[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 6821-6822]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   RECOGNIZING JESSIE ``DINK'' HOSMAN

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. BILLY LONG

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 15, 2012

  Mr. LONG. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor the 91st 
birthday of Jessie C. ``Dink'' Hosman who was born June 3, 1921, and 
grew up in the Willard, Missouri area.
  During World War II, Technician Fifth Grade Hosman was in Company B, 
1st Battalion, White Combat Team, which fought all over Burma with 
``Merrill's Marauders''. T/5 Hosman fought through some of the harshest 
conditions of the war where the enemy was often less of a concern than 
malaria, deadly Mite Typhus, Amoebic Dysentery, and malnutrition. T/5 
Hosman spent two years in the jungle and also served in Panama and 
India. Being a member of ``Merrill's Marauders'' earned 
T/5 Hosman the distinction of United States Army Ranger.
   T/5 Hosman helped secure the strategic Burma Road while it was being 
built in treacherous conditions. Extraordinarily, while ``Merrill's 
Marauders'' had such a high casualty rate, they never left a fellow 
soldier's body behind. T/5 Hosman received the Combat Infantryman 
Badge, the Presidential Unit Citation, and the Bronze Star Medal for 
exemplary service.
  After the war, Jessie returned stateside and spent some time in San 
Francisco where he was given everything and anything he wanted to eat 
to make up for two years of malnutrition. Eventually Jessie returned 
home to the Willard area where he raised his family and purchased a 
farm where he ran a milk and beef cattle operation for 50 years.
  These days, Jessie is enjoying life and taking it easy living with 
his daughter, Terri Hughes, and her husband, Jimmy Hughes, in Walnut 
Grove, Missouri. He still enjoys his hobbies of fishing, hunting, 
boating and his RV. Jessie has also attended several ``Merrill's 
Marauders'' reunions.
  As the years create more and more distance from the events and heroes 
that defined World War II, I personally wanted to take this opportunity 
to recognize one of my constituents who is a Real American Hero. 
Without the sacrifices of America's Greatest Generation, we would not 
be enjoying the freedoms and rights they fought to preserve. May God 
bless Jessie C. Hosman. I wish him a very happy birthday and many more.

[[Page 6822]]



                          ____________________