[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 196 (Thursday, November 20, 2025)]
[House]
[Pages H4831-H4832]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING MARLENA PARKER

  (Mr. Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania was recognized to address the House 
for 5 minutes.)
  Mr. FITZPATRICK. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a profoundly 
extraordinary American, Colonel Marlena Parker, a daughter of Bucks 
County, a trailblazing Air Force officer, and one of the finest 
examples of courage and character our Nation could ever hope to 
produce.
  Just days ago, over Veterans Day weekend, I stood beside Colonel 
Parker in Plumstead Township, Pennsylvania, as our community gathered 
to honor her service. She was surrounded by the people she loved most 
and by the veterans she served alongside.
  She was, as always, glowing, gracious, resolute, still lifting others 
up, and still inspiring everyone around her. Madam Speaker, sadly, it 
was our final tribute together. On November 17, Colonel Parker passed 
away after a brave and courageous fight against ALS.
  She did not face a single day of that battle without the same 
strength, discipline, and warrior spirit she brought to every mission 
she ever flew. She never stopped living the values she instilled in 
others: faith, service, perseverance, and a quiet, unwavering resolve.
  Colonel Marlena Parker was born in Doylestown on December 31, 1968. 
She was a proud first-generation Italian American and the daughter of 
Tony and Lena Ventresca. Faith and family were her foundation. 
Discipline and drive were her compass. At Gwynedd Mercy Academy, she 
was valedictorian. At the United States Air Force Academy, she was an 
NCAA All-American gymnast. From the very beginning, she was destined to 
soar.
  After commissioning, she completed pilot training at Reese Air Force 
Base and went on to fly the KC-10 Extender, one of the Nation's most 
critical refueling and transport aircrafts that we have.
  She deployed in support of Operations Southern Watch, Allied Force, 
Iraqi Freedom, and Enduring Freedom, carrying American power, American 
hope, and American strength across continents.
  Madam Speaker, her resume reads like a history of American resolve, 
but her service was not only defined by what she achieved. It was also 
defined by the way she carried herself: with humility, with precision, 
and with an unshakeable sense of duty.
  When the world changed on September 11, 2001, Marlena was airborne, 
and in the chaos of that morning when

[[Page H4832]]

fear, confusion, and uncertainty swept our Nation, she chose service, 
once again, joining the Air Force Reserve and recommitting herself to 
the defense of our Nation. She flew for another decade while raising 
two daughters, earning a master's degree, and mentoring countless young 
women.
  In 2013, she made Air Force history as the first female commander of 
the 73rd Airlift Squadron, directing VIP airlift operations and leading 
her airmen with precision, professionalism, and resolve that marked 
every single stage of her service.
  By the time she retired in 2020, Colonel Parker had logged over 4,800 
flight hours, including nearly 700 hours in combat and combat support 
missions and earned the Legion of Merit, among numerous other 
commendations.
  She continued flying as a Boeing 777 first officer for United 
Airlines until 2024, an aviator until the end.
  Marlena's service extended far beyond the cockpit. For more than 15 
years, she shaped the next generation of Air Force leaders as an 
academy liaison officer. She strengthened our community through the 
Plumstead Township Veterans' Affairs Committee and VFW Post 175, and 
she guided veterans in Bucks County's veterans' court program with the 
same steadiness and compassion she brought to every single mission she 
flew.
  She served because service was woven into who she was as a human 
being: a leader who lifted others up every step of the way.
  Colonel Marlena Parker was not only a trailblazer. She was a wife, a 
mother, a daughter, and a friend. She and her husband, Boyd, shared 34 
years together and raised two remarkable daughters, Isabel and Olivia, 
who now carry forward their mother's legacy of courage, service, and 
enduring strength.
  Madam Speaker, in Colonel Marlena Parker, America saw the very best 
of who we are: devotion to family, duty to country, and a faith in 
something greater than ourselves. She was a true hometown hero and a 
true patriot. May her courage inspire us, may her service guide us, and 
may we honor her life by the way we choose to live our own.
  May God bless Marlena. We will dearly miss her. All Bucks County will 
miss her. Well done, good and faithful servant.

                          ____________________