[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 18]
[Senate]
[Page 24539]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES


                          CAPTAIN ROB YLLESCAS

  Mr. NELSON of Nebraska. Madam President, I rise today to honor Army 
CPT Rob Yllescas who was wounded in Afghanistan on October 28, 2008, 
and tragically succumbed to his injuries on December 1.
  Captain Yllescas, who was a native of Guatemala, attended the 
University of Nebraska at Lincoln, where he met his wife, Dena, a 
native of Osceola, NE. He came to call our State home, and today I know 
that every one of my fellow Nebraskans is proud to claim Captain 
Yllescas as one of our own.
  Captain Yllescas commanded B-Troop, 6-4 Cavalry of the 3rd Brigade, 
1st Infantry Division, The Big Red One, where 90 American troops and 
more than 200 Afghan fighters were under his command. A graduate of 
Army Ranger School, Captain Yllescas had deployed twice before during 
his 10-year military career, both times to Iraq. His fellow soldiers 
recognized and respected Captain Yllescas's commitment to the missions 
he performed. Although trained as a warfighter, Captain Yllescas knew 
the importance of connecting with the local populations and was known 
to sit down with local leaders for tea and discussions of democracy.
  After he was severely injured by an improvised explosive device, 
Captain Yllescas was strong enough to survive a lengthy medical 
evacuation which eventually brought him to the National Naval Medical 
Center in Bethesda, MD. With Dena and other family members at his side, 
Captain Yllescas underwent almost daily surgeries in the hope of 
recovery. Dena Yllescas chronicled his hospitalization on an Internet 
blog which drew tens of thousands of readers. Friends, relatives and 
total strangers all followed Captain Yllescas's progress and prayed for 
his recovery. President George W. Bush made a special trip to the 
medical center and awarded Captain Yllescas the Purple Heart in a brief 
ceremony on November 10.
  Captain Yllescas knew the dangers he faced and the risks he took. He 
also knew the importance of the work he did in the Army on behalf of 
his fellow Americans. He risked and ultimately sacrificed his own life 
so that people a world away could have the chance to enjoy the freedoms 
he had found in America.
  Captain Yllescas is survived by his wife, Dena, and daughters Julia, 
age 7, and Eva, 10 months; parents, Barbara Yllescas of Lincoln and 
Otto Yllescas of Guatemala; a brother, Christopher of Columbia, MO; and 
two sisters, Jennifer Winterbauer of Lincoln and Natalie Yllescas of 
Guatemala.
  The life and service of Captain Yllescas represents an example we can 
all look up to and seek to emulate. He served his country honorably and 
made the ultimate sacrifice in furtherance of a much larger goal. 
Captain Yllescas made the most of his short life, and the greatest 
tragedy is that now it is impossible to know what more this promising 
young man might have accomplished. I join all Nebraskans in mourning 
the loss of Captain Yllescas and in offering my deepest condolences to 
his family.

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