[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 148 (Monday, September 23, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5571-H5572]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      ARMY SSG RYAN CHRISTIAN KNAUSS MEMORIAL POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. LaTURNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 6633) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 9355 113th Street in Seminole, Florida, as the 
``Army SSG Ryan Christian Knauss Memorial Post Office Building''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 6633

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

     SECTION 1. ARMY SSG RYAN CHRISTIAN KNAUSS MEMORIAL POST 
                   OFFICE BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 9355 113th Street in Seminole, Florida, 
     shall be known and designated as the ``Army SSG Ryan 
     Christian Knauss Memorial 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 ``Army SSG Ryan Christian Knauss Memorial 
     Post Office Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Kansas (Mr. LaTurner) and the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Raskin) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Kansas.


                             General Leave

  Mr. LaTURNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Kansas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. LaTURNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill, which would rename a 
post office in Florida for Staff Sergeant Ryan Christian Knauss.
  Committed to protecting his country, Knauss joined the Army at the 
young age of 17. He served in Afghanistan where he supported the 
humanitarian evacuation of Americans and Afghani refugees.

                              {time}  1430

  On August 16, 2021, Staff Sergeant Knauss was processing eligible 
Afghani refugees when a bomb exploded, killing him and others.
  Knauss earned numerous awards and decorations, including the 
Congressional Gold Medal, the Bronze Star Medal, and the Purple Heart.
  I support naming a post office in memory of Staff Sergeant Knauss, 
and I encourage my colleagues to support this bill. I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. RASKIN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6633. Staff Sergeant Ryan 
Knauss was born and raised in Corryton, Tennessee. As a high school 
student, Knauss joined the Junior ROTC cadet program to prepare for his 
eventual enlistment in the military. Immediately upon graduation, he 
joined the U.S. Army. Following his basic training, he was given a 
designation as a paratrooper for the 82nd Airborne in North Carolina.
  Staff Sergeant Knauss continued his life of service and devotion in 
two different Afghanistan deployments, the first as part of a 
psychological operations battalion, the second in August 2021 to 
support noncombatant evacuation operations, nearly 20 years after the 
United States' first mission began in Afghanistan.
  Tragically, 13 American servicemembers lost their lives in the final 
stages

[[Page H5572]]

of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, and Staff Sergeant Knauss was 
one of those Americans lost in a conflict in which more than 7,000 
Americans were lost over the course of the entire war. He made the 
ultimate sacrifice on August 26, 2021, and all Americans are indebted 
to him and his family.
  H.R. 6633 will honor the life of Staff Sergeant Knauss by naming a 
post office in Seminole, Florida, after him.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LaTURNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
Florida (Mrs. Luna), a fierce advocate for this legislation.
  Mrs. LUNA. Mr. Speaker, today, as we talk about the Seminole, 
Florida, post office, I would like to take a moment to honor Staff 
Sergeant Knauss' life and service to our country.
  On August 26, 2021, Staff Sergeant Knauss volunteered to serve during 
the humanitarian evacuation mission in Kabul, Afghanistan, at the Hamid 
Karzai International Airport Abbey Gate. While performing his duties, a 
bomb was detonated at the Abbey Gate, killing Staff Sergeant Knauss, 12 
other servicemembers, and many civilians.
  Staff Sergeant Knauss bravely served our country, earning many awards 
and decorations, including the Congressional Gold Medal, Bronze Star, 
and Purple Heart.
  Staff Sergeant Knauss has continued to have a lasting impact in 
communities across the country. In his hometown of Corryton, Tennessee, 
an annual merit scholarship at a local high school has been established 
in Staff Sergeant Knauss' name. The merit scholarship helps to support 
a JROTC candidate showing the same leadership and willingness to enter 
the military after high school as Staff Sergeant Knauss did. His family 
plans to duplicate the scholarship in communities across the country.
  Specific to Florida, Staff Sergeant Knauss' lasting impact can be 
seen through community celebrations and honor rides recognizing the 
military heroes of today, yesterday, and tomorrow. His family also 
plans to organize an annual Seminole Park Veteran 5K run with a 
motorcycle and jeep ride through Seminole each Veterans Day. They are 
also working to raise awareness within the community of how to get 
involved in sending active military care packages overseas and are 
seeking to provide services for homeless veterans reluctant to go to VA 
facilities. They are also looking to partner with local Florida charter 
boats and captains to provide veterans with an opportunity to fish and 
build connections with one another to help lower suicide rates in the 
Tampa Bay area and across the State of Florida.
  Renaming the Seminole Post Office after Staff Sergeant Ryan Christian 
Knauss would serve as a reminder of his life, service, and the impact 
he continues to have on local students and veterans each day.
  I also want to take a moment to acknowledge my constituent and Staff 
Sergeant Ryan Christian Knauss' mother, Paula, who is here with us 
today. Thank you, Paula, for supporting all of this and for the 
sacrifice that your family has made.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this renaming bill.
  Mr. RASKIN. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LaTURNER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I encourage my 
colleagues to support this legislation and would just add how honored I 
am by the presence of Paula in the gallery. I yield back the balance of 
my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to address their 
remarks to the Chair.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Kansas (Mr. LaTurner) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 6633.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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