[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 51 (Thursday, March 23, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E373]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 RECOGNIZING THE LIFE OF FALLEN MISSISSIPPI SOLDIER MARINE CORPS FIRST 
                LIEUTENANT (1LT) THERREL SHANE CHILDERS

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. TRENT KELLY

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 23, 2017

  Mr. KELLY of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in memory of 
Marine Corps First Lieutenant (1LT) Therrel Shane Childers who paid the 
ultimate sacrifice while defending our nation on March 21, 2003, during 
Operation Iraqi Freedom III. 1LT Childers was killed during an assault 
on a pumping station in Iraq. He was the first American casualty in 
Operation Iraqi Freedom III.
  1LT Childers grew up in a military family in Harrison County, 
Mississippi. After high school, 1LT Childers enrolled in the Marine 
Enlisted Commissioning Education Program at The Citadel, The Military 
College of South Carolina. Seven months after his death, a memorial 
service and parade were held there. 1LT Childers' family members 
donated money from the Shane Childers Memorial Fund to the university 
that day.
  1LT Childers was described as a born leader. 1LT Childers also served 
in the 1991 Gulf War. At the time of his death, 1LT Childers was 
assigned to the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine 
Division, Camp Pendleton, California.
  1LT Childers devoted his life to the defense of our country. His 
leadership on the battlefield will always be remembered.

                          ____________________