[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Pages 8692-8694]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES


                     Staff Sergeant Bradley D. King

  Mr. BAYH. Mr. President, I rise today with a heavy heart and deep 
sense of gratitude to honor the life of a brave young man from Gas 
City. Bradley King, 28 years old, was killed on April 2 while deployed 
in Al Amiriyah, Iraq, when a roadside bomb exploded near his humvee. 
With his entire life before him, Bradley risked everything to fight for 
the values Americans hold close to our hearts, in a land halfway around 
the world.

[[Page 8693]]

  Bradley attended Mississinewa High School, enlisting in the National 
Guard in 1997, a year before his graduation in 1998. Bradley enjoyed 
the military and felt a sense of duty to serve his community and 
country. The day before he was deployed, Bradley told his mother that 
he felt ``called to serve in the military for his country.'' His aunt 
described Bradley as ``a responsible young man determined to do his 
best for the people he loved.''
  Bradley was killed while serving his country in Operation Iraqi 
Freedom. He was a member of the 2nd Battalion, 152nd Infantry Regiment, 
76th Infantry Brigade, Marion, IN. MSG Bill Wallen, King's supervisor, 
told local media, ``he was a heck of a human being, he's what everybody 
else needs to be in this world.'' Staff Sergeant King leaves behind his 
wife Adrian and 15-month-old son Daethan.
  Today, I join Bradley's family and friends in mourning his death. 
While we struggle to bear our sorrow over this loss, we can also take 
pride in the example he set, bravely fighting to make the world a safer 
place. It is his courage and strength of character that people will 
remember when they think of Bradley, a memory that will burn brightly 
during these continuing days of conflict and grief.
  Bradley was known for his dedication to his family and his love of 
country. Today and always, Bradley will be remembered by family 
members, friends, and fellow Hoosiers as a true American hero, and we 
honor the sacrifice he made while dutifully serving his country.
  As I search for words to do justice in honoring Bradley's sacrifice, 
I am reminded of President Lincoln's remarks as he addressed the 
families of the fallen soldiers in Gettysburg: ``We cannot dedicate, we 
cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living 
and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor 
power to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember 
what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.'' This 
statement is just as true today as it was nearly 150 years ago, as I am 
certain that the impact of Bradley's actions will live on far longer 
than any record of these words.
  It is my sad duty to enter the name of Bradley D. King in the 
official Record of the U.S. Senate for his service to this country and 
for his profound commitment to freedom, democracy, and peace. When I 
think about this just cause in which we are engaged and the unfortunate 
pain that comes with the loss of our heroes, I hope that families like 
Bradley's can find comfort in the words of the prophet Isaiah, who 
said, ``He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe 
away tears from off all faces.''
  May God grant strength and peace to those who mourn, and may God be 
with all of you, as I know He is with Bradley.


                       1st Lieutenant Neale Shank

  Mr. President, I also rise today with a heavy heart and deep sense of 
gratitude to honor the life of a brave young man from Fort Wayne. Neale 
Shank, 25 years old, died on March 30 while deployed in Baghdad on 
Operation Iraqi Freedom. With his entire life before him, Neale risked 
everything to fight for the values Americans hold close to our hearts, 
in a land halfway around the world.
  Neale has been a lifelong Hoosier, graduating from Concordia Lutheran 
High School in Fort Wayne in 1999. First Lieutenant Shank graduated 
from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 2005. His valor over 
the course of his service in Iraq exemplifies Hoosier values and 
courage. He decided to attend West Point because, as he put it, ``it is 
not a job and it is not a way of life, the Army is my life.'' Neale 
enjoyed the military, and he believed that throughout all the hardships 
they faced he and his company were helping the Iraqi people. His 
grandfather described his grandson to local media outlets as an 
adventurous, active person saying, ``He was all boy, he wasn't no 
inside kid.''
  Neale died while serving his country in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He 
was a member of the Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 
89th Cavalry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division based in Fort Drum, NY.
  Today, I join Neale's family and friends in mourning his death. While 
we struggle to bear our sorrow over this loss, we can also take pride 
in the example he set, bravely fighting to make the world a safer 
place. It is his courage and strength of character that people will 
remember when they think of Neale, a memory that will burn brightly 
during these continuing days of conflict and grief.
  Neale was known for his dedication to his community and his love of 
country. Today and always, Neale will be remembered by family members, 
friends, and fellow Hoosiers as a true American hero, and we honor the 
sacrifice he made while dutifully serving his country.
  As I search for words to do justice in honoring Neale's sacrifice, I 
am reminded of President Lincoln's remarks as he addressed the families 
of the fallen soldiers in Gettysburg: ``We cannot dedicate, we cannot 
consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and 
dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power 
to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember what we 
say here, but it can never forget what they did here.'' This statement 
is just as true today as it was nearly 150 years ago, as I am certain 
that the impact of Neale's actions will live on far longer than any 
record of these words.
  It is my sad duty to enter the name of Neale M. Shank in the official 
Record of the U.S. Senate for his service to this country and for his 
profound commitment to freedom, democracy, and peace. When I think 
about this just cause in which we are engaged and the unfortunate pain 
that comes with the loss of our heroes, I hope that families like 
Neale's can find comfort in the words of the prophet Isaiah who said, 
``He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away 
tears from off all faces.''
  May God grant strength and peace to those who mourn, and may God be 
with all of you, as I know He is with Neale.


