[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17783]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




   CONGRATULATING AN EXCEPTIONAL GROUP OF NORTHWEST INDIANA RESIDENTS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. PETER J. VISCLOSKY

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, September 7, 2004

  Mr. VISCLOSKY. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride and enthusiasm 
that I wish to congratulate an exceptional group of Northwest Indiana 
residents. The Lake County Chapter of the American Red Cross will be 
honoring several local heroes for their bravery and selfless acts of 
kindness during the ``In Honor of Heroes'' banquet on Thursday, 
September 9, 2004 at the Avalon Manor in Merrillville, Indiana. They 
will also be recognizing two fallen military heroes and two fallen 
police heroes.
  The First Congressional District is proud to commend the following 
youth for their acts of bravery. Thomas Jones displayed courage when he 
dialed 9-1-1 while his mother was having a seizure. The 9-1-1 
dispatcher, Debbie Kochis, kept 5-year-old Thomas calm and feeling 
secure while she dispatched help. Thomas bravely responded to Kochis's 
request for information needed to get help and followed her 
instructions to help save his mother. Five-year-old Bobby Bodnar's 
grandmother fell unconscious while on a shopping trip. Bobby freed 
himself from the car seat and tried to help her. The young hero stayed 
calm, showed an employee where his grandmother was, and gave valuable 
information to the police. While on his way to school, Mike Spurlock 
came upon an accident scene. Assisted by other heroic citizens, Mike 
broke out one of the automobile's windows and removed the badly injured 
victim from the car. After the incident, he continued on to school as 
usual to take his final exam.
  The Red Cross is also recognizing the following Northwest Indiana 
residents for using their training in life saving techniques to assist 
victims in life threatening situations. Mr. Daniel Luczak, an EMT, 
administered care to an injured worker which reduced further injury to 
the victim's lumbar spine. Lt. Yvonne Hogan Foster used CPR to revive a 
90-year-old female who was unconscious. The tragic outcome of this 
heroic attempt to save a life should not diminish the fact that Lt. 
Hogan-Foster reacted quickly to the situation and put her lifesaving 
training to use. Dave Mays and Kandis Pigg are lifeguards trained and 
certified by the YMCA. Dave Mays activated the YMCA's emergency 
procedure and safely rescued a young man in the water complaining of 
severe back pain. Ms. Kandis Pigg's training in delivering oxygen 
proved to be a lifesaving technique after she was able to remove a man 
from the water who complained of shortness of breath. This heroic 
rescue resulted in the man's full recovery. The members of the Courage 
Aktion Club feel that they are in good hands whenever James Harris is 
around. While having lunch, James noticed a woman choking and performed 
the Heimlich maneuver to dislodge the food. A week later, while riding 
the bus, James helped a passenger who was having a seizure. Without the 
courageous efforts of these individuals: Karl Samuel, Higinio Martinez, 
Hank Carmona, Brian Gregory, Paul Jacquez, Sam Rhoten, and Bill Curtis, 
a heart attack victim would not have survived. Their CPR/AED training 
revived the victim until the EMS arrived.
  Carrie Clemens, Laura Layman, Stacey Gibbons, Sarah Udchitz, Stephen 
Kolodziej, Adam Wythe, and Matt Plassman were all working at a local 
Schoops restaurant when a tragic automobile accident occurred. The 
driver of a pickup truck suffered a fatal heart attack that resulted in 
the truck crashing into the restaurant. The heroic employees stepped 
right in to assist and aid the injured. Also being recognized are Randy 
Edmaiston and Martin Chelich, two courageous men that entered the home 
of a senior citizen while her home was on fire and evacuated the woman. 
Because of this selfless act, the woman's life was saved.
  It takes dedication and hard work to make a blood drive a success. 
Hyles Anderson College and First Baptist Church work together to make 
blood drives successful. Due to the hard work of Kris Grafton, Karen 
Basham, Pastor Jack Schaap, and all the others involved, they have 
increased their blood collections by 40 percent and helped save 1,026 
lives. Blood donors like Beth Groff truly give the gift of life. She 
has graciously donated 18 gallons of blood.
  John D. Amos II and Luis A. Perez were two residents of Northwest 
Indiana who sacrificed their lives during Operation Iraqi Freedom, and 
their deaths come as a difficult setback to a community already shaken 
by the realities of war. These fallen soldiers will forever remain 
heroes in the eyes of this community, and this country.
  I would like to also honor Trooper Scott A. Patrick and Detective 
William Rolniak, Jr. Trooper Patrick was the 40th Indiana State Police 
Officer to be killed in the line of duty. While stopping to aid a 
stranded motorist, he was shot by the motorist who had stolen the car. 
Detective William Rolniak, Jr, a 14-year police veteran, was killed in 
the line of duty when a suspect took him as a hostage and later killed 
him.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that you and my other distinguished colleagues 
join me in commending and acknowledging these outstanding heroes of 
Northwest Indiana. Their bravery and selfless deeds to others are 
worthy of the highest honor and respect.

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