[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 9]
[House]
[Pages 12381-12382]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 SERGEANT MATTHEW J. FENTON POST OFFICE

  Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 789) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 20 Main Street in Little Ferry, New Jersey, as the 
``Sergeant Matthew J. Fenton Post Office''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 789

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SERGEANT MATTHEW J. FENTON POST OFFICE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 20 Main Street in Little Ferry, New 
     Jersey, shall be known and designated as the ``Sergeant 
     Matthew J. Fenton Post Office''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Sergeant Matthew J. Fenton Post 
     Office''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Oklahoma (Mr. Lankford) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oklahoma.


                             General Leave

  Mr. LANKFORD. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 
legislative days with which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Oklahoma?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. LANKFORD. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 789, introduced by the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Rothman), would designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 20 Main Street in Little Ferry, New Jersey, as the 
Sergeant Matthew J. Fenton Post Office. The bill was cosponsored by the 
entire New Jersey State delegation and was reported from the Committee 
on Oversight and Government Reform on June 22.
  Sergeant Fenton served his country as a United States marine, 
training fellow marines as a reserves inspector and instructor. 
Tragically, Mr. Speaker, on May 5, 2006, Sergeant Fenton passed away at 
the Naval Medical Center in Bethesda after suffering wounds he received 
as a result of a suicide attack in Anbar Province, Iraq.
  Prior to serving his country, Matthew was no different than many of 
us. He enjoyed watching baseball, playing poker, and loved his hometown 
of Little Ferry, New Jersey. He enjoyed rooting for his favorite teams, 
the Yankees and Giants, but his true goal was always to serve those 
that were around him. Matthew had a dream of becoming a police officer 
and serving his local community. His mother, Diane, said that he talked 
about wanting to become a police officer. She even sent him a civil 
service book to prepare for that test while he was in Iraq.

                              {time}  1810

  He finally has achieved his goal. The Little Ferry Police Department 
made him an honorary officer posthumously. Sergeant Fenton is a true 
American hero, making the ultimate sacrifice for those he was proud to 
serve.
  I urge all Members to join me in strong support of this bill.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. It is my pleasure to yield such time as he may 
consume to the author of this legislation, the gentleman from the 
Garden State of New Jersey, Representative Steve Rothman.
  Mr. ROTHMAN of New Jersey. I thank my ranking member, Mr. Davis, for 
his work on this bill. I would like to thank the chairman for all of 
his support as well. It is very greatly appreciated by all of us.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a true American hero, Marine 
Sergeant Matthew Fenton of Little Ferry, New Jersey. At just 24 years 
of age, Matthew Fenton made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. It 
happened during his service in Iraq's al Anbar province in 2006. 
Matthew was struck by shrapnel after alerting his comrades to the 
presence of a suicide bomber. All of them escaped except for Matthew. 
He passed away 9 days later at the National Naval Medical Center in 
Bethesda, Maryland, as a result of his wounds, a day after he received 
the Purple Heart for his bravery.
  I attended Matthew's funeral in 2006, and I can tell you, Mr. 
Speaker, that 5 years later I still vividly recall the pain and deep 
sadness of his parents, his family, friends, and, yes, the entire 
community over the loss of this wonderful young man. Matthew 
represented the best our country has to offer.
  Matthew planned to return home to Little Ferry, as has been said, 
after his service in the Marine Corps. He wanted to continue serving 
his community as a police officer. There is no doubt in my mind that 
just as Matthew was an outstanding marine, he would have made an 
outstanding police officer. Recognizing this fact, the Little Ferry 
Police Department made Sergeant Fenton a member of the Little Ferry 
police force after his untimely death, and then they permanently 
retired his badge number--number 44.
  It is a humbling privilege for me to have played a small part in 
honoring Marine Sergeant Matthew Fenton, having sponsored the 
legislation naming the post office in his hometown of Little Ferry, New 
Jersey, the ``Sergeant Matthew J. Fenton Post Office.''
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and 
join me in ensuring that Marine Sergeant Matthew J. Fenton is 
recognized for his selflessness, his courage, and his patriotism, and 
that he will always be remembered.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. I thank the gentleman for introducing this 
thoughtful measure and yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support the passage 
of H.R. 789.

[[Page 12382]]

  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lankford) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 789.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a 
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not 
present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

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