[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 161 (Tuesday, October 23, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H11878-H11879]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1315
   MILO C. HUEMPFNER DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS OUTPATIENT CLINIC

  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 2408) to designate the Department of Veterans Affairs 
outpatient clinic in Green Bay, Wisconsin, as the ``Milo C. Huempfner 
Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2408

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. NAME OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS OUTPATIENT 
                   CLINIC, GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN.

       The Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic in 
     Green Bay, Wisconsin, shall after the date of the enactment 
     of this Act be known and designated as the ``Milo C. 
     Huempfner Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic''. 
     Any reference to such medical center in any law, regulation, 
     map, document, record, or other paper of the United States 
     shall be considered to be a reference to the Milo C. 
     Huempfner Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Filner) and the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Boozman) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to my distinguished colleague from 
Wisconsin (Mr. Kagen) to speak about the bill which he has authored to 
name the outpatient clinic in Green Bay, Wisconsin, after this great 
hero.
  Mr. KAGEN. Mr. Speaker, thank you for this opportunity to speak in 
support of H.R. 2408, a bill to name the Department of Veterans Affairs 
community-based outpatient clinic in Green Bay for Milo C. Huempfner, 
Brown County, Wisconsin's most highly decorated veteran of World War 
II, recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross, second only to the 
Medal of Honor, the Bronze Star, and numerous other commendations.
  Having cared for thousands of veterans as their physician, and now as 
their elected Representative, I would also like to thank the members of 
the leadership and the members of the Veterans' Affairs Committee who 
worked hard to bring this legislation to the floor today, especially 
Chairman Filner. Thank you. And thank you as well to Ambassador Mark 
Green for beginning this good work.
  We need to remember Milo C. Huempfner. He was a hero. His bravery, 
his dedication to others and his selflessness to serve is a beacon to 
guide all of us today.
  Milo served in one of the best trained units in the U.S. Army, the 
elite 551st Parachute Infantry Battalion. It was a unit where courage 
was common. Yet even in this company, Milo distinguished himself.
  Milo Huempfner was literally a one-man army. For 2 days in December 
of 1944, Milo Huempfner was literally a one-man army. He singlehandedly 
waged war against a German tank column in Belgium during the Battle of 
the Bulge.
  In that chaotic battle, Milo and a colleague were separated from 
their convoy with a truckload of ammunition. They were near the Belgian 
town of Leignon when their truck slid off the road into a ditch. Milo 
was left behind to guard the truck until a tow truck could return. He 
had instructions to destroy it if the Germans arrived. He turned down 
opportunities to leave. When he heard an armed column of Panzer tanks 
approaching, he burned the truck and retreated into the local city. 
Over the course of the next 2 days and 2 nights, Milo waged a one-man 
battle, a one-man guerrilla war against the town's Nazi occupiers. He 
destroyed tanks; he destroyed trucks. He stormed the machine gun 
positions and engaged in hand-to-hand fighting with enemy troops.
  When he was not protecting townspeople of Leignon, Milo would sneak 
out of town to warn approaching troops, allied troops, that the enemy 
was nearby. He saved many American soldiers' lives.
  One evening, a freezing evening, the townspeople came to him and 
asked if he would go to church and protect them. The people wanted to 
go to church and he could not understand why. Well, it happened to be 
Christmas Eve, they reminded him. And he stood outside armed only with 
a pistol to protect them on Christmas Eve. As the people of Leignon 
celebrated, he stood guard as he stands guard now. On Christmas 
morning, Milo received his present when allied forces began their 
counterattack and surrounded the town. Milo didn't stop. He sprang into 
action against a German artillery hidden in a barn, and 18 Nazis 
surrendered to him. When Milo finally met the allied troops, they 
almost mistook him for a German spy. They couldn't believe that a 
single soldier could hold them off from this town and couldn't 
understand how a single American soldier could bring so many enemy 
troops into being captives.
  For these deeds, Private Huempfner was awarded the Distinguished 
Service Cross. The after-action report on Private Huempfner's deeds 
ends with these words, and I quote: ``His gallantry, intrepidity and 
extraordinary heroism while operating within the very limits of the 
German units, without being ordered to do so, and when withdrawal could 
have been accomplished with honor and safety, reflect the highest 
standards and ideal of the military service and favorably demonstrated 
to the citizens of Leignon the courage and daring of the American 
soldier.''
  After the war, Milo Huempfner preferred not to talk about his 
experiences. This was common for many soldiers in World War II. His own 
children did not know any of what I just spoke about until his funeral, 
when Milo's comrades stepped forward to speak of their cherished 
comrade.
  Despite his silence, Milo remained a committed patriot and dedicated 
to the men he served. Over the years between the war and his passing in 
1985, Milo attended the funerals of over 900 veterans in Brown County, 
Wisconsin. He used his dress uniform so frequently that he wore it out. 
As a mark of respect and thanks, local veterans organizations paid to 
have it restored.
  By naming this temporary community outpatient clinic building in 
Green Bay after Milo Huempfner, we are paying respect to one of 
Wisconsin's great heroes.

