[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 153 (Tuesday, October 20, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Page S7343]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     REMEMBERING JEFFREY A. MATHIAS

  Mr. MARKEY. Mr. President, I am a cosponsor of a resolution the 
Senate is likely to pass this evening honoring the lives of the 33 crew 
members aboard the El Faro which sank near the Bahamas during Hurricane 
Joaquin earlier this month.
  I want to take this opportunity to express my deepest sympathy and 
sincere condolences to the family of El Faro crewman Jeffrey A. Mathias 
of Kingston, MA. He was just 42 years old.
  Jeff loved the sea. When he attended Tabor Academy, he learned how to 
sail aboard the school's sailing ship the Tabor Boy. Jeff followed his 
passion to the prestigious Massachusetts Maritime Academy, where in 
1996 he graduated with a degree in marine engineering. Upon graduation, 
he worked at Seamass and then Altran, where he was involved with 
nuclear power plants. In 1998, he landed his dream job on a cargo 
vessel.
  Jeff sailed to Africa, Europe, North Korea, Alaska, Hawaii, 
California, and the Caribbean. He reached the officer's position of 
chief engineer and was responsible for shaft repairs on many vessels.
  Jeff leaves his beloved wife, Jennifer Brides Mathias; his 3 adored 
children, daughters Hayden, 7, Heidi, 5, and son, Caleb, 3, all of 
Kingston. He also leaves behind his parents, J. Barry and Lydia Jones 
Mathias, of Kingston and his brother John.
  Another son of Massachusetts who loved the sea was President John F. 
Kennedy. He famously stated, ``I really don't know why it is that all 
of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it's because in 
addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and 
ships change, it's because we all came from the sea. And it is an 
interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact 
same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, 
therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We 
are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea--whether it is to 
sail or to watch it--we are going back from whence we came.''
  I also offer my condolences to the family, friends, and loved ones of 
every member of the El Faro crew.

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