[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 74 (Tuesday, May 6, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3784-S3785]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES


                FIRST LIEUTENANT MATTHEW R. VANDERGRIFT

  Mr. SALAZAR. Mr. President, I rise today to honor the service and 
sacrifice of Marine 1Lt Matthew Vandergrift, of Littleton, CO. 
Lieutenant Vandergrift was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 10th Marine 
Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, out of 
Camp Lajeune, NC. He was recently killed in Basra, Iraq, by a bomb that 
exploded near his humvee. He was 28 years old.

[[Page S3785]]

  Those who knew Matthew Vandergrift describe him as a true patriot, 
committed to his country, his family, his friends, and to helping those 
around him. He was full of energy and laughter, and was always looking 
for the next adventure.
  Matthew grew up in Austin, TX, and attended Texas A&M University, 
where he graduated with honors in 2005. He was a member of the Corps of 
Cadets and Naval ROTC at Texas A&M, majored in international business, 
and had a 4.0 grade point average.
  When he became a marine in 2005, Matthew joined a proud family 
tradition of military service. His father was a major in the Marine 
Corps, his younger brother Barrett is an Air Force helicopter pilot, 
and his great uncle was GEN Alexander Vandergrift, a World War II Medal 
of Honor recipient and the 18th Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps.
  When he was killed, Lieutenant Vandergrift was in the middle of a 
year-long deployment that began last August. Tasked with helping train 
Iraqi security forces, his team of four marines lived and patrolled 
together with 50 Iraqis. They were performing sweeps in Basra in an 
attempt to calm violence, root out pockets of insurgents, and stand up 
an Iraqi unit that could take charge of the security responsibilities 
in the area. It was a dangerous mission in one of the most dangerous 
places in Iraq. But it was also a vital mission, and one that demanded 
the smarts, courage, and character for which Lieutenant Vandegrift was 
known.
  Each of our men and women in uniform is a patriot--they stand up at 
the call of their country and assume the task of service. But Matthew 
Vandergrift was also a patriot in a broader sense. Frances Wright, one 
of America's most famous lecturers, reminds us that patriotism is not 
simply one's love and dedication to country. Patriotism, she observes, 
is a virtue that characterizes an individual's commitment to the public 
good, to the preference of the interests of the many to the interests 
of the few, and to the love of liberty. ``A patriot,'' she told an 
Indiana crowd on July 4, 1828, ``is a useful member of society, capable 
of enlarging all minds and bettering all hearts with which he comes in 
contact; a useful member of the human family, capable of establishing 
fundamental principles and of merging his own interests, those of his 
associates, and those of his nation in the interests of the human 
race.''
  We cannot count the hearts that Lieutenant Vandergrift touched nor 
the lives he bettered--that knowledge rests in the memories of those 
who knew him and served with him--but we may hope to emulate his model 
of patriotism. It is no easy task. It is rare that a man puts himself 
on the line for his country and for those with whom he served with such 
courage, with such heart, and with such a smile, as Matthew.
  Lieutenant Matthew Vandergrift's stature in life is matched only by 
the depth of his sacrifice--and the void he leaves behind. To Matthew's 
family, I know no words that can ease the pain of losing a son or a 
brother. I hope that in time you will find consolation in the pride you 
must feel for Matthew's service and for the joy he brought to all who 
knew him. He was a patriot and a hero. His country will always honor 
his sacrifice.

                          ____________________