 114 (Thursday, September 14, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1723]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    HONORING BEVERLY YOUNG FOR HER COMMITMENT TO OUR WOUNDED HEROES

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN P. MURTHA

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 14, 2006

  Mr. MURTHA. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to 
congratulate a good friend whom most of us have the pleasure to know, 
Mrs. Bill Young, or as she prefers to be known to our wounded troops, 
simply ``Beverly.'' Beverly has been recognized by the United States 
Marine Corps for her extraordinary commitment to our wounded troops 
with The Dickey Chapelle Award.
  This annual award recognizes civilians who have given extraordinary 
contribution to the Corps. It is named in honor of the memory of the 
late Dickey Chapelle, an American correspondent who was killed while 
covering the actions of Marine infantrymen engaged in combat against 
enemy forces during the Vietnam war.
  Mr. Speaker, this is a well-deserved honor. Beverly and her husband, 
my friend and colleague, Chairman C.W. ``Bill'' Young, of Florida, have 
quietly shown a level of sincere, personal compassion and devotion to 
our fighting men and women that is not often seen in Washington. They 
do it without fanfare or seeking recognition in a way that reminds me 
of the greatness of the American spirit.
  The men and women who fight for this country have an uncanny ability 
to overcome extraordinary odds, both on the battlefield and in life. 
However, when they are lying in a hospital bed in excruciating pain 
from terrible, debilitating injuries, there simply is no more difficult 
personal challenge in this world than trying to recover, physically and 
mentally.
  To Beverly Young, each and every one of them is her child. If she 
could, I have no doubt she would go into battle with them. Instead, she 
must content herself with fighting for them in the hospital wards and 
the bureaucratic halls of Washington as a volunteer.
  In truth, ``content'' is probably the wrong word. Beverly has never 
been patient when seeing to it that the troops are receiving what they 
need and has no qualms about making her feelings known when she sees a 
problem where they are concerned. She takes action in a way that 
immediately gets attention and results. As a former drill sergeant 
myself, it strikes me that she would have made a good one. 
Affectionately known as ``The Hurricane'' in the halls of Bethesda and 
Walter Reed hospitals, she says and does whatever it takes to see that 
the troops have their needs taken care of. This includes everything 
from chewing out staff to writing to the President. In neither case 
does she mince words.
  One soldier who was slipping into a catatonic state from so much pain 
medication credits her with saving his life, literally. She did this by 
walking out on the experts who were discussing putting him in a 
psychiatric ward, running into his room and yelling in his ear that he 
must fight to get better or she and the Commandant would ``kick his 
ass.'' The soldier promptly ``snapped to,'' and is now back home 
working in Idaho.

  When she got wind that the rules about soldiers receiving donations 
were being tightened at some bureaucratic level in the Pentagon, she 
shot off a letter to President Bush expressing her outrage and 
demanding immediate attention to correct the grievance to her beloved 
troops. She has impacted the lives of the troops in countless ways, 
from prompting major policy changes through her vocal advocacy to the 
generous gift of her personal time one-on-one with the wounded.
  Beverly is not an occasional visitor; she is there constantly for 
these young men and women and their families, becoming as familiar to 
them as anyone else they encounter during their stay. She is fiercely 
protective of them. She is not formal or aloof; she insists that the 
troops call her Beverly. She vastly prefers spending time in the 
company of these wounded heroes to attending stiff official Washington 
functions. She will hold their hand for hours when they have no one 
else to be with them. She feeds them, brings them contraband, slips 
cash to their families from her own pocket, and hits up everyone she 
knows, including her own doctor, for all types of donations, whether 
in-kind or monetary. She LISTENS to each and every one of them to find 
out what they need and if they don't have it, she goes and gets it, 
whatever it is, from whoever she has to get it from, and brings it to 
them. She and Bill regularly take them out to dinner.
  And perhaps most importantly of all, she sits with them and tells 
them how much they are loved.
  This, Mr. Speaker, is no small contribution to this country. I know 
of no one who has given more time and energy to making sure these young 
men and women know that someone cares about each and every one of them 
and that they can make it through this horrific experience of being 
wounded in battle. With her intense, unique, passionate style and 
commitment, Beverly has earned the respect of everyone she meets, 
military and civilian, politician and bureaucrat. I have no doubt in my 
mind that Beverly Young has made a tremendous impact in the lives of 
our service men and women. This country is a better place for her 
example.
  So, Mr. Speaker, today I come to the People's House to recognize and 
congratulate Mrs. Beverly Young for her selfless service to our brave 
young men and women who courageously defend this country. 
Congratulations, Beverly, and thank you.

                          ____________________