[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 147 (Wednesday, October 7, 2015)]
[House]
[Page H6841]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RED LAND LITTLE LEAGUE
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Perry) for 5 minutes.
Mr. PERRY. Mr. Speaker, I am humbled to extend my sincere
congratulations and express my profound pride and admiration to the
players and coaches of Red Land Little League in Lewisberry,
Pennsylvania, who recently returned home from the Little League World
Series as the 2015 United States champions. I am privileged to
represent these fine young players and their coaches, families, and
supporters.
This team's perseverance and determination on the road to the Little
League World Series and subsequent championship makes them, among a
myriad of other things, outstanding role models. The team's core values
provide the foundation for their success:
``Red Land Little League Baseball is committed to the purpose of
implanting firmly in the youth of the Red Land area the ideals of good
sportsmanship, honesty, loyalty, courage and respect for authority, so
that our children may be well adjusted, stronger and happier and grow
to be decent, healthy and trustworthy adults.''
These values served the team well as they won the 2015 Little League
Baseball Mid-Atlantic Region Tournament with a 3-0 record. Throughout
the tournament, Red Land outscored their opponents 36-5, and they
continued their momentum with an 18-0 victory over Midwest Little
League.
As we all know all too well, a great sign of strong character is how
you handle adversity. Red Land faced that challenge and persevered in
its next two games with a 9-8 victory over the Southeast team and a 3-2
victory over the Southwest team to earn the U.S. Championship. Despite
a truly impressive and valiant effort, the team came up short on the
world championship with a loss to Japan. However, Red Land's character,
resilience, teamwork, and sportsmanship will be remembered long after
the final results of that one game.
The team motto, ``#whynotus,'' became the rallying cry for a team
that first inspired their community and went on to inspire our
Commonwealth, our Nation, and the world.
One of our Fourth District residents summed it up perfectly: ``We
were a little-known town that nobody even knew existed. Now, everyone
around the world knows where we are.''
I am privileged and honored to recognize these players and coaches of
the U.S. Champion Red Land Little League here today:
Adam Cramer
Jake Cubbler
Jaden Henline
Braden Kolmansberger
Chayton Krauss
Kaden Peifer
Ethan Phillips
Dylan Rodenhaber
Zack Sooy
Cole Wagner
Camden Walter
Bailey Wirt
Jarrett Wisman
Manager Peifer
Assistant coaches J.K. Kolmansberger and Bret Wagner.
I know I speak for my colleagues when I express our heartfelt thanks
and congratulations to our U.S. champions today. The values they have
demonstrated in earning this title are the values that make America the
greatest country in the world. We need young people like them, with
strong character and leadership, to ensure these values are passed to
future generations. I, for one, am excited to see what else these guys
will accomplish as they move forward with their lives and future
adventures.
Lest we forget, such achievements require the support of countless
others behind the scenes. On behalf of the United States House of
Representatives, I extend my heartfelt thanks and appreciation to the
families and friends who devoted countless amounts of time, effort, and
support on Red Land's path to the U.S. Championship. This team was away
from home for many weeks as they took this journey, and this kind of
triumph doesn't happen without exceptional devotion and teamwork from
all spokes on the wheel.
Finally, I truly commend the citizens of Lewisberry, Pennsylvania,
its surrounding community, and the people across Pennsylvania and the
United States who mobilized behind this team to drive and push their
momentum.
Mr. Speaker, it is my great honor to recognize our 2015 Little League
World Series United States Champions, Red Land Little League, joining
us in the balcony here this morning.
Today, we join the team's rallying cry, which is, ``We are Red
Land.''
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