[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 88 (Wednesday, June 3, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E831]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 LIEUTENANT PARKER MOSLEY--PARATROOPER

                                 ______
                                 

                              HON. TED POE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 3, 2015

  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, at 91 years of age, E. Parker Mosley 
is a local legend. Lieutenant Mosley has served his country, traveled 
the world and even rubbed elbows with one of history's fiercest 
generals. Lt. Mosley is a loyal patriot and a man of integrity and 
action. The Houston community is blessed to have him.
  Lt. Mosley was born in 1924 in Macon, Georgia. From ages 12-18, he 
went to Gordon military school, where his father was a teacher. After 
graduation, in 1942, he was drafted into the Army. Being an eager and 
young man, he volunteered to be a paratrooper in WWII. Mosley attended 
Jump School at Fort Benning in Georgia.
  Paratroopers are military parachutists that are used as a surprise 
advantage to the military because they can be inserted quickly into the 
battlefield from the air.
  This allows the military to be positioned in areas that are not 
accessible by land. The first U.S. Airborne unit began a test in July 
1940 and the first U.S. Army Combat Jump was near Oran, Algeria, in 
North Africa on November 8, 1942, which was right before Lt. Mosley 
started Jump School. This aspect of the military was quite new and 
unfamiliar, but that did not stop tenacious Lt. Mosley from 
volunteering to be a paratrooper.
  Lt. Mosley was then sent to Officer Candidate School (OCS) in 
Brisbane, Australia, to learn military and leadership skills. Even more 
impressive and something that many people do not know, Lt. Mosley was 
first in his class at OCS. This is a high honor and privilege that many 
do not receive.
  Lt. Mosley even had an opportunity to meet and befriend General 
MacArthur's wife at a Red Cross church service. Coincidentally, he ran 
into her two years later in Japan and she remembered him.
  After Brisbane, Lt. Mosley moved to the Philippines and then Japan 
where he was assigned master in the parachute school airbase at Yamato. 
At one point he even held the record number of consecutive jumps; he 
was always willing to jump. His favorite jumping memory was his last 
jump at the age of 22. It was over northern Japan and he was allowed to 
solo jump. There was no one giving him orders; he was all by himself. 
He said he will never forget the pilot circling as he jumped.
  And not only was Lt. Mosley good at his job, he encouraged other 
troops. He once convinced two soldiers to stay in parachute school who 
were going to quit.
  He asked them if they had told their girlfriends about parachute 
school yet, and if they had, now they'd have to write their girlfriends 
back and tell them they quit. The approach worked and they each thanked 
him the next day.
  Lt. Mosley was discharged from the army in 1947. He then went on to 
Oklahoma University in Norman, Oklahoma, to study geology where he met 
his future wife, Lorraine.
  Lt. Mosley described their first date like this: ``I had an airplane 
at the time, but no car. I called her and asked her if she wanted to go 
flying, and I don't think she believed me that I had a plane but no 
car. We went out for six nights straight then got engaged, just like 
that.''
  Lorraine and Lt. Mosley were married for 63 years before she passed 
away a couple of years ago.
  After college at Oklahoma University, Mosley was hired by Exxon where 
he worked for 35 years. His work with Exxon eventually brought him to 
Texas, where he lives today.
  He remained in the Reserves after Active Duty and even reached the 
rank of captain.
  Mosley is admired and respected by his peers for his patriotism and 
wit. One of his friends, Mr. Warnack, said that Mosley has ``one of the 
quickest minds I've ever ran across.''
  Recently, Creekwood Middle School in Kingwood--which has a tradition 
of honoring our military--honored Lt. Mosley by dedicating a brick to 
him in their Veterans Honor Garden. The Honor Garden contains more than 
200 bricks which all honor local veterans and serve as a place of 
remembrance for past and present loved ones. It is my hope that all the 
students learn Lt. Mosley's story. He is one of Texas' finest.
  Lt. Mosley represents the best of the Greatest Generation. He's truly 
a remarkable patriot--always ready and willing to jump out of a plane 
for his country.
  Thank you, Lt. Parker Mosley, for your devotion and service to our 
American nation.
  And that's just the way it is.

                          ____________________