[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 20 (Tuesday, February 1, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H323-H324]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STAFF SERGEANT MARSHAL ROBERTS POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 1298) to designate the facility of the United 
States Postal Service located at 1233 North Cedar Street in Owasso, 
Oklahoma, as the ``Staff Sergeant Marshal Roberts Post Office 
Building''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1298

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. TECHNICAL SERGEANT MARSHAL ROBERTS POST OFFICE 
                   BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 1233 North Cedar Street in Owasso, 
     Oklahoma, shall be known and designated as the ``Technical 
     Sergeant Marshal Roberts Post Office Building''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Technical Sergeant Marshal Roberts Post 
     Office Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) and the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. 
LaTurner) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Florida.


                             General Leave

  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1298 to designate the 
facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1233 North 
Cedar Street in Owasso, Oklahoma, as the Technical Sergeant Marshal 
Roberts Post Office.
  At the age of 28, Technical Sergeant Marshal D. Roberts deployed with 
the 219th Engineering Installation Squadron, 138th Fighter Wing, 
Oklahoma Air National Guard in support of Operation Inherent Resolve.
  He died as a result of a rocket attack from an Iran-backed militia 
group at Camp Taji on March 11, 2020. Technical Sergeant Roberts was 
the first member in the history of the Oklahoma Air National Guard to 
be killed in combat.
  Technical Sergeant Roberts gave the ultimate sacrifice for this 
country, and his service will never be forgotten. He is survived by his 
wife and fellow member of the Tulsa-based 138th Fighter Wing, Kristie 
Roberts, and their 8-year-old daughter, Paityn.
  Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of my colleagues to join me in honoring 
Technical Sergeant Marshal D. Roberts by naming the post office at 1233 
North Cedar Street as the Technical Sergeant Marshal Roberts Post 
Office.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LaTURNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I stand today in support of H.R. 1298, which would name a post office 
after Technical Sergeant Marshal Roberts.
  Sergeant Roberts was from Oklahoma and enlisted in the Air Force in 
May 2014. He was assigned to the 219th Engineering Installation 
Squadron of the Oklahoma Air National Guard's 138th Fighter Wing. 
Sadly, he was killed in a rocket attack on Camp Taji in Iraq.
  Mr. Speaker, I strongly support this bill honoring an American hero, 
and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LaTURNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Oklahoma (Mr. Hern).
  Mr. HERN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in solemn memory of an Oklahoma 
hero, Technical Sergeant Marshal Roberts.
  Sergeant Roberts had a strong love for his country and was intensely 
proud to serve in the Oklahoma Air National Guard. He was deployed to 
Camp Taji in Iraq in support of Operation Inherent Resolve when his 
unit was engaged in enemy fire.
  Sergeant Roberts gave his life defending our Nation and the freedoms 
we enjoy every day, leaving behind a proud wife and a loving daughter. 
Since his death, Oklahomans have shown overwhelming support for 
Sergeant Roberts' family and have taken every opportunity to celebrate 
his memory.
  I will never forget when his remains were brought back to Tulsa in 
March 2020, when the city had just begun lockdown. Still, there were 
hundreds and hundreds of Oklahomans waiting outside the airport to 
welcome him home and mourn with his family.
  At his funeral, at the dedication for the highway named after him, at 
our Memorial Day service, and at countless events since his death, 
Oklahomans have shown up in massive numbers to support and to honor his 
service and to thank his family.
  You see, Oklahomans recognize the importance of military service and 
the

[[Page H324]]

sacred responsibility we all have to keep his legacy alive.
  We can rest in the knowledge that Sergeant Roberts' sacrifice was not 
in vain. He laid down his life for hundreds of millions of Americans 
that he never knew and future generations yet to come.
  Mr. Speaker, renaming the Owasso Post Office in his honor is a small 
but meaningful gesture and ensures that our community proudly keeps his 
story alive for all the generations to come.
  Mr. LaTURNER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I am prepared 
to close.
  Mr. Speaker, I support this bill. I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, may the memory of Technical 
Sergeant Marshal D. Roberts be for a blessing.
  I urge all Members to support H.R. 1298. I yield back the balance of 
my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) that the House suspend 
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1298, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  The title of the bill was amended so as to read: ``A bill to 
designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 
1233 North Cedar Street in Owasso, Oklahoma, as the `Technical Sergeant 
Marshal Roberts Post Office Building' ''.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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