[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 62 (Tuesday, April 17, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E487]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          COMMEMORATING PFC LEO J. POWERS AND 2LT ROBERT CRAIG

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. K. MICHAEL CONAWAY

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 17, 2018

  Mr. CONAWAY. Mr Speaker, I rise today to recognize two Medal of Honor 
recipients, PFC Leo J. Powers and 2LT Robert Craig, who will be 
included on the Ft. Wolters Medal of Honor Memorial in Mineral Wells, 
Texas on April 28, 2018.
  Established in 2013, the Medal of Honor Memorial lies at the heart of 
the quiet Ft. Wolters Historical park. This memorial features stone 
columns currently features the names of sixteen Medal of Honor 
recipients who trained at Ft. Wolters inscribed upon them. These 
inscriptions share the stories of these heroes and the gallant actions 
they took to earn this honor. Later this month, two more individuals 
will be inscribed on this memorial, PFC Leo J Powers and 2LT Robert 
Craig.
  On February 3, 1944, PFC Leo was serving in the 133rd Infantry 
Regiment, 34th Infantry Division, who were heavily engaged with Axis 
Forces in the Battle of Monte Cassino. PFC Powers' company was assigned 
to seize the heavily defended Hill 175. The Germans suppressed Powers 
and his fellow soldiers by firing mortars and heavy machine gun fire. 
Unable to advance and casualties mounting, Powers crawled towards the 
enemy strongholds and destroyed them using hand grenades. After 
destroying the last of these posts, Powers took the surrender of four 
wounded Germans while unarmed Almost a year later, President Franklin D 
Roosevelt awarded Powers with the Medal of Honor on January 10, 1945.
  Born in Scotland in 1919, Robert Craig emigrated with his family to 
Toledo Ohio. In 1941, Craig enlisted in the Army before WWII and 
becoming a citizen. By 1943, Craig commissioned as an officer and was a 
Second Lieutenant with the 15th Infantry Regiment, part of the 3rd 
Infantry Division. In the early morning of July 10, 1943, 2LT Craig 
stormed ashore with his unit in the Licata area on the Gulf of Gela 
during the Invasion of Sicily. Over the next twenty-four hours, an 
enemy machine gun wounded multiple officers in Craig's unit. He 
volunteered to find and destroy it Shortly after, the platoon he led 
was counter-attacked by an enemy force that was three times larger. He 
used himself as a diversion to allow his men to reach cover along a 
hill crest. 2LT Craig's heroic actions and self-sacrifice inspired his 
men and rallied them to defeat the superior force. 2LT Craig was 
posthumously awarded our nation's highest honor on May 26, 1944.
  We are blessed to live in a country with individuals like the ones 
honored at Ft. Wolters Their actions embody our nation's greatest 
ideals. They proceeded without hesitation to put their country's needs, 
and more importantly, the lives of the men around them, before their 
own. Their stories of honor and sacrifice represent an important part 
of our nation's history.
  It is with great pleasure and honor that I am able to share PFC Leo 
J. Powers and 2LT Robert Craig story with all of my colleagues in the 
House.

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