[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 7 (Friday, January 12, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E106]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  TRIBUTE TO ARMY PFC PAUL BALINT, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. KAY GRANGER

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, January 12, 2007

  Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the courage of a 
young hero from my district. On December 15, 2006, Army Private First 
Class Paul Balint, Jr. (B Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry 
Regiment, 1st Infantry Division) died in Al Ramadi, Iraq, in support of 
Operation Iraqi Freedom. Private Balint had served in the Army for over 
a year and in Iraq for three months, before sustaing fatal injuries 
during an attack on his battalion.
  Balint was known as a loyal friend and soldier. His parents remember 
him as a compassionate man and a mediator, always thinking about others 
and wanting to make sure everyone was having a good time. He also had a 
love for hip-hop music and was going to add music to the home videos he 
filmed while in Iraq.
  His parents had no doubts about what their son wanted to do with his 
life. He was going to be a soldier. Balint used to recite the ``The 
Soldiers Creed'' at the kitchen table while his mother cooked. When his 
father asked him what he wanted to do, he said he ``wanted to be in the 
infantry.'' When his father then asked him about the issue of Iraq, 
Balint responded that he wanted to go ``fight that stuff.''
  Balint enlisted in the armed forces in Willow Park, Texas, with his 
brother, mother and father at his side.
  After completing basic training, Balint had the Soldiers Creed 
branded into memory, and into his heart.
  Madam Speaker, in honor of Private Balint, I would like to read aloud 
the Soldiers Creed.

                           The Soldiers Creed

     I am an American Soldier.
     I am a Warrior and a member of a team.
     I serve the people of the United States and live the Army 
           Values.
     I will always place the mission first.
     I will never accept defeat.
     I will never quit.
     I will never leave a fallen comrade.
     I am disciplined, physically and mentally tough, trained and 
           proficient in my warrior tasks and drills.
     I always maintain my arms, my equipment and myself.
     I am an expert and I am a professional.
     I stand ready to deploy, engage, and destroy the enemies of 
           the United States of America in close combat.
     I am a guardian of freedom and the American way of life.
     I am an American Soldier.

  Private Balint is gone, but he will never be forgotten. God Speed to 
his family and to the United States of America.

                          ____________________