[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 8]
[House]
[Pages 10890-10891]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  FALLEN WARRIORS OF SOUTH EAST TEXAS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. POE. ``From this day to the ending of the world, we in it shall 
be remembered. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he today 
that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother.''
  Mr. Speaker, Shakespeare penned this in Henry V. It represents the 
unfailing commitment soldiers have for their fellow comrades.
  Since 2004, 26 men and women from the Second Congressional District 
area of Texas have served honorably and given their lives for the cause 
of freedom in Iraq and Afghanistan; 26 times I have come to this House 
floor to talk about one of them.
  This Memorial Day I would like to honor them again by name. They 
aren't just a statistic, Mr. Speaker. They are real people who gave 
their life for the American cause. They are the sons and daughters of 
America, and they are our heroes.
  In America's first war fighting for freedom, it was said by Patrick 
Henry, ``The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the 
vigilant, the active, and to the brave.'' We are fortunate that those 
words still ring true today and that American troops overseas carry 
those values into battle.
  I keep the photos of the fallen in all of my offices here in D.C. and 
in Texas, and the noble few who have died for the rest of us in the 
Second Congressional District of Texas are on this chart, Mr. Speaker. 
They are:
  Russell Slay, Staff Sergeant in the United States Army, from Humble, 
Texas. He was killed on November 19, 2004, at the age of 28.
  Wesley Canning, Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps, from 
Friendswood, Texas, killed November 20, 2004, at the age of 21.
  Fred Maciel, Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps, from Spring, 
Texas, killed January 26, 2005, at the age of 20.
  Wesley Riggs, Private First Class, United States Army, from Beach 
City, Texas, killed May 14, 2005, at the age of 19.
  William Meeuwsen, Sergeant, United States Army, from Kingwood, Texas, 
killed November 23, 2005, at the age of 24.
  Robert Martinez, Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps, from 
Cleveland, Texas. He was killed December 1, 2005, at the age of 20. And 
a post office in his hometown is named in his honor.
  Jerry Michael Durbin, Staff Sergeant, United States Army, from 
Spring, Texas, killed January 26, 2006, at the age of 26.
  Walter Moss, Tech Sergeant, United States Air Force, from Houston, 
Texas, killed on March 30, 2006, at the age of 27.
  Kristian Menchaca, Private First Class in the United States Army, 
from Houston, Texas, killed June 16, 2006, at the age of 23.
  Benjamin Williams, Staff Sergeant, United States Army, from Orange, 
Texas. He was killed at the age of 30 on June 20, 2006.
  Ryan Miller, Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps, from 
Pearland, Texas, killed September 14, 2006, at the age of 19.
  Edward Reynolds, Staff Sergeant, United States Army, from Groves, 
Texas. He was killed on September 26, 2006, at the age of 27.
  West Point graduate Michael Fraser, Captain, United States Army, from 
Houston, Texas, killed on November 26, 2006, at the age of 25.

[[Page 10891]]

  Luke Yepsen, Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps, from 
Kingwood, Texas, killed December 14, 2006. He was 20 years of age.
  Dustin Donica, Specialist, United States Army, from Spring, Texas, 
killed on December 28, 2006, at the age of 22.
  Ryan Berg, Specialist in the United States Army, from Sabine Pass, 
Texas. He was killed January 9, 2007, at the age of 19.
  Terrance Dunn, Staff Sergeant, United States Army, from Houston, 
Texas, killed February 2, 2007, at the age of 38.
  Anthony Aguirre, Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps, from 
Houston, Texas, killed February 26, 2007, at the age of 20.
  Brandon Bobb, PFC, United States Army, from Port Arthur, Texas, 
killed July 17, 2007. He was 20 years of age.
  Zachary Endsley, Private First Class, United States Army, Spring, 
Texas, killed on July 23, 2007, at the age of 21.
  Kamisha Block, Specialist, United States Army, from Vidor, Texas, 
killed August 16, 2007. She was 20 years of age. She is one of our 
female warriors who was killed in combat.
  Donald Valentine III, Corporal in the United States Army, from 
Houston, Texas, killed September 18, 2007. He was 21.
  Jeremy Burris, Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps, from 
Liberty, Texas, killed October 8, 2007, at the age of 22.
  Eric Duckworth, Staff Sergeant, United States Army, from Plano, 
Texas, killed October 10, 2007. He was 26.
  Scott Mackintosh, Corporal, United States Army, from Humble, Texas, 
killed March 10, 2008, at the age of 26.
  Shawn Tousha, Sergeant, United States Army, from Hull, Texas, killed 
April 9, 2008. He was 30.
  Mr. Speaker, these 26 warriors represent the best of our Nation. They 
are the sons of liberty, the daughters of democracy. These few, these 
noble few, on this chart are American warriors who take care of the 
rest of us.
  In the words of George Orwell, ``We sleep safe at night in our beds 
because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those 
who would try to do us harm.'' The American soldier.
  And that's just the way it is.

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