[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 161 (Tuesday, October 23, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13255-S13256]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES


                 Chief Warrant Officer John W. Engeman

  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, in the lush green hills of Arlington 
Cemetery, where peace holds its gentle sway, there is a headstone 
inscribed with the name of John W. Engeman. On it are his rank of chief 
warrant officer, and his honors, the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, and 
Purple Heart. But, like all of the iconic white markers at Arlington, 
it only tells part of a hero's story.

[[Page S13256]]

  Chief Warrant Officer Engeman enlisted in the Army when he was 18, 
and was stationed in Korea and Germany, and served in Kosovo and 
Operation Desert Storm. Two years ago, he moved with his family to West 
Virginia, where he was the active duty liaison between the National 
Guard and Reserves.
  But he was more than a career military man; he was also a devoted 
father and husband, brother and son.
  The soldiers in his unit called him a father figure and a great story 
teller. They recalled that whenever they needed advice, they always 
went to the Chief. They said they would follow him anywhere because he 
was a great leader, a good decisionmaker, and a good friend. And, they 
said, he loved to talk about his wife Donna or his two children, Nicole 
and Patrick.
  So I can only imagine how he must have felt when the Army made 
special arrangements for him to watch his wife graduate from college. 
It had been a shared goal between the two of them, and on the day 
before Mother's Day, he sat half-a-world away and watched the dream 
turn into a reality. He ended that day by telling his wife how proud he 
was of her, and that he would call the next day to wish her a happy 
Mother's Day.
  It was a call that would never come. Chief Warrant Officer Engeman's 
humvee would be struck by a roadside bomb later that evening.
  From the earliest days of the Republic we have held a special place 
in our hearts for those families who have lost a loved one in war. 
Later this week, as part of the White House Commission of Remembrance, 
the family of Chief Warrant Officer Engeman will be honored, along with 
the families of other soldiers, sailors, and marines who have been lost 
in combat.
  It is altogether right and fitting that we do this. Chief Warrant 
Officer Engeman answered the call to duty and served with honor and 
distinction. He won the respect of his soldiers and the admiration of 
his country.
  But those truly timeless qualities--his laugh, his quirky smile he 
would give you when you needed his advice, and his love for his 
family--will live in the hearts of his wife, children, sisters, and 
parents forever.
  All of West Virginia joins with me today in keeping the Engemans 
close in our hearts and prayers.

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