[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 16117]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       A TRIBUTE TO ANDREW VELEZ

  (Mr. NEUGEBAUER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. NEUGEBAUER. Mr. Speaker, this morning I come to this House with a 
very heavy heart. Earlier this week, PFC Andrew Velez was killed while 
tracking Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan.
  It is always a tragedy when we lose one of our young soldiers, but 
this loss is especially tragic because less than 2 years ago, Andrew's 
older brother, Freddy, was also killed while protecting this country in 
fighting the war on terrorism.
  The Velez family now has made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom and 
democracy not once, but twice. Andrew and Freddy Velez are American 
heroes. We must never forget the sacrifice of these two brothers for 
freedom.
  My thoughts and prayers go out to Andrew's father, Roy; his 
stepmother, Carmen; Andrew's wife, Veronica; and his three children, 
Jasmine, Jordan, and Jacob as they mourn the loss of their son and 
their husband and their dad.
  Mr. Speaker, the price of freedom has never been cheap, but I have to 
say that the Velez family has given an extra measure for freedom and 
democracy. I hold them in my prayers and ask all Americans to do so at 
the same time.

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