[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 21]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 30537-30538]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         A TRIBUTE TO AN AMERICAN VETERAN--MR. JESSE CONTRERAS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. ROBERT A. UNDERWOOD

                                of guam

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 16, 1999

  Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, last week on the last Veterans Day of 
this century, President Clinton recalled the honor, duty and sacrifice 
of those soldiers, sailors and airmen who did not make it back home to 
America. He articulated a point that is worth quoting, for it 
poignantly captures a notion that is often not realized.
  President Clinton's impassioned address stated that:

       [T]he young men and women who have died in defense of our 
     country gave up not only the life they were living, but also 
     the life they would have lived--their chance to be parents; 
     their chance to grow old with their grandchildren. Too often 
     when we speak of sacrifice, we speak in generalities about 
     the larger sweep of history, and the sum total of our 
     nation's experience. But it is very important to remember 
     that every single veteran's life we honor today was just 
     that--a life--just like yours and mine. A life with family 
     and friends, and love and hopes and dreams, and ups and 
     downs; a life that should have been able to play its full 
     course.

  Taking the President's words to heart and remembering our fallen 
heroes, I would like to describe the life of a very special man who 
bravely fought for this nation, was wounded in combat, survived the 
ardors of war, and came home to live a long life as a husband, a 
father, and a grandfather.
  Private, First Class (PFC) Jesse Contreras, a California native, was 
drafted into the United States Army as an infantryman during the Second 
World War. As a Mexican-American during the 1940s, he may not have been 
completely accepted by his country and may have been seen by some as a 
second-class citizen. Jesse Contreras held no grudges, however, and 
when his country called upon him to defend the very freedoms and rights 
that may not have been fully extended to him or his family, Jesse did 
not hesitate. After basic training, PFC Contreras was bound for Europe 
as part of the 104th Timberwolf Infantry Division, 413th Infantry 
Brigade, 3rd Battalion, Company ``I'', under the brilliant command of 
Major General Terry de la Mesa Allen, himself an Hispanic-American.
  The Timberwolves entered the war in the Autumn of 1944 and had 
quickly become legendary for the ferocious fighting that took place and 
because the men quickly proved themselves as agile combatants against 
the deeply entrenched and veteran units of the German Wehrmacht in 
France. The Division was engaged in sustained combat for approximately 
195 days across Northern France towards the German frontier. The Allies 
were methodically driving the German forces from France. It would be 
only a matter of time before the Allies would be fighting on German 
soil on the way to Berlin. As the vice closed in on Germany, Hitler and 
the German General Staff planned for one last offensive against the 
Allies.
  The strong German offensive, launched the morning of December 16, 
1944 became known as the ``Ardennes Offensive'' or ``Battle of the 
Bulge'' and the 104th was directed to prepare an all-out defense of its 
sector. This delayed the planned crossing of the Roer river until 3:30 
a.m., February 23, 1945 when the major offensive action to reach 
Cologne was begun. The Rhine was reached on March 7, 1945 whereupon 
Time Magazine reported, ``The Germans fought for the Roer River, 
between Aachen and Cologne, as if it were the Meuse, the Marne, and the 
Somme of the last war all rolled into one.'' It was in this final 
German offensive that PFC Contreras's story comes to light.
  The 104th Division had been engaged in fierce combat from the Roer 
River to the Rhine in an attempt to repulse the German onslaught. 
During one particularly fierce fire fight, PFC Contreras was wounded 
from a German grenade. The wound was not too serious to prevent PFC 
Contreras from continuing to fight but he quickly found that Company 
``I'' had become overrun by the Germans. Captured, he and his fellow 
Timberwolves found themselves face to face with the treacherous Nazi 
soldiers.
  The head German officer ordered that all the Americans line up. The 
Nazi officer, who spoke English but with a thick German accent, went 
down the line of his American prisoners one by one to demand 
information from them. With submachine guns pointed at the men of 
Company ``I'', the German officer who held a lead pipe in hand began 
barking orders and interrogating his captors.
  PFC Contreras as a Mexican-American spoke both English and Spanish 
but since Spanish was his first language, he had trouble understanding 
the commands of the German officer. Believing that PFC Contreras was 
making fun of him or just being recalcitrant, the German officer struck 
him in the skull with the lead pipe, knocking him out. Before PFC 
Contreras and his fellow P.O.W.'s were moved to a German Camp, they 
were liberated by an advancing column of G.I.'s pushing back the 
Germans.
  PFC Contreras was then transferred to a military hospital in England 
and eventually sent to recover in Ft. Houston, Texas. It was during his 
recovery that Germany had surrendered. PFC Contreras was soon 
discharged in September 1945 where upon he became Jesse Contreras, a 
civilian once again. For his wounds sustained through action with the 
enemy, PFC Contreras won the Purple Heart medal.
  After the war, Jesse Contreras returned home to his wife and began 
raising his family. In 1998 Jesse passed away having lived a long and 
fruitful life full of stories, a beautiful wife and a big family that 
included 6 children, 16 grandchildren and 31 great-grandchildren. 
Jesse's legacy of service was passed along to subsequent generations of 
the Contreras family. His son Alfred Contreras became a U.S. Marine 
during the Vietnam War. And currently two of Jesse's grandchildren are 
in the Marine Corps while one other grandchild is about to become a 
Marine.
  The life of this remarkable man was meaningful to me because as a 
little boy, he and his family lived across the street from us when my 
own family lived for a time, in Norwalk, California. His wife, Mary, 
and their family became especially close to us and they have always 
been helpful to us. In many ways I was a member of their family as 
well.
  Jesse Contreras would entertain us for hours with many stories of his 
exploits during World War II. While he did not win the Congressional 
Medal of Honor he served his country selflessly and with honor like so 
many millions of other veterans. He was an average 24-year-old who was 
asked to do incredible things in the face of enemy fire and even risk 
his life for his country. It is all the more remarkable when you 
consider that like most men of his generation he was simply doing what 
was expected of him. In the years after the war, he remained in close 
contact with

[[Page 30538]]

those survivors of Company ``I'' and attended many reunions of the 
104th Timberwolves Association with his wife Mary.
  Jesse was the typical veteran of World War II in that he fought for 
his country and asked little in return. He became a great family man 
whose influence extended to his neighbors like me. It was because of 
his experience as a wounded veteran struggling to keep a family afloat 
that helped make him strong of character and a role model for me. His 
sacrifice was part of a proud tradition of Mexican-Americans who fought 
with valor and patriotism during all of America's wars.
  Mr. Speaker, this was one story about one life, among millions from 
that greatest of generations. It was a story about a regular family man 
who as a result of simply doing his duty shed his blood for his 
country. It was a story about a man who faced the incredible horrors of 
armed conflict and came home to raise a wonderful family. The United 
States was built by people like Jesse Contreras and is in many ways the 
land of the free because it is the home of the brave.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Contreras for his service to his 
country and for the kindness he showed me as a little boy. I want to 
also thank his wife Mary and her children who continue to be an 
inspiration for me for the strength and love of family that they 
continue to share to this very day. The world is a safer place because 
of the likes of Jesse Contreras and the millions of other American 
veterans. It was an honor to have known him and to have learned from 
him. May God bless his family and God bless the United States of 
America. Thank you.

                          ____________________