[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 82 (Thursday, May 16, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S2919]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                TRIBUTE TO MASTER SERGEANT JESSE EDINGER

  Mr. DAINES. Mr. President, this week I have the honor of recognizing 
Jesse Edinger of Fort Harrison, MT, for his impact on the Lewis and 
Clark County and surrounding areas.
  Jesse Edinger joined the U.S. Army directly after graduating high 
school in 1999. He attended basic and advanced individual training at 
Fort Leonard Wood, MO. His first duty station was in Fort Drum, NY, 
where he served as a military police Patrolman, MP. Shortly after, he 
received orders to go to Korea. There he was immediately assigned to 
the United Nations Command Honor Guard, providing a variety of 
missions. In Korea, he met the love of his life Sunwoo. They married 
and transferred to Fort Riley, KS, in 2003. Immediately after arriving 
Fort Riley, Jesse received orders to deploy to Iraq. In Iraq, he 
completed a wide range of military police battlefield functions and was 
able to return safely to the U.S. In 2004, Jesse left Active Duty and 
decided to serve his home State in the Montana Army National Guard.
  After 3 years in the Guard, he was once again called back to Iraq as 
an MP. He spent a year there and again returned safely to his family. 
In 2006, he volunteered for the Montana Army National Guard honor guard 
team and 1 year later was hired as the non-commissioned officer in 
charge of the military funeral honors team. He worked hand in hand with 
the State coordinator to ensure fallen veterans received the most 
professional honors possible. He was one of Montana's first nationally 
certified honor guard instructors. In 2014, Jesse Edinger once again 
volunteered to deploy to Afghanistan as a military police investigator. 
After serving another yearlong deployment, he returned to his military 
funeral honors position at Fort Harrison, MT, where he became a 
certified instructor as a casualty notification officer. These officers 
notify next of kin and assist family members of a soldier killed in 
action or that has died in the line of duty. Jesse was recently 
promoted to the rank of master sergeant and has conducted around 1100 
funeral honors missions for Montana veterans and soldiers killed in 
action.
  For 20 years, MSG Jesse Edinger has served his country proudly and 
has honored the lives of more than 1,000 Montana veterans. His wife Sun 
also serves in the Montana Army National Guard. Together they have 
three children. MSG Edinger is the epitome of a military leader, and I 
am proud to recognize him during Military Appreciation Week.

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