[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 63 (Tuesday, April 28, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H4852-H4853]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 BRIAN K. SCHRAMM POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 1595) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 3245 Latta Road in Rochester, New York, as the 
``Brian K. Schramm Post Office Building''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1595



 =========================== NOTE =========================== 

  
  April 28, 2009 on Page H4852 the following appeared: H. RES. 
1595
  
  The online version should be corrected to read: H.R. 1595


 ========================= END NOTE ========================= 

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

     SECTION 1. BRIAN K. SCHRAMM POST OFFICE BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 3245 Latta Road in Rochester, New York, 
     shall be known and designated as the ``Brian K. Schramm Post 
     Office Building''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Brian K. Schramm Post Office Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. Lynch) and the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. 
Westmoreland) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Massachusetts.


                             General Leave

  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Massachusetts?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, as Chairman of the House subcommittee with jurisdiction 
over the United States Postal Service, I am pleased to present H.R. 
1595 for consideration. This legislation will designate the United 
States postal facility located at 3245 Latta Road in Rochester, New 
York, as the Brian K. Schramm Post Office Building.
  Introduced on March 18, 2009, by my colleague Representative Chris 
Lee of New York and reported out of the Oversight and Government Reform 
Committee on April 2, 2009, by unanimous consent, H.R. 1595 enjoys the 
support of the entire sitting New York House delegation.
  A lifelong resident of the town of Greece in Rochester, New York, 
Lance Corporal Brian K. Schramm bravely served in support of Operation 
Iraqi Freedom with the 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 2nd Marine 
Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force out of Camp Lejeune, North 
Carolina. On October 15, 2004, Lance Corporal Schramm was killed in 
action at the age of 22 during an enemy shrapnel attack in Bail 
Province, Iraq.
  Upon his graduation from Greece Olympia High School in 2001, Lance 
Corporal Schramm chose to fulfill one of his life's dreams and join the 
United States Marine Corps. He served his first tour of duty in Iraq 
shortly following the March 20, 2003, launch of Operation Iraqi 
Freedom, and he bravely returned to the region in June of 2004 for his 
second tour.
  As noted by his devoted father, Keith, Lance Corporal Schramm was a 
genuine American hero who clearly knew what he wanted to do in life and 
he did it. Brian's loving family members also described the young 
soldier as a strong leader and motivator who was never down. He loved 
life and treated every day as an opportunity for adventure.
  Lance Corporal Schramm's friends and teachers at Greece Olympia High 
School and the surrounding community similarly remember Brian for his 
depth of decency, his contagious sense of humor, and his refusal to 
quit any assignment or mission, regardless of the difficulties he faced 
or the challenges that he met.
  Lance Corporal Schramm's genuine devotion to community service will 
also never be forgotten. In addition to his courageous military 
service, Brian frequently returned to his alma mater to discuss the war 
in Iraq, and was hoping to eventually become a police officer.
  It is in light of Brian's character and devotion to public service 
that Greece Olympia High School has already established the Brian 
Schramm Scholarship, awarded annually to a college-bound senior who 
demonstrates the extraordinary qualities exhibited by Brian Schramm. 
And it is my hope that we can further honor this fallen hero through 
the passage of this legislation, to dedicate the Latta Road post office 
building in his name.
  Mr. Speaker, Lance Corporal Brian Schramm's life stands as a 
testament to the bravery and dedication of our heroic men and women who 
have served our Nation at home and abroad, and I urge my colleagues to 
join us in supporting H.R. 1595.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. WESTMORELAND. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I rise today in support of H.R. 1595, to designate the facility of 
the United States Postal Service located at 3245 Latta Road in 
Rochester, New York as the ``Brian K. Schramm Post Office Building.''
  Today we honor one of our nation's fallen heroes--Marine Lance Cpl. 
Brian K. Schramm.
  He embodied every sense of the word hero and paid the ultimate 
sacrifice on October 15, 2004 at the age of 22.
  Lance Cpl. Schramm of Rochester, New York, assigned to the 2nd 
Assault Amphibian Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine 
Expeditionary Force out of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, was killed by 
enemy action in Babil Province, Iraq. Schramm had spent five months in 
the Middle East and Iraq in 2003 and was deployed again to Iraq in June 
of 2004.
  Babil Province was a hotspot south of Baghdad and the U.S. military 
had launched a major offensive in October of 2004 to try to put down 
the insurgency. Lance Cpl. Schramm was serving his second tour of duty 
in Iraq at the time.
  Friends and family remember Lance Cpl. Schramm for his enduring sense 
of humor and decency. A high school friend of his described Schramm as 
``the most genuine person you'd ever meet in your entire life.''
  Lance Cpl. Schramm's father, Keith, speaks of Brian's desire to 
become a Marine early on in his childhood. ``It was a lifelong dream'' 
of Brian's to become a Marine.
  It is with this in mind that we honor Brian today. With gratitude for 
his bravery and sacrifice to his country, I ask that all members join 
me in supporting H.R. 1595, which will rename the post office in 
Rochester, New York, in Lance Cpl. Brian K. Schramm's honor.
  Mr. WESTMORELAND. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to 
my distinguished colleague from the State of New York (Mr. Lee), the 
original sponsor of this legislation.

