[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 21 (Wednesday, February 8, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E164]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   HONORING SPECIAL AGENT DONALD WARE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSEPH J. HECK

                               of nevada

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 8, 2012

  Mr. HECK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the service and 
sacrifice of Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Donald Cleo 
Ware, a Nevadan who dedicated his life to protecting the public from 
the dangers and violence associated with illegal drugs.
  Special Agent Ware began his career in law enforcement in 1967 with 
the Albuquerque Police Department in New Mexico. Soon after, he joined 
the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, an agency which later 
merged to become the Drug Enforcement Administration. Special Agent 
Ware served twenty-five years with the DEA, protecting the American 
people and bravely fighting to eliminate the scourge of dangerous 
drugs.
  On June 9, 1975, while conducting an investigation of a heroin 
trafficking organization in San Luis Rio Colorado, Mexico, Special 
Agent Ware and Special Agent Wilfred Stevenson were kidnapped on their 
way to a meeting with the drug traffickers. Both agents were badly 
beaten and searched for weapons, but the gangsters failed to discover a 
gun Special Agent Ware had hidden in his waistband.
  Knowing their captors intended to kill them, Special Agents Ware and 
Stevenson made a desperate attempt to escape using the gun the drug 
traffickers had failed to find. However, both agents were shot during 
the escape attempt and were left for dead by their attackers. Both 
agents survived this harrowing ordeal, but Special Agent Ware's 
injuries were so serious that he remained hospitalized for the next six 
months.
  The shooting that nearly took his life never changed Special Agent 
Ware's trademark humility and dedication to his job. Though Special 
Agent Ware qualified for full medical retirement, he instead chose to 
continue working for the DEA until his retirement in 1995. For his 
service, Special Agent Ware was awarded the DEA Medal of Valor and the 
DEA Purple Heart Award.
  Don Ware died on October 12, 2004, due to complications during a 
surgery directly related to his injuries received in the line of duty. 
To honor his service and sacrifice, Special Agent Ware was memorialized 
on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial on May 12, 2011, and 
the DEA Wall of Honor on May 13, 2011.
  Mr. Speaker, it is my honor to recognize the life and service of 
Special Agent Don Ware, a great Nevadan, a devoted husband and father, 
and a dedicated officer of the law. His legacy stands as an excellent 
example for the entire law enforcement community, and his service and 
sacrifice should always be remembered.

                          ____________________