[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 149 (Thursday, October 6, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1790]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     COMMENDING MSGT. TODD EIPPERLE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. BRUCE L. BRALEY

                                of iowa

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 6, 2011

  Mr. BRALEY of Iowa. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Master 
Sergeant Todd Eipperle of Marshalltown, IA. On September 20, 2011, 
MSgt. Eipperle received the Bronze Star from the Army for his actions 
in July 2011 which are credited with saving the lives of members of his 
team following an attack from a rogue security officer from the Afghan 
National Directorate of Security. A proud member of the Iowa National 
Guard, MSgt. Eipperle was previously awarded the Purple Heart for 
wounds he received during the attack. MSgt. Eipperle exemplifies the 
best of our Iowa Guardsmen and the good work they did during their 
recent deployment to Afghanistan.
   In July of this year, only a week before he was scheduled to return 
home with the 2,800 other Iowa Guardsmen he'd deployed with, MSgt. 
Eipperle was wounded in the process of engaging a rogue Afghan security 
officer who had shot and killed two of his comrades, fellow Guardsman 
Sgt. 1st Class Terryl Pasker of Cedar Rapids, IA and retired 
Connecticut State Trooper Paul Protzenko of Enfield, CT. Passing 
through a checkpoint in Panjshir province, the rogue Afghan officer 
unexpectedly fired at the Iowa Guardsmen. MSgt. Eipperle's quick action 
in engaging the attacker, despite gunshot wounds to his own hip and 
shoulder, is credited with saving a number of his colleagues and his 
own life.
  MSgt. Eipperle is home once again, having received the Bronze Star in 
Marshalltown before members of his community, and being honored with a 
parade and town proclamation in his honor on September 20. While he's 
left the war, MSgt. Eipperle is still on active duty, recovering from 
the wounds he sustained in July. I commend MSgt. Eipperle on his 
heroism, for a job well done on deployment, and wish him well on his 
recovery.

                          ____________________