[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 129 (Thursday, September 23, 2010)]
[House]
[Page H6968]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     HONORING CAPTAIN DALE A. GOETZ

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Coffman) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado. Madam Speaker, United States Army Captain 
Dale A. Goetz, an Air Force veteran with ties to Colorado, joined the 
Army's chaplaincy out of a strong desire to help others.
  Captain Dale Goetz and his wife, Christy, both graduated from 
Maranatha Baptist Bible College in 1995. He was a former pastor of 
First Baptist Church in White, South Dakota, before being stationed at 
military bases throughout the world. Earlier this year, Captain Goetz 
was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade 
Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colorado, and the 
family moved to Colorado Springs in January of 2010. This allowed his 
wife Christy, and their sons Landon, Caleb, and Joel to be closer to 
his mother, Hope Goetz, an Elbert County commissioner.
  Captain Goetz and his family joined High Country Baptist Church in 
Colorado Springs the day before he deployed to Afghanistan. Captain 
Goetz, who had previously served in Iraq, cared about the soldiers he 
worked with as an Army chaplain, and according to his pastor at High 
Country Baptist Church in Colorado Springs, ``His goal as a chaplain 
was not to be a social worker, but to be a spiritual guide.''
  Captain Goetz is described as having ``a calm demeanor that helped 
soldiers find strength in the darkest of times,'' according to Reverend 
Stuart Schwenke, a fellow pastor he had gone through ministerial 
training with.
  On August 30, 2010, Captain Goetz was on a mission in Kandahar 
Province, Afghanistan, when insurgents attacked his unit with an 
improvised explosive device which detonated near their military 
vehicle. Captain Goetz was gravely wounded and died of injuries 
sustained during the attack. Four of his fellow soldiers from Fort 
Carson, Colorado, were also killed in action as a result of the 
incident.
  Captain Dale A. Goetz is a shining example of the United States 
Army's service and sacrifice. As a former member of the United States 
Army, and a retired Marine Corps combat veteran, my deepest sympathies 
go out to his mother, Hope Goetz, an Elbert County commissioner; his 
wife Christy; their sons, Landon, Caleb, and Joel; and his sisters, Ann 
Senetar and Kim Sumner.

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