[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 168 (Thursday, November 14, 2024)]
[House]
[Page H5984]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           HONORING THE BRAVE FIRE CREWS OF THE HUDSON VALLEY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Ryan) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. RYAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor and thank the brave fire crews 
who are battling the outbreak of wildfires that are currently 
devastating the Hudson Valley, centered in Greenwood Lake, Warwick, 
parts of western Ulster County, and have now spread into New Jersey, as 
well.
  Undaunted by the great personal peril they are facing, these heroes 
are willingly putting their own lives on the line to protect our 
neighbors and our communities.
  Each and every member of our fire and emergency response crews is 
saving lives, and I thank them. Their every action has spared families 
and property from heartbreak. They are preserving our Hudson Valley as 
our cherished home. I thank them for their unparalleled selflessness.
  I also thank Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus and his entire 
fire services and emergency management team for their around-the-clock, 
24/7 work in regard to protecting the safety of our community.
  We have also seen an outpouring of support from throughout the entire 
region across multiple States. Firefighters traveling in from across 
the Northeast see our community in need and are answering the call to 
help.
  They are putting their own lives at risk to protect communities that 
aren't even their own communities.
  I recognize the profound service, sacrifice, and life of one of those 
very heroes.
  Dariel Vasquez was an 18-year-old State Parks aide from neighboring 
Ramapo in Rockland County who just a few days ago laid down his own 
life at the age of 18 to protect our Greenwood Lake community from the 
catastrophic fire raging in Sterling Forest.
  Dariel was truly the best of what the Hudson Valley is: hardworking, 
genuine, compassionate, and a reliable shoulder to lean on for anyone 
and everyone who needed one. He was widely known throughout the region 
for his prowess and power on the baseball field as the captain of his 
high school baseball team. He was even more widely known for the 
limitless friendship and brotherhood he extended to every person he 
met.
  I join the entire Hudson Valley in mourning the tragic loss of such a 
young, bright life. I send my deepest condolences to his family and 
friends and my thanks. We are forever indebted to him in our community 
for his unwavering bravery and heroism.
  To all those in our community who are facing unimaginable loss, the 
Hudson Valley takes care of each other, leans on each other, and 
carries each other through anything. This has been true for centuries 
of our history, it remains true today, and I am confident it will be 
true for many more to come.
  My thoughts are with those facing such loss and with our fire crews 
who still at this moment throughout all last night and into this 
morning are putting their lives on the line while wildfires are still 
raging.


               Honoring the Memory of John Lodge Stoneman

  Mr. RYAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the memory of World War I 
veteran John Lodge Stoneman who was finally given a proper burial at 
our brand new Ulster County Veterans Cemetery last Thursday, November 
7, more than 62 years after his passing.
  In 1917, John courageously answered his Nation's call to service as 
the U.S. entered the Great War. He put his life on the line for years, 
and our Nation and our community owe him a debt of gratitude we can 
never repay.
  His legacy deserves the absolute highest place of reverence and 
honor, but, unfortunately, his remains for over 61 years had remained 
unclaimed since his passing in 1962. Through tireless efforts, Wiltwyck 
Cemetery volunteer Kathy Wade pieced together the story of John's 
entire life. I am so grateful that my office and team were able to help 
assist her in obtaining his military records so he could finally 
receive, decades later, the honorable burial he was long overdue.
  I thank Kathy and the countless other community members who made it 
their mission to lay Mr. Stoneman in his final resting place, 
especially our great Ulster County Veteran Services Agency, our Ulster 
County Sheriff's Department, the Patriot Guard Riders, the VFW, and The 
American Legion, who all worked together from across our community.
  Thanks to their work, John Lodge Stoneman will now rest alongside his 
fellow heroes and ensure his place in American history is recognized 
for years to come.

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