[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 11976]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  IN MEMORY OF TWO FALLEN FIREFIGHTERS

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. RAUL RUIZ

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 19, 2013

  Mr. RUIZ. Mr. Speaker, today I wish to make a statement in memory of 
two brave firefighters from California's 36th Congressional District, 
William Warneke and Chris MacKenzie, who lost their lives tragically in 
the line of duty.
  William ``Billy'' Warneke grew up in Hemet, California, where he 
attended Hemet High School. As a student, he enrolled in the Junior Air 
Force ROTC, and served four years in the United States Marine Corps, 
including a tour in Iraq. When Billy returned from serving his country, 
he went to school in Tucson, Arizona, utilizing his hard earned veteran 
education benefits. While at school, he attended fire training and 
became a firefighter with the Prescott Fire Department. As a 
firefighter in Prescott, Arizona, Billy was a member of the highly 
trained, elite Granite Mountain Hotshots, who placed their lives on the 
line every day. On Sunday, June 30, 2013, Billy Warneke was fighting 
the 13-square-mile Yarnell Hill Fire when he was overrun and perished 
with 18 other members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots. Billy was only 
25 years old, leaving behind his wife Roxanne and their baby due to be 
born in December. Billy's death cut short a brave and selfless life of 
service, but he died just as he lived--serving with honor and 
protecting the lives of others.
  Chris MacKenzie grew up in the San Jacinto Valley in Riverside 
County, California, and graduated from Hemet High School in 2001. Chris 
loved snowboarding and dreamed of becoming a firefighter like his 
father, and worked hard to achieve that dream. Chris joined the United 
States Forest Service in 2004, and in 2011 transferred to the Prescott 
Fire Department. As a firefighter there, he served in the elite Granite 
Mountain Hotshots, who placed their lives on the line every day. On 
Sunday, June 30, 2013, Chris MacKenzie was fighting the 13-square-mile 
Yarnell Hill Fire when he was overrun and perished with 18 other 
members of the Granite Hotshots. He was 30 years old, leaving behind 
his mother, Lauri Goralski, and his father, Michael MacKenzie, as well 
as family members and friends. Chris died just as he lived--protecting 
the public from a dangerous fire.
  These two brave young men died before their time. They were heroic 
public servants and upstanding members of the communities they gave 
their lives to serve. They were honorable, passionate men who devoted 
themselves to their country, their duty, and their family. Their 
service and lives are to be commended. Their memories will live on in 
the people whose lives they inspired and their final act of sacrifice.