[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 3 (Thursday, January 8, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E47-E48]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          HONORING ARTHUR HILL

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. GEORGE RADANOVICH

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 8, 2009

  Mr. RADANOVICH. Madam Speaker, I rise today along with my colleague 
from California Mr. Costa to commend and congratulate Captain Arthur 
Hill (U.S. Army retired) upon being honored with the Citizen Soldier 
Award. Mr. Hill was honored on November 7, 2008 at the Fresno City 
College Veterans Day 2008 Memorial and Dedication Ceremony.
  Mr. Hill was born on July 16, 1916. Shortly after the bombing at 
Pearl Harbor he began volunteering for the Army Engineers, he was 27 
years old. He has a background in construction, so in 1942 he was sent 
to Camp Claiborne, LA to a Special Service Engineer Regiment. On 
December 23, 1942, Mr. Hill graduated from O.C.S. and the Heavy 
Equipment School at Fort Belvoir, VA as a Second Lieutenant. At Camp 
Swift, TX, he was assigned to the 146 Engineer (C) Battalion as the 
Headquarters Company Commander with the additional duty of Battalion 
Motor Officer. He held this command, as a Captain, with various 
additional duties until the end of the war.
  During the war his battalion moved to England's North Coastal area of 
Saunton Sands. They helped build and operate an assault training center 
of enemy fortifications duplicated during their time overseas. These 
fortifications were from secret aerial reconnaissance photos of the 
landing beaches and Siegfried line defenses. This led to the 
spearheading of the Omaha Beach ``D Day'' landing at the ``H'' hour 
plus 3 minutes across the English Channel on June 6, 1944. The five 
European campaigns of Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland, Ardennes-
Alsace, and Central Europe followed.

[[Page E48]]

  After the collapse of Germany, the 146th (C) Engineers, along with 
other engineer groups of V Corps were assisting with the debris 
clearance and the restoration of utilities of battered Pilsen, 
Czechoslovakia. In Pilsen, Captain Hill was named director of the XXII 
Corps Heavy Equipment School for approximately 65 Czech civil engineers 
and equipment operators from the V, VII, and XXII Corps. Captain Hill 
was later given the title of Base Commander at one of several 
embarkation centers that were responsible for upgrading facilities for 
pending troop movement. While at the Biarritz American University in 
Southern France, he learned that he had received a Foreign Award, the 
Czech Military Medal.
  Upon returning home, Captain Hill was discharged on January 8, 1946. 
He began his civilian life and worked in the petroleum industry for 30 
years. He and his wife, B.J. (now deceased), were married for over 50 
years. Since April 1992, Mr. Hill has enjoyed his time as a volunteer 
at the National Legion of Valor Museum in Fresno, California, where he 
is also an honorary lifetime member. He became the museum Director in 
July 2001. From 1995-1996, he also served as the American Legion 
Commander of Fresno Post No. 4.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and congratulate Arthur Hill 
upon his achievements. I invite my colleagues to join me in wishing Mr. 
Hill many years of continued success.

                          ____________________