[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 146 (Tuesday, September 27, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Page S6135]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  REMEMBERING BENJAMIN CHARLES STEELE

  Mr. TESTER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have the 
statement I previously delivered about the life of Benjamin Charles 
Steele printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:


                 Benjamin Charles Steele, Billings, MT

       I rise to honor the life of an exceptional Montanan and a 
     true American hero, Benjamin Charles Steele. He passed away 
     on Sunday, September 25 in Billings, surrounded by his loving 
     family. He was 98.
       Ben was born on November 17, 1917, in Roundup, MT. He was 
     22 when he enlisted in the Army Air Corps in Missoula, MT, on 
     September 9, 1940. A year later, assigned to serve in the 
     Philippines, he arrived in-country and was promptly handed a 
     rifle and told: ``now you're in the infantry.'' Then, 10 
     hours after Pearl Harbor, the Japanese invaded the 
     Philippines. A few weeks later, Ben's unit was ordered to the 
     Bataan Peninsula. Soon after, Ben's unit was captured, and he 
     and his fellow soldiers began the infamous Bataan Death 
     March. Ben was a prisoner for 3.5 years and was sent to Japan 
     where he did hard labor in the Japanese mines. He was 
     liberated once the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, with 
     Ground Zero less than 80 miles from Ben's coal mine.
       Ben was discharged from the U.S. Air Force on July 10, 
     1946. After beginning his art career drawing on the concrete 
     floor of a prison in the Philippines, Ben pursued a formal 
     art education. In 1955, he received a master's degree in art 
     from the University of Denver and then taught art at Montana 
     State University-Billings.
       Up until his final days, Ben continued to paint, even while 
     fighting his final battle in a nursing home in Billings. Ben 
     Steele never requested any acclaim for his service, but he 
     deserves recognition for his incredible courage in the face 
     of daunting odds.
       Ben's life story and legacy will be forever remembered 
     across Montana, and on the west end of Billings, a middle 
     school is currently being constructed that will bear his 
     name.
       Ben is survived by his wife, Shirley, and their two 
     daughters, Julie Jorgenson and Rosemarie Steele. He will be 
     remembered by a grateful State and Nation for his brave 
     service in our time of greatest need.

                          ____________________