                private first class orlando e. gonzalez

 Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise today to pay my respects to 
Private First Class Orlando E. Gonzalez, who last month lost his life 
in the service of our country.
  On the morning of Sunday, March 25, Private First Class Gonzalez was 
handing out candy to Iraqi children in the province of Diyala when a 
suicide bomber killed him and three other soldiers. Private First Class 
Gonzalez was only 21 years old.
  Born in Bridgeport, CT, Orlando is being remembered today for his 
dedication to the U.S. Army, and for his warm and giving nature. ``He 
always had a smile on his face,'' said his high school principal, Brian 
Cashman. ``He was kind of a handful, but you couldn't help but like 
him.''
  Private First Class Gonzalez rose above what his principal described 
as a ``rough'' background to find purpose and discipline: first at a 
faith-based camp for students, and then as an American soldier.
  ``We just loved him around here,'' said Patrick LeBlanc, director of 
Summit Grove Camp. The first thing that came to LeBlanc's mind on 
hearing of Orlando's death was his infectious playfulness. LeBlanc 
recalled seeing a wild rabbit on the camp grounds, and telling Orlando 
he was fast enough to catch it. Orlando only nodded--and a few hours 
later, knocked on LeBlanc's door, petting the rabbit and beaming.
  But it was in the Army that Private First Class Gonzalez found, as so 
many have found before him, meaning and a second home. ``I think the 
Army is what he needed,'' said Principal Cashman. Patrick LeBlanc 
agreed: ``It was the second happiest place I'd seen him, other than 
camp here. . . . He was doing what he wanted to do.''
  As a scout javelin gunner for the 82nd Airborne Division, 3rd Brigade 
Combat Team, 5th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, Private First Class 
Gonzalez immediately distinguished himself. ``On a daily basis, Private 
First Class Gonzalez displayed courage, honor, and selfless service in 
the struggle to keep America safe and improve the nation of Iraq,'' 
said Captain John Carson of the 73rd Cavalry. Private First Class 
Gonzalez was already highly decorated at

[[Page 8694]]

the time of his death, and we can only wonder what an outstanding 
career might have been waiting for him.
  Instead, Private First Class Gonzalez leaves behind two grieving 
parents, Orlando G. Gonzalez of Bridgeport, and Carmen Diaz of New 
Freedom, PA. But he leaves behind, as well, an example of dedication 
that won't soon be dimmed.
  ``This hero will be sorely missed and will forever live in our 
memories,'' said Captain Carson.
  Orlando, though, might have used other words. ``Call him a hero and 
he would get mad,'' Orlando's friend and pastor, the Reverend Paul 
Juchniewich, said in a funeral sermon. ``He would just say he was doing 
his duty to rescue those who are in peril. He did not die in a 
conventional battle, but rather a battle for the hearts and minds of 
the future generation.''
  The struggle's outcome is still uncertain. But we will keep fresh the 
memory of one man who advanced it with all his strength, Private First 
Class Orlando E. Gonzalez, whose last act on this Earth was to 
give.

                          ____________________