[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 10384]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              REMEMBERING SECOND LIEUTENANT ROBERT EMERSON

  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to honor 2LT Robert S. 
Emerson who is coming home to Maine more than 60 years after he served 
his country during World War II. Lieutenant Emerson perished when the 
B-24 aircraft he was flying in crashed in the Philippines on April 3, 
1945.
  His body was recovered in 1947, and he was buried in Leyte, 
Philippines. In 1949, his remains were moved from his resting place in 
the Philippines to Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis, 
MO. In 2008, his remains were exhumed and transferred to the 
jurisdiction of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command in Hawaii, 
bringing him one step and thousands of miles closer to his home State 
of Maine. Thanks to the persistent efforts of the relatives of 
Lieutenant Emerson's family and the other airmen that served with him 
on his B-24, the Department of Defense was able to guarantee the return 
home of this fallen service member.
  Lieutenant Emerson's long and remarkable journey home is finally 
coming to an end. On Saturday, July 9, 2011, he will finally be brought 
to home, to rest alongside his mother and father in Norway, ME. After 
more than 66 years since he first left home, it is a privilege to 
welcome home, and honor, a fallen warrior who gave his life in World 
War II in defense of our Nation.
  While no words of mine can console the grief that Lieutenant 
Emerson's family has felt for too long, I know Mainers and the American 
people are profoundly grateful for his service. Like so many throughout 
our history, Lieutenant Emerson left the comfort and safety of home to 
answer the call of duty to our country. He is now among that valiant 
legion that has journeyed through the darkest valley to a place of 
quiet waters and now able to rest at home.

                          ____________________