[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Pages 12841-12842]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    TRIBUTE TO GREGORY SCOTT SALYER

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to a 
veteran from my home State, the Commonwealth of Kentucky. As a member 
of

[[Page 12842]]

the Army National Guard, Gregory Scott Salyer served his country with 
honor on a tour of duty in Afghanistan.
  Service to this country is something that runs deep in Salyer's 
family. His father, uncle, and grandfather are all military veterans, 
and Salyer followed suit when he enlisted in 2006.
  In Afghanistan, Salyer and his team performed the treacherous, yet 
indispensable, task of tracking, unearthing, and disposing of 
improvised explosive devices, IEDs. IEDs were, and still remain, one of 
the most serious and unnerving threats to our troops abroad. Salyer's 
work in diffusing that threat undoubtedly increased the safety of our 
servicemen and women.
  Returning to Kentucky following his service in the Guard, Salyer 
brought with him the National Defense Medal, the Global War on 
Terrorism Medal, the Armed Forces Reserve Medal, the Afghanistan 
Campaign Medal, and the ARCOM Medal of Valor.
  For his honorable service to this country, Salyer is deserving of our 
praise here in the Senate.
  Therefore, I ask that my Senate colleagues join me in honoring 
Gregory Scott Salyer.
  The Salyersville Independent recently published an article detailing 
Salyer's service in Afghanistan. I ask unanimous consent that the full 
article be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the article was ordered to be printed in 
the Record as follows:

           [From the Salyersville Independent, July 3, 2014]

               Joins Guard for Work, Sent to Afghanistan

                           (By Heather Oney)

       Gregory Scott Salyer joined the Army National Guard in 
     Prestonsburg in 2006, serving until 2011.
       The former Magoffin County High School student said he was 
     having a hard time finding a job, so at the age of 24 he 
     decided to enlist, following in his dad's, uncles' and 
     grandfathers' footsteps.
       Salyer served one tour in Afghanistan, working in route 
     clearance. His crew, which included five other men from 
     Magoffin, tracked, dug up and disposed of improvised 
     explosive devices (IEDs). While he said he was hit once, he 
     came home without any injuries.
       ``I would rather go back than sit here,'' Salyer said. 
     ``Everything was simple. You trained for a job, then you went 
     out and did your job. You would get up the next day and do it 
     all, again.''
       Salyer said growing up around guns helped him get ready for 
     his time overseas.
       ``I had been around guns my whole life and been shot at 
     while corning,'' Salyer laughed. ``You could tell these boys 
     from California with stricter gun laws were not used to it, 
     but us country people were used to doing hard work every now 
     and then.''
       Salyer received the National Defense Medal, Global War on 
     Terrorism Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal, Afghanistan 
     Campaign Medal, ARCOM Medal of Valor, and Whitelist 
     recognition.
       He has one son, Hunter Salyer.

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