[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 109 (Friday, July 26, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1148-E1149]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       RECOGNIZING MR. JOHN ODOM

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. HENRY A. WAXMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 26, 2013

  Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the extraordinary 
courage and resilience of Mr. John Odom, a victim of the Boston 
Marathon bombings who has spent the last 100 days recovering from his 
life-threatening injuries.
  Mr. Odom traveled from Redondo Beach, California to Boston to watch 
his daughter Nicole run her first marathon and he was standing near the 
finish line when the first explosion went off. Shrapnel from the 
explosion severed two of Mr. Odom's arteries and his sciatic nerve. His 
son-in-law, Matt Reis, was able to staunch the blood loss using his 
belt as a tourniquet and Mr. Odom's wife Karen applied pressure to the 
wound until help arrived.
  Mr. Odom spent 5\1/2\ weeks at Boston Medical Center and underwent 
eleven surgeries. Afterwards, he was transferred to Spaulding 
Rehabilitation Hospital where he spent another 5\1/2\ weeks receiving 
therapy. He is currently undergoing outpatient therapy at Spaulding and 
is making great progress with the incredible support of his family. He 
hopes to return home to Southern California in September.
  We have all heard about the extraordinary acts of bravery and heroism 
of the victims of the Boston bombings. Mr. Odom has had a long hard 
struggle since April 15, but he has

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persevered and is getting stronger as each day passes. I ask my 
colleagues to join me in honoring him today and I hope you will keep 
him and his family in your thoughts as he continues to heal.

                          ____________________