[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 10952]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING THE LIMA COMPANY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BETTY SUTTON

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 22, 2008

  Ms. SUTTON. Madam Speaker, I rise today with Memorial Day upon us to 
honor and remember the 22 Marines and Navy Corpsman from the Lima 
Company who lost their lives while serving in Iraq in 2005.
  The Lima Company is a Marine reserve unit based in Columbus, Ohio, 
whose members span 7 states. The Company is part of the 3rd Battalion, 
25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, that was first activated on 
May 1, 1943.
  The Battalion fought in several battles in World War II, including 
the Battle of Iwo Jima, where the unit helped capture a key airfield.
  Throughout its deployment to Iraq in 2005, Lima Company served the 
United States with great dignity and pride. Fifty-nine of its members 
were awarded purple hearts.
  The company was once known as ``Lucky Lima.'' Unfortunately, the 
fates of the battlefield in Iraq were not kind to these men. The Lima 
Company is one of the hardest hit single units that has fought in 
Operation Iraqi Freedom.
  During the course of a single week in the summer of 2005, Lima lost 
21 of its own. During the course of its seven-month deployment, 23 men 
out of 189 men were lost.
  I would like to read the list of the fallen so that we take the time 
to honor each individual lost and remember the tremendous losses their 
families and communities have suffered:
  Lance Corporal Timothy M. Bell, Jr.; Lance Corporal Eric J. 
Bernholtz; Corporal Dustin A. Derga; Lance Corporal Nicholas B. Erdy; 
Lance Corporal Wesley G. Davids; Sergeant David N. Wimberg; Lance 
Corporal Michael J. Cifuentes; Lance Corporal Christopher J. Dyer; 
Lance Corporal Jonathan W. Grant; Sergeant David Kenneth J. Kreuter; 
Lance Corporal Jourdan L. Grez; Private First Class Christopher R. 
Dixon.
  Lance Corporal Christopher P. Lyons; Staff Sergeant Anthony L. 
Goodwin; Petty Officer 3rd Class Travis Youngblood; Sergeant Justin F. 
Hoffman; Staff Sergeant Kendall H. Ivy III; Lance Corporal Nicholas 
William B. Bloem; Corporal Andre L. Williams; Lance Corporal Grant B. 
Fraser; Lance Corporal Aaron H. Reed; Lance Corporal Edward A. 
Schroeder II; and Lance Corporal William B. Wightman.
  These men have touched the hearts of people around Ohio as we have 
collectively grieved their passing. One such person who has exhibited 
her sincere dedication to the sacrifices of these men is Anita Miller, 
a liturgical artist who resides in Columbus.
  Like everyone in Ohio, Anita knew the devastating losses that the 
Lima Company family has endured during the Iraq War and the impact that 
these losses have had on our communities.
  Anita awoke one morning in October of 2005 with the idea of creating 
a lasting memorial to honor the Lima Company. She has used her immense 
talents to create an octagon Memorial, consisting of eight panels that 
depict each of the fallen Marines and Corpsman, with a candle and 
bronzed combat boots in front of each portrait. A shelf at the bottom 
of the panel will allow for flowers or mementos to be left by the 
public.
  The memorial will be unveiled in the rotunda of the Ohio Statehouse 
on Friday and thereafter be a mobile memorial similar to the traveling 
Vietnam Memorial so that people around Ohio and the United States have 
an opportunity to pay tribute to Lima Company.
  I know that every American joins me in remembering our men and women 
in uniform not just on Memorial Day, but every day, for what they have 
sacrificed and fought for in giving us the freedoms we hold so dear.
  As we celebrate Memorial Day, I hope that memorials such as the Lima 
Company Traveling Memorial and services and parades around the country 
allow us to pay tribute to all of the men and women who have sacrificed 
their lives for our country.

                          ____________________