[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 51 (Thursday, March 18, 2021)]
[House]
[Page H1504]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING KEVIN VALENCIA

  (Mrs. DEMINGS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the life of 
Orlando Police Officer Kevin Valencia.
  As a former chief in Orlando, I join my brothers and sisters at OPD 
and Kevin's wife, Meghan, and their two sons in expressing gratitude 
for his service and in mourning his passing.
  In 2018, Officer Valencia responded to a domestic violence call 
involving a convicted felon armed with a firearm who was holding four 
children hostage. Upon trying to gain entry and save the children, 
Kevin was shot and critically wounded. The subject later took the lives 
of those children.
  Kevin fought hard to survive but succumbed to his injuries on March 
15 of this year.
  We use the word ``hero'' often, and sometimes I think we forget the 
many heroic actions our men and women in blue perform every day. But 
Officer Kevin Valencia was a hero in every sense of the word.
  On March 15, a part of America died. We are grateful for a life well 
lived. Courage, pride, and commitment.

                          ____________________