[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 135 (Thursday, July 30, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E710]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              HONORING DEACON WILLIAM FRANCIS XAVIER KANE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. SETH MOULTON

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 30, 2020

  Mr. MOULTON. Madam Speaker, I rise to commemorate the life and 
service of an American patriot and decorated Army veteran, Deacon 
William Francis Xavier Kane. Kane was an Army intelligence officer 
during the Vietnam War, serving in small communities alongside a South 
Vietnamese battalion. Kane was seriously injured in the line of duty, 
leaving him hospitalized. Due to Kane's valor during the war, he was 
presented with a Bronze Star and Soldier's Medal for Heroism. In the 
years following his brave service in the Army, Kane went on to have a 
long career as a special agent in the FBI.
  Kane's service to our country did not stop with his astounding career 
in the military and FBI. After four years studying at St. John's 
Seminary located in Brighton, Massachusetts, Kane was ordained a 
Permanent Deacon for the Archdiocese of Boston. After devoting himself 
to a life of spirituality, he then found his true vocation. Serving as 
the director of prison ministry for the Archdiocese of Boston, Kane 
provided spiritual support and comfort to those in need during their 
incarceration. Kane also took up Spanish to have better communication 
with the many Spanish-speaking inmates he assisted. Kane was once asked 
what led him to this type of work, and he responded with a quote by 
Irish poet Bobby Sands: ``There is no place more lonely than the prison 
cell.''
  In 2001, Kane founded the Holy Family Parish Mission after a trip to 
the Dominican Republic. Kane believed that mission work could help 
individuals empathize with those who are impoverished, and in turn, 
deepen their capacity for compassion and love. In 2016, Kane received 
the John C. DeDeyn Jr. Achievement Award from his alma mater, Niagara 
University, in recognition of his service to others.
  Madam Speaker, Deacon William Kane lived a life of service for the 
United States government and its citizens. The Coronavirus pandemic has 
claimed the lives of more than 150,000 Americans. Deacon Kane is one of 
the 2,083 veterans counted among that total. Kane was a dementia 
patient under the care of the VA at the time of the Coronavirus 
breakout. He passed away May 10th. The vision of the VA is ``to provide 
veterans the world-class benefits and services they have earned--and to 
do so by adhering to the highest standards of compassion, commitment, 
excellence, professionalism, integrity, accountability, and 
stewardship.'' I believe it is evident that they have fallen short in 
their duties. In a VA where all but one of the patients in a specific 
unit have contracted this generation's most contagious virus, it is 
clear that adequate protections were not provided to Deacon Kane as 
well as the other patients in the unit.
  As a member of the Armed Services Committee and an advocate for 
veteran's rights, I call upon the House to investigate this occurrence 
further and remain committed to using all of the powers this office 
affords me to protect veterans, and all Americans, from this virus and 
the leaders in this country who have failed to accept the 
responsibility to fight it.