[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 79 (Thursday, June 6, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Page S3981]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES


                   PRIVATE FIRST CLASS CODY J. TOWSE

  Mr. LEE. Madam President, it is with a heavy heart that I address the 
Senate today, as I rise to honor a recently fallen soldier. PFC Cody J. 
Towse, one of Utah's finest, was killed last month when his patrol was 
hit by an improvised explosive device in Kandahar Province, 
Afghanistan.
  PFC Towse loved to help others. He served as a combat medic in the 
Army, and was a certified EMT and a volunteer firefighter prior to 
enlistment. He put his special skills to use in serving the United 
States by saving other soldiers. He recently received a Combat Medic 
award for performing his medical duties while being actively engaged by 
the enemy.
  Before enlisting in the Army, Cody started a blog to chronicle his 
time in the military, which he hoped would help other prospective 
recruits. His blog is filled with comical posts, as well as insightful 
truths and prophetic statements. In his first post, he wrote, ``I've 
never been quite so excited for anything in my life. I've grown tired 
of living a mediocre life and can't wait to start a journey full of 
responsibility, honor, and dedication.'' PFC Towse lived up to that 
ideal, and left a shining example for the world to follow.
  A Utah newspaper wrote that PFC Towse ``was known as the `Candy 
Doctor'--a name he earned by showering the children with countless 
handfuls of fruity or chocolate treats.'' His father, Jim Towse said 
that Cody ``was my boy. He was me. I love old cars, he loves old cars. 
Seems like everything I love, he loved.'' Their special relationship 
was the kind that only a father and his son could have. Jim also said, 
``It comforts me to know [Cody] went for a noble cause. He told me, 
`You know, Dad, if I go out in a blaze of glory, don't worry. If I can 
save somebody doing it, all the better.' ''
  In another blog post, written just before leaving for Afghanistan, 
PFC Towse poignantly wrote of the deeper thoughts and conflicting 
feelings our soldiers often face:

       I feel like we all walk a fine edge, emotionally at least. 
     A man can't sit around and contemplate the impending 
     possibility of his death all day or he'll go crazy. It can be 
     just as bad for a man to sit around and joke like nothing 
     could ever happen to him and breed a lackadaisical outlook on 
     his mission and get himself or his buddies killed.
       Now I'm just rambling. I guess in short I just wanted to 
     say that sometimes the biggest obstacle a man faces is 
     himself and his mind. Yeah, that sounded educated, I'll go 
     with that.

  Indeed, each of us would do well to remember and apply the truth of 
which PFC Towse wrote. In order to overcome challenges in our lives, we 
must first overcome our own fears and perceived inadequacies. I believe 
that Cody Towse lived his life according to this truth.
  His commander in Afghanistan reported that when the patrol was 
attacked, PFC Towse began assisting the wounded. As PFC Towse was 
performing his duties, a second IED was detonated and the resulting 
injuries took his life. When I heard of Cody's story, I was reminded of 
Christ's teaching: ``Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay 
down his life for his friends.'' PFC Towse's dutiful actions were 
unquestionably an ultimate display of love for his brothers in arms.
  I imagine that Cody, like many of our service men and women, would 
deny the claim that he is a hero. To Cody, and all of our soldiers, I 
would say that you are among the few heroes left in our modern world. 
As Americans, we all feel a profound sense of pride and honor when we 
see a uniformed soldier, and we would be wise to remember our heroes in 
all that we do, especially in this body.
  I thank PFC Cody J. Towse for his honorable service in defense of the 
Constitution and our freedom, and I thank all of our men and women who 
have also given the ultimate sacrifice. I would like to convey my 
condolences and profound gratitude to Cody's parents, Jim and Jamie, 
his brothers Will and Christian, and his sister Callan. Our thoughts 
and prayers are with you. It is my solemn hope that we, as Senators, 
will always remember the tremendous sacrifice, laid upon the altar of 
freedom, of our brave soldiers and their families.

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