[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 25, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1342]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E1342]]
          IN MEMORY OF LANCE CORPORAL ANDREW FRANCIS WHITACRE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MIKE PENCE

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 25, 2008

  Mr. PENCE. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a fallen hero who 
served his country bravely in Iraq and Afghanistan. I was deeply 
saddened to learn of the loss of Lance Corporal Andrew Whitacre of 
Bryant, Indiana, one of two Marines who perished while conducting 
combat operations in southwestern Afghanistan's Farah Province on 
Thursday, June 19, 2008.
  Lance Cpl. Whitacre was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st 
Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Twentynine 
Palms, California. He was serving in support of Operation Enduring 
Freedom in Afghanistan, where his unit was helping to train the Afghan 
national police.
  The three Marine Corps values are honor, courage and commitment. They 
make up the bedrock of the character of each individual Marine. These 
values, handed down from generation to generation, have made the U.S. 
Marine Corps the most respected and revered fighting force on earth. 
Lance Cpl. Whitacre personified these values and continued that proud 
tradition as a Marine who served his country bravely in combat.
  An Infantry Assaultman, part of a gun team attached to his infantry 
unit, Lance Cpl. Whitacre's stock and trade was demolitions, breaching, 
and firing shoulder-launched assault weapons. As I'm sure his fellow 2/
7 Marines who trusted their lives to his special explosives training 
would tell you, Lance Cpl. Whitacre was an asset to the Marine Corps, 
the United States and the American way of life. He will be sorely 
missed by all.
  In addition to any posthumous commendations that he might receive 
because he died in the line of duty, Lance Cpl. Whitacre was the 
recipient of six awards since he left for Marine Corps boot camp in 
July 2005. He earned ribbons for combat action and overseas service, 
including campaign medals for Iraq and Afghanistan.
  Madam Speaker, I extend my deepest condolences to the family and 
friends of Lance Cpl. Whitacre. And I wish to express my profound 
sadness to the community of Bryant, especially his father and 
stepmother, Ernie and Norma Whitacre; his mother and her fiancee, Susan 
Nunly and Michael Perry of Dunkirk; his fiancee, Casey McGuire of 
Parker, Arizona; two brothers, Ryan Murphy of Lancaster, Indiana and 
Justin Miller of Huntington; one sister, Ashley Williams of Lancaster, 
Indiana; four grandmothers, Mildred Whitacre of Berne, Caroline Huffman 
of Kendallville, Beulah Murphy of Bluffton and Mary Scott of Portland; 
and, many nieces and nephews.
  We are all struggling to cope with the tragic loss of this young man, 
no less because his death follows hard on the heels of another fallen 
Marine from the Sixth District who was lost less than a week before. 
Just as Lance Cpl. Whitacre embodied the Marine motto--Semper Fidelis, 
``Always Faithful''--let us also be faithful to extend a helping hand 
to his family, friends and community, and remember them in our thoughts 
and prayers.

                          ____________________