[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 148 (Thursday, September 6, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1217]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            THE PURPLE HEART

                                 ______
                                 

                              HON. TED POE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 6, 2018

  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, August 7th marked the 236th 
anniversary of the creation of one of our nation's most iconic military 
decorations: the Purple Heart.
  On August 7, 1782, General George Washington ordered the creation of 
the Badge for Military Merit, to be presented to soldiers who 
demonstrated exceptional bravery in battle. The award was marked by a 
heart-shaped piece of purple cloth, intended to be worn on the left 
side of the recipient's chest.
  Only three soldiers--Sergeants Daniel Bissell, William Brown, and 
Elijah Churchill--received this decoration during the Revolutionary 
War. Though this award was the precursor for our nation's highest 
military honor, the Congressional Medal of Honor, the government gave 
no other soldiers the Badge for Military Merit until the 20th Century. 
Then, it was General Douglas MacArthur, Chief of Staff of the Army at 
the time, who helped resurrect this award in 1932, when the War 
Department created the Order of the Purple Heart.
  Since then, millions of American servicemen and women have received 
this decoration after being wounded in battle. From the World Wars to 
the current wars in the Middle East, the recipients of this decoration 
represent a special fraternity--Americans who have shed their blood 
defending our country and our liberties.
  One such individual was Sergeant John W. Hall. Sergeant Hall served 
with the U.S. Army's 503rd Field Artillery Battalion, 2nd Infantry 
Division, during the Korean War. In November 1950, his unit received 
orders to move from Kunu-ri to Sunchon, North Korea. Moving through an 
area dubbed ``the Gauntlet'' due to the high concentration of Chinese 
forces threatening the Americans' path to Sunchon, Hall went missing, 
but his fate was discovered after the war when a returning American 
prisoner of war reported that Hall had died at the Hofong POW Camp--
more commonly known as ``Death Valley''--in early 1951.
  Over the next several decades, attempts were made to recover, 
identify, and ultimately return Hall's remains to the United States. 
Finally, in June 2017, state of the art DNA testing successfully 
identified remains found as his. On July 3rd of this year, his remains 
were finally transported back to the United States, to my home city of 
Houston, and under the Texas sun, he was buried with full military 
honors on American soil. At the ceremony, the Army posthumously awarded 
Hall the Purple Heart.
  Mr. Speaker, the Purple Heart is a vital pillar of the American 
democracy. It honors the sacrifice of the American warrior, the rare 
breed, and it reminds us that freedom is not free. May we continue to 
remember those who wear the Purple Heart on their uniform, because the 
worst casualty of war is to be forgotten.
  And that is just the way it is.

                          ____________________