[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Pages 18913-18914]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES

  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, during the height of the war in Iraq, 
I came to the floor to honor those from California who had made the 
ultimate sacrifice. And I paid tribute to these service members who 
embody the very best of the American spirit, those willing to give 
their own lives so we and others around the world can enjoy the 
blessings of freedom.
  At least eight men with California connections have died in Iraq 
since May 1 due either to accident or hostile enemy fire. I strongly 
believe that they and the others from across our country must be 
awarded the same respect and admiration as any American, in any war, at 
any time in our history.
  SGT Atanasio Haro Marin Jr., 27, known as ``Nacho'' to his family, 
was born in Momax, Mexico, and lived there with his mother while his 
father worked in California to support seven children. The family was 
reunited in Los Angeles when he was 2 years old, moving to suburban 
Baldwin Park. He competed on the Sierra Vista High School track team 
and also ran in a Los Angeles marathon. Upon graduation, he joined the 
National Guard. When his tour of duty ended, he transferred to the 
Army.
  Sergeant Marin was assigned to Battery C, 3rd Battalion, 16th Field 
Artillery Regiment, and died on June 3, when his checkpoint south of 
Balad, Iraq, was attacked with gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades. 
He was 27 years old.
  He last saw his family during a January leave, 2 months before he 
left for the Middle East. He called home twice in April and sent a 
Mother's Day card that read: ``Don't worry, be happy.''
  A native of Eureka, CA, CPT Andrew David La Mont was the youngest of 
nine children and came from a family with strong ties to the military. 
His father and grandfather were career military men.
  ``He was a tremendous son and a fantastic marine,'' said his mother, 
Vivian La Mont. He was single and had served with the Marines since 
graduating from San Diego State University in 1994. La Mont had 
previously served in Kosovo and Afghanistan.
  Twenty-one-year-old LCPL Jason Moore was described as a rather wild 
young man with a boundless spirit, whose enthusiasm led him to the 
Marine Corps.
  Moore died on May 19 in Iraq when the CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter he 
helped crew crashed into a canal. Four other Camp Pendleton marines 
were killed in the same incident.
  His parents, Bill and Gale Moore, buried their only son at Fort 
Rosecrans National Cemetery.
  He graduated from San Marcos High School in 2000. His neighbor Deane 
Terry said Moore was clearly bound for Marine aviation from a young 
age, after his interest in the Civil Air Patrol and radio-controlled 
planes.
  ``He was going to continue to aim high one way or another,'' said 
Terry, whose son was Moore's playmate. Terry described the day Moore 
returned from Marine boot camp and stood straight and proud in his 
uniform in the Terry living room.
  ``He was so excited to be a Marine,'' said Terry, who added that 
Moore joined the high school swim team just to prepare himself 
physically for the service. ``He went at the Corps at full speed, not 
hesitating, not looking back.''
  PVT Jose Gonzalez spoke very little English when he arrived as a 
freshman at John Glenn High School in Norwalk, CA. By the time he 
graduated in 2001, he had earned high honors in college preparatory 
classes.
  The Mexican native also played varsity baseball, becoming a player 
who coach Bill Seals could count on at nearly any position: pitching or 
playing in the outfield or infield. He always wore his team hat to 
school, every day, year-round. The coach said it was about pride.
  With his diploma in hand, Gonzalez embraced another part of American 
life: the military. He entered the Marine Corps 2 months after 
graduation and became a supply clerk.
  Gonzalez deployed to Iraq with Camp Pendleton's 1st Force Service 
Support Group and survived the war. On May 12, he was killed when 
ordnance he was handling detonated. He was just 19 years old.
  In Norwalk, Gonzalez is survived by parents and two teenage sisters. 
Gonzalez was not forgotten at his old high school. John Glenn students 
have created a memorial on the auditorium stage--they leave flowers, 
candles, and signs offering tribute to the soft-spoken man who died for 
his adopted country.
  The last time Paul Tokuzo Nakamura, of Santa Fe Springs, called home 
from Iraq was on Father's Day, when he told his family that all was 
well.
  ``The first thing he told me was that he had showered and had steak 
for dinner,'' his father, Paul Nakamura, said Wednesday. ``We know he 
was lying. He didn't want us to worry.''
  The 21-year-old Nakamura joined the Army Reserves out of patriotism 
despite his father's protests.
  ``One day he said, 'Mom, Dad, I'm so proud I was born in the United 
States,''' his mother, Yoko, 55, told those gathered at a memorial 
service.
  Nakamura was stationed with the 437th Medical Company, based in 
Colorado Springs, CO. He was sent to the Middle East in February and 
was killed on June 19, when the ambulance he was in was struck by a 
rocket-propelled grenade in Al Iskandariyah, south of Baghdad.
  ``He was a rascal--you would tell him not to do something, and he 
would do it anyway,'' said his sister, Pearl. He was a lifeguard who 
taught swimming at the Santa Fe Springs Aquatic Center since he was 17 
and was on his high school's water polo team.
  Twenty-five-year-old Army Ranger Andrew Chris followed in the 
footsteps of his relatives when he joined the military in 2001. Both of 
his grandfathers served in World War II, his father served in the Army, 
his uncle in Special Forces and his brother Derek in the Navy. It was a 
way to connect with the generations of his family.
  Chris was killed in combat operations on June 25, just a few days 
after arriving in Iraq. Ordnance exploded near the vehicle Chris was 
riding in, and the Army Ranger died immediately.
  Before Chris joined the Army, he lived for 5 years in California, 
most of them in San Diego. After he graduated from high school in 
Florence, AL, he moved to Lemoore, south of Fresno, to live with his 
brother.
  He spent many weekends exploring and camping in the mountains of 
California and Arizona. He was also well read, with a special interest 
in World War II and planned to teach high school history when he 
completed his military career.
  Andrew Chris was quiet and reserved, and extremely loyal to family 
and friends. He had visited his brother Derek's family just before he 
was sent to Iraq.
  Josh Chris said knowing that his brother died doing what he loved has 
made it easier to accept. ``He was spiritually and emotionally ready.''
  From the outset of the conflict in Iraq, I have learned a great deal 
about those who have died from the local newspapers. Yet there have 
been a few individuals whose stories remain largely untold to the 
public.
  One of those is Marine CPL Douglas Jose Marencoreyes, a 28-year-old 
from

[[Page 18914]]

Chino, who was assigned to the Light Armored Vehicle-Air Defense 
Battery, 4th Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion. He was killed when 
the transport truck he was riding in rolled over.
  I also learned relatively little about 19-year-old Ryan Cox, from 
Derby, KS, who was stationed at 29 Palms, CA, and died due to a 
noncombat weapons discharge on June 15.
  Still, we know that he loved to surf and skydive and that, according 
to his mother, Robin Hamilton, he was doing what he wanted to do. ``He 
was serving his country. I couldn't have asked for a better son.''
  Nor, for that matter, could the United States. We must never forget 
to remind those left behind--mothers and fathers, wives and children--
of how proud we are of America's brave sons and daughters.
  We must never lose sight of their achievement or their sacrifice, not 
to mention the enormous sacrifices made by their families, the ones 
left behind.

                          ____________________