                              {time}  1300

  Mr. LEE of New York. I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I wanted 
to thank the chairman and the ranking member for helping to bring this 
legislation to the floor. I also want to thank the members of our New 
York delegation for cosponsoring this measure.
  Last month, I visited with Army National Guardsmen based out of 
Western New York who spent part of 2007 and most of 2008 serving in 
Afghanistan. These are soldiers who put their lives on hold for more 
than a year to help train the Afghan national army and police. They 
take great pride in the work that they do over there, but what they are 
most proud of is the fact that everyone came home safe and sound. Of 
course, not all units are fortunate.
  A great hero by the name of Brian Schramm, who grew up in Monroe 
County, a native of the town of Greece, heard the call to serve early 
on in his life. He signed up not long after graduating high school and 
went on to become a tremendous Marine.

[[Page H4853]]

  On October 15, 2004, Lance Corporal Schramm was on his second tour of 
Iraq when he became the first resident of the 26th Congressional 
District to be killed in action in Iraq. He was 22.
  Brian made the ultimate sacrifice to protect the values that sustain 
this country, family, community, hard work and freedom. That is why I 
introduced this proposal to rename the post office in his honor just a 
few miles down the road from where Brian had grown up.
  This is one way to pay tribute not only to Brian's sacrifices, but 
those of his loved ones as well, his parents, Keith and Mary Ellen; his 
older sister, Jennifer; and his two younger brothers, Kyle and Michael.
  Keith and Mary Ellen, who I've had the privilege to meet, have 
honored their son's legacy by becoming very active in local veterans' 
issues. Mary Ellen recently started the Rochester chapter of Gold Star 
Mothers.
  Being part of a military family requires a great amount of courage, 
and in Keith and Mary Ellen, the town of Greece has two everyday 
heroes.
  This post office would certainly not be the last tribute to Brian's 
memory. Each year a student at Brian's alma mater of Greece Olympia 
High School receives a scholarship in his name. This award is a 
testament to Brian's incredible work ethic and his lifelong desire to 
help others.
  Today, western New Yorkers seek to take another step towards repaying 
the great debt of gratitude we owe to Lance Corporal Schramm by 
redesignating a Federal facility in his honor.
  This legislation will make it so that children growing up in the town 
of Greece now and years to come will ask their parents, who was Brian 
Schramm? And then they will come to know about the selfless individual 
and brave patriot who gave his life to protect this Nation.
  Mr. Speaker, I can think of no better way to ensure that Brian's 
legacy endures.
  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers, but I continue 
to reserve.
  Mr. WESTMORELAND. Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers. And I 
just ask that my colleagues would give unanimous support for the 
renaming of this post office for this fallen hero.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I join with the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. 
Westmoreland) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Lee) in asking our 
Members to unanimously support this designation of this post office in 
memory of Brian Schramm.
  I yield back the balance of our time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Lynch) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1595.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a 
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not 
present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

                          ____________________