[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 17 (Wednesday, February 1, 2017)]
[House]
[Page H830]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  MOMENT OF SILENCE HONORING CHIEF SPECIAL WARFARE OPERATOR RYAN OWENS

  (Mr. LaHOOD asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LaHOOD. Mr. Speaker, I rise with a heavy heart to honor Ryan 
Owens, a Navy SEAL from Peoria, Illinois--my hometown--who paid the 
ultimate sacrifice for his country over the weekend in Yemen.
  Ryan Owens, with his elite counterterrorism unit, SEAL Team Six, was 
fatally wounded during a night raid against al Qaeda in Yemen. The 
Department of Defense reported that the raid was a success but that the 
price was steep.
  The Constitution of our great Nation was written in ink, but those 
principles are defended in blood. This remarkable man's sacrifice is a 
painful reminder of the immeasurable cost of our freedom and national 
security and of the dark evil we face as we wage the war against 
terrorism.
  My thoughts and prayers are with Ryan's grieving family this week: 
his father, his wife, and his children. I pray that they will take 
comfort in knowing that his death was not in vain and that neighbors, 
community, and Nation are joining them in mourning his death and in 
remembering his life. Ryan Owens will be posthumously awarded with the 
Purple Heart.
  Mr. Speaker, at this time, I would ask that the House rise in a 
moment of silence to pay tribute to Navy SEAL Ryan Owens for his 
exceptional service to our country.

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