[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 150 (Wednesday, September 18, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H7768-H7769]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING PURPLE HEART RECIPIENTS

  (Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York asked and was given permission 
to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I rise today in 
support of my bill, the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor 
Commemorative Coin Act, which is scheduled for a vote on the House 
floor tomorrow.
  George Washington himself created the Purple Heart in the closing 
days of the Revolutionary War. Since it was

[[Page H7769]]

revived to honor veterans of World War I, it has been awarded to nearly 
2 million brave service men and women, yet there is no comprehensive 
list of Purple Heart recipients.
  The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor located in my district in New 
Windsor, New York, was created to collect and preserve the names and 
stories of the men and women wounded or killed in service of our 
Nation. The proceeds of this coin, which will be produced nearby at the 
West Point Mint, will support the hall in its critical mission, along 
with other programs that help veterans and their families.
  Today, I am thinking of two men who inspired our work on this bill. 
One was my dad, who was a Navy vet who was hurt on the USS Manchester 
and who taught me the reverence we must have for our service men and 
women. The other was Republican Senator Bill Larkin, a New York State 
Senator, a dear friend who passed away just days ago. He and I worked 
closely to advance the mission of the hall.
  I also thank the Military Order of the Purple Heart and volunteers 
like Stephanie Keegan, who helped round up 300 of our colleagues in 
support of this important legislation and who will make tomorrow's vote 
a reality.

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