[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 81 (Wednesday, May 26, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E958]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


             REMEMBRANCE OF NAVY PETTY OFFICER ZARIAN WOOD

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. GENE GREEN

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 26, 2010

  Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today to extend my 
deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Navy PO Zarian Wood, 
who died May 16 while serving in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, 
according to the Department of Defense.
  Petty Officer Wood of Houston was a 1999 graduate of South Houston 
High School who had served as a youth minister and tutor before 
enlisting in the Navy. Known to friends and family as a giving young 
man, he followed his father's footsteps in service to his country.
  Petty Officer Wood was deployed to Iraq as a hospital corpsman from 
2007-2008 and upon returning home he volunteered for a second combat 
tour in Afghanistan. He was assigned to India Company, as a hospital 
corpsman in the Third Battalion, First Marine Regiment, First Marine 
Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force.
  On May 14, 3\1/2\ weeks into deployment, Petty Officer Wood sustained 
wounds when an improvised explosive device detonated during foot patrol 
in the Helmand Province.
  I know his father, family and friends are devastated by this loss, 
but they should be proud of the great man Zarian Wood had become and 
that he died a hero while serving his country.
  His loss will be felt by all of Houston, our state, and our nation, 
and I ask that you remember the family in your thoughts and prayers.
  I would like to submit for the record this article on Officer Wood 
that appeared in the Houston Chronicle on May 18.

               [From the Houston Chronicle, May 18, 2010]

            Sailor Served as ``Doc,'' Volunteered for Combat

                           (By Lindsay Wise)

       Volunteer: Petty Officer Zarian Wood died Sunday of wounds 
     suffered in Afghanistan.
       Before he deployed to Afghanistan last month, Zarian Wood 
     visited his father and brother for a week at their home in 
     south Houston. The three men played video games, dined on 
     steak and shrimp and lounged on camping chairs in the 
     driveway. It was like a mini family reunion, recalled his 
     father, Daniel Wood.
       ``Just before he left, he told me, `Dad, take care of 
     yourself and everything, and I'll be back,' '' he said.
       The 29-year-old Navy petty officer third class from Houston 
     died Sunday of wounds inflicted by a bomb blast during a foot 
     patrol in Helmand Province. He had only been in Afghanistan 
     about 3\1/2\ weeks.
       ``He was a good honest Christian man,'' said his father, a 
     63-year-old Vietnam veteran. ``He thought he went over there 
     to help children and help the country better itself, and 
     wham.''
       The father took a shaking breath, still stunned by the 
     news.
       ``Ah well, he's with the good Lord, you know,'' he said.
       Nicknamed ``Z,'' Zarian graduated in 1999 from South 
     Houston High School, where he'd competed on the wrestling 
     team.


                          Youth pastor, tutor

       He worked as a youth pastor and tutor for troubled kids on 
     Houston's northeast side and a merchandiser for Coca-Cola 
     before enlisting in 2006. His decision to undergo rigorous 
     training to become a hospital corpsman was very much in 
     character for him, his relatives say.
       ``He was a very giving young man and my mother taught all 
     of us that when you have nothing to give you have yourself to 
     give,'' said his sister, Teresa Robertson.
       Zarian deployed to Iraq from 2007-2008. His relatives said 
     he volunteered for his second combat tour, this time a seven-
     month stint in Afghanistan, where he served as ``Doc'' on the 
     front lines alongside Marine infantrymen from Camp Pendleton, 
     Calif. He was assigned to India Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st 
     Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary 
     Force.
       ``He was taking care of other folks,'' his father said. 
     ``He was doing what he wanted to do, and he was doing it for 
     his beliefs. He didn't want younger men to have to see and do 
     what he'd seen and done over there.''
       Zarian was the third Texan and third member of this Marine 
     battalion to be killed in Afghanistan recently. Cpl. Jeffrey 
     Johnson, 21, of Tomball was also killed May 11 by an 
     improvised explosive device while on a foot patrol. Sgt. 
     Kenneth B. May Jr., 26, of Kilgore, also died in that attack. 
     Johnson and May served in Weapons Company.
       The close-knit Wood family gathered on Tuesday to make 
     funeral arrangements and remember the fallen corpsman.
       ``He had a good heart, very outgoing, worked out at the gym 
     every day,'' said his older brother, Zachary Wood. ``He cared 
     about his looks.''
       ``He was very meticulous about that,'' his father said with 
     a laugh. ``He was a handsome man.''


                         Wanted to be a dentist

       He was an honest man, too, even to the point of being 
     blunt, his brother said.
       ``Yeah, he'd tell you in a flat minute if you were wrong,'' 
     his father said. ``Then again, he'd stand up for you in a 
     flat minute if you were right.''
       He said his son dreamed of going back to school someday.
       ``He wanted to study radiology and then after he got that 
     degree, he was going to try to become a dentist,'' he said.
       ``He was all about living life, living life to the 
     fullest,'' his brother said.
       Zarian was preceded in death by his mother, Nellie Sue 
     Wood. He is survived by his father, Daniel Wood, and siblings 
     Zachary Wood, Krista Hamilton, Teresa Robertson, Victor 
     Robertson and Micah Dixon. Funeral arrangements are pending.

                          ____________________