[[Page H11879]]

  I would like to thank Milo Huempfner's children, Jackie, Wayne, Geri 
and Milo, for their help and also his friend, Bernard Depry of Green 
Bay, who brought this request to my attention and worked tirelessly 
over the years to make this a reality.
  I encourage my colleagues to support H.R. 2408. We are recognizing 
the deeds of a brave and noble man.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2408, a bill to designate the VA 
outpatient clinic in Green Bay, Wisconsin as the Milo Huempfner 
Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic would honor an 
individual whose demeanor during combat in World War II exemplifies the 
concept of the army of one.
  In 1944, Private First Class Huempfner was stranded in the small 
Belgian village of Leignon after his truck was separated from its 
convoy and slid off the road. While in hiding in Leignon, Private First 
Class Huempfner found that the village had been overrun by German 
troops. He proceeded, over the next 4 days and nights, to 
singlehandedly wage war against an entire German armored column 
consisting of tanks, numerous heavy gun emplacements, and hundreds of 
soldiers. During this period of time, Private First Class Huempfner 
warned off numerous American and British troops from Leignon, who 
otherwise would have been slaughtered by the Germans occupying the 
town. He repeatedly refused to be evacuated on these occasions, staying 
to destroy additional German equipment, killing German soldiers in 
direct combat, and protecting the citizens of the occupied town.
  Mr. Speaker, on Christmas Eve, British forces dislodged German forces 
using information collected by Private First Class Huempfner. After 
over 72 hours on his feet, under constant threat and harassment from 
enemy forces, Private First Class Huempfner retired to a household he 
had earlier defended.
  For all of these accomplishments he was awarded the Distinguished 
Service Cross in 1973. After the war, Private First Class Huempfner 
attended the funerals of as many veteran comrades as possible. Reports 
indicate that he participated in the burial of some 900 fellow comrades 
in arms over the years since World War II, attending in full dress 
uniform, honoring their service and repeatedly demonstrating his love 
for our Nation by showing the brave veterans of Brown County the 
dignity and respect that they had earned. He continued attending these 
funerals until a week before his death in October 1985.
  Mr. Speaker, I support honoring this brave American veteran by naming 
this facility the Milo C. Huempfner Department of Veterans Affairs 
Outpatient Clinic. It is a fine tribute to a true patriot and true 
hero.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.


                             General Leave

  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I again ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2408.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. FILNER. I want to thank Mr. Kagen for bringing this story and 
history of a brave American and a great hero for Wisconsin. I wish your 
guys from Green Bay, whether they be quarterbacks or heroes, would have 
names we could pronounce. But we thank you for telling us the story of 
Milo Huempfner, and we look forward to the naming of the facility in 
Green Bay after him.
  Mr. Speaker, the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) was established in 
1918 by President Woodrow Wilson. It is the second highest military 
decoration of the United States Army and surpassed only by the Medal of 
Honor in order of precedence.
  The DSC is awarded for extreme gallantry and risk of life and this 
extraordinary heroism must take place while the individual is engaged 
in an action against an enemy of the United States. The act of heroism 
must be so notable and involve risk of life so extraordinary as to set 
the individual apart from his comrades.
  It is an honor for me to stand before you today to talk about one 
such individual--Milo C. Huempfner.
  Mr. Huempfner was the most decorated serviceman in Brown County 
during World War II. In 1944, PFC Huempfner committed acts of 
extraordinary bravery and heroism during the final European campaign of 
World War II.
  On December 20, 1944, in Belgium, PFC Huempfner was driving a truck 
loaded with ammunition that went off the road. Sending his only comrade 
back to seek help and safety, Huempfner proceeded over the next 4 days 
and nights to wage war, single-handedly, against an entire German 
armored column.
  During this time, he warned off numerous American and British troops 
from the area who otherwise would have been slaughtered by the Germans 
occupying the area.
  After his military service he remained heavily involved in veterans 
activities.
  H.R. 2408 would name the Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient 
Clinic in Green Bay, Wisconsin, as the ``Milo C. Huempfner Department 
of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic''.
  Given his unselfish service to his country, it is only fitting that 
we name a Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic in his honor.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague of Wisconsin, Steve Kagen, for 
introducing this bill and I urge the support of my colleagues.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Filner) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 2408.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________