[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 7]
[House]
[Pages 9197-9198]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         HONORING THE SERVICE OF LIEUTENANT COLONEL FAYE KNODLE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Gingrey) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Speaker, with the 60th anniversary of World War II 
on all our minds, I thought it important to pay tribute to the proud 
veterans of the 11th District of Georgia and, indeed, America for the 
heroism that they displayed that has made possible the unprecedented 
freedom that we enjoy today. They deserve our gratitude and our full 
support.
  One such veteran from Marietta, Georgia, is Lieutenant Colonel Faye 
Knodle. Colonel Knodle was drafted into the Army on December 2, 1942. 
He attended boot camp at Camp Beale, California, and in December 1943, 
he was moved to Camp Bowie, Texas, for combat training in preparation 
for combat duty in Europe.
  Like the proud stories of so many brave Americans, Colonel Knodle hit 
Omaha Beach on June 10, 1944, D-Day plus 4, as a platoon sergeant in 
Patton's Third Army. Two days later, for his exemplary service, he 
received a battlefield commission from General Patton himself, raising 
him to the officer ranks. Knodle fought his way

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through France and Germany into the Ruhr Pocket.
  He was later transferred to the 20th Armored Division and was 
assigned a section to free prisoners at Dachau. There he rejoined the 
Third Army and was part of the drive to Bavaria and the takeover of 
Hitler's hometown of Branau, Austria, on May 2, 1945. He became 
Commandant of Branau until July of 1945 when he received orders to 
return to the States in preparation for the invasion of Yokohama, 
Japan. He landed in the United States for a 30-day leave before 
reporting to Camp Cook, California, but before the end of that leave, 
the Japanese surrender was announced.
  After serving in the Reserve component for 6 years, he was again 
called to active duty in November of 1951 and then served in various 
training roles in the 129th Division until he was discharged from 
service in 1965 as a Lieutenant Colonel, thus ending a distinguished 
23-year military career.
  Mr. Speaker, Colonel Knodle's story is just one of thousands that 
this brave generation shares. When they were young men, our Nation sent 
these brave soldiers off to foreign lands to battle the forces of evil, 
and they came back heroes, setting our Nation on a true course for 
greatness.
  We have often heard them called the Greatest Generation, and I cannot 
think of a more fitting title for these brave men. By sharing their 
stories and remembering their sacrifices, we celebrate the freedom our 
country enjoys. As Ronald Reagan noted on the 40th anniversary of D-
Day, ``We will always remember, we will always be proud, we will always 
be prepared, so we may always be free.''

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