[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 145 (Tuesday, December 2, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1683]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING THE SERVICE OF MR. JAMES T. CECIL

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. ANDY BARR

                              of kentucky

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 2, 2014

  Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize an outstanding 
individual, Mr. James T. Cecil of Lexington, Kentucky, for his 
distinguished military service during World War II. Mr. Cecil served 
our nation in uniform from August 26, 1942 to September 15, 1945.
   At the age of 19 years old, Mr. Cecil was one of 70 young men from 
Central Kentucky who voluntarily enlisted as a private in the Marine 
Corps with what was known as the Lexington Platoon. Today, Mr. Cecil is 
the only surviving member of the original Lexington Platoon.
   During the United States' campaign to achieve victory over the Axis 
Powers, Mr. Cecil entered the war by joining some of the bloodiest 
battles of the Pacific and continued to fight until the Empire of Japan 
signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender on board the USS Missouri 
on September 2, 1954.
   Mr. Cecil was a member of the first wave of U.S. forces that stormed 
the islands of Saipan and Tarakan. He was delayed entering the battles 
on the island of Okinawa for one day due to a Japanese kamikaze plane 
striking the naval ship he was aboard and causing him and his fellow 
service members to abandon ship. Astonishingly, after floating in the 
shark infested waters for about 45 minutes, Mr. Cecil was rescued by a 
nearby U.S. naval vessel.
   On June 20, 1944, during fierce combat on the islands of Saipan, Mr. 
Cecil received shrapnel wounds throughout his body caused by an enemy's 
exploding artillery ordinance. Because of a severe concussion that left 
him unconscious, Mr. Cecil was believed by his comrades to be dead. 
Miraculously, Mr. Cecil recovered and courageously returned to the 
battlefield, fighting until the Marines took control of the islands.
   When asked how he was able to make it through the dangers and 
challenges of war, Mr. Cecil said, ``I took it one day at a time, and I 
did what I was supposed to do.'' Today, he can still vividly recall his 
experience, and is often reminded of his involvements by gazing at a 
portrait of a Japanese officer whom he killed in combat. However, it 
was Mr. Cecil's discovery of a map in the officer's pocket which 
outlined many of the enemy's artillery positions that earned him a 
battlefield promotion from private to corporal. Mr. Cecil also earned a 
Purple Heart due to the injuries he sustained during battle.
   Mr. Cecil's bravery and that of his fellow men and women in uniform 
secured our freedoms for future generations. He is truly an outstanding 
American, a protector of freedom, and an inspiration to us all.

                          ____________________