[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 69 (Monday, April 29, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2481-S2482]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               TRIBUTE TO ST. LOUIS WORLD WAR II VETERANS

  Mr. HAWLEY. Mr. President, today I wish to commemorate three 
extraordinary World War II veterans from St. Louis who were recently 
awarded the French Legion of Honour. Established by Napoleon Bonaparte 
in 1802, the Legion of Honour is the highest civilian honor awarded by 
the government of France.

[[Page S2482]]

  Mr. Eugene Harmack, Mr. Glenn Harrison, and Mr. Alfred Villagran 
served when the United States and its allies needed them most. These 
heroes bravely fought against the Nazis and helped liberate Europe from 
Hitler's fascist regime.
  When he was 24, Eugene Harmack fought in one of the deadliest battles 
in American history, the Battle of the Bulge. During the battle, 
Harmack secured a vehicle trapped behind enemy lines and used its radio 
to restore vital communications for the American forces that defeated 
the last major Nazi offensive.
  In 1944, Glenn Harrison was a 23-year-old B-17 bomber pilot who had 
flown 17 bombing missions against the Nazis. On one mission, Harrison 
and his crew were shot down on the way to Munich, Germany. Following 
the crash, Harrison was captured and forced to march 300 miles to a 
Nazi prisoner-of-war camp, where he was held from June 1944 to January 
1945.
  At the age of 19, Alfred Villagran was a gunner and radio operator on 
a B-17 Bomber. On one mission, Villagran's plane was shot and lost two 
of its four engines. As the plane flew back to England, Villagran and 
his crew came under fire again and lost the third engine. With only one 
functional engine, the crew safely landed thanks to the Allied fighter 
planes that provided cover.
  As we approach the 75th anniversary of D-Day, I wish to thank these 
American heroes for their service and bravery. As a nation, we are 
forever grateful for their sacrifices.

                          ____________________