[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 11006]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1030
    MOURNING THE LOSS OF STAFF SERGEANT MICHAEL GARCIA AND SERGEANT 
                         CHRISTOPHER SODERLUND

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Louisiana (Mr. Fleming) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FLEMING. Madam Speaker, I rise today to mourn the loss of two 
Louisiana soldiers from Fort Polk who recently died in Logar province, 
Afghanistan, during Operation Enduring Freedom. Staff Sergeant Michael 
Garcia of Bossier City and Sergeant Christopher Soderlund of Pineville, 
Louisiana, made the ultimate sacrifice by giving their lives in service 
to this Nation.
  It is at this point that important decisions involving the defense of 
our Nation become most personal. Instead of thinking in abstract terms 
like casualties, weapons, equipment, we are confronted with the reality 
that these are not just soldiers; they are in fact our friends, our 
neighbors, our sons, fathers, brothers.
  Staff Sergeant Garcia and Sergeant Soderlund represented the very 
best America has to offer. Their contribution serves as an enduring 
reminder to all Americans that the freedoms and liberties we hold so 
dear are afforded to us only by those who wear the uniform and the 
loved ones who support them.
  Let us pause today to remember the sacrifice these brave soldiers 
made on behalf of this great Nation.

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