[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 191 (Wednesday, December 16, 2009)]
[House]
[Page H15477]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING SPECIALIST MICHAEL COTE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CASSIDY. Mr. Speaker, this may be the last address given on the 
floor of the House of Representatives this year. It is fitting that it 
is a tribute to Michael Cote, a specialist who gave his life while 
fighting to defend us in Iraq.
  Specialist Cote was from Denham Springs, Louisiana. After graduating 
from Denham Springs High School, he met his wife, Ashlee, when the two 
were in basic training. They passed notes back and forth during their 
training and snuck off to church services to be together on weekends. 
Just days after basic training ended, the two soldiers were married.
  Michael was serving in Iraq when their daughter, Brooke, was born in 
March, but he found a way to be on the phone with Ashlee during the 
delivery. She delivered in Baton Rouge.
  Ashlee tells me that Michael liked to fish and hunt. She says he was 
an all-around country boy who liked to goof around but always knew when 
it was time to be a soldier.
  Michael was serving as a crew chief when his Black Hawk helicopter 
went down in Balad, Iraq, in September.
  On the day of his memorial service, the people of Denham Springs 
lined the streets to wave American flags as the procession went by. 
Families brought their children and grandchildren out to honor 
Specialist Cote, a tribute to a man friends and family in Denham 
Springs say they knew would grow up to be a soldier.
  His mother, Carol Bass, tells me that she visits the grave daily.
  Mr. Speaker, we mourn with Ashlee, Brooke, and Mrs. Bass the loss of 
Specialist Cote, but let us celebrate his patriotism, his dedication to 
country, his sacrifice on behalf of our security.
  We are forever indebted to the men and women of our armed services, 
soldiers like Michael Cote, who put themselves in harm's way so that we 
may live freely and in peace.

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