[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Pages 15965-15966]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         REMEMBERING PAT JOHNS

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, last month, Illinois--and America--lost a 
legend. Pat Johns passed away at the age of 66. Pat Johns was from my 
home State of Illinois. He was born in Aurora and raised in Plano. 
Known as the ``Master of Disaster,'' Pat was employed with Catholic 
Relief Services, based in Baltimore, for 30 years. In that time he was 
on the ground in some of the world's most dangerous war zones and 
humanitarian emergency areas.
  Pat Johns was a soldier, but not in the traditional sense--he didn't 
even carry a gun. He was a soldier of peace, armed only with the virtue 
of his mission. And his mission took him to places like the killing 
fields of Cambodia, the Ethiopian famine, the Rwandan genocide, 
Somalia, Kosovo, and Eritrea. And when natural disasters occurred like 
the Asian tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, or the earthquake in Haiti, Pat 
Johns was there--with energy, hope, and solutions.
  In 1974, Pat joined Catholic Relief Services and was posted in 
Cambodia. Two years later, he was managing a staff of 400 people. To 
say that Pat faced a challenge in Cambodia would be a gross 
understatement. The Khmer Rouge Army was storming its way toward the 
capitol of Phnom Penh and the Vietnam war was raging next door. Pat's 
job included working shifts of 50 hours or more and getting food and 
supplies to nearly 2 million refugees seeking safe haven from the Khmer 
Rouge's advances. He endured miserable tropical weather and survived 
malaria, all while keeping tens of thousands of refugees alive. When 
asked about the experience, he said, ``The whole experience, in 
Cambodia really drove home my niche in life.''
  Many may have quit, but not Pat Johns. Instead, he dedicated his life 
to serving those in desperate need in the most dangerous parts of the 
planet. In doing so, Pat Johns saved millions of people from war-torn 
countries, fed the starving, and promoted peace and justice all over 
the world--what an inspiration.
  Last spring, I gave the commencement address at my nephew's high 
school graduation. I asked the students to think about what they wanted 
people to say about their lives. I asked them, ``What will you be 
remembered for? What service did you render to your community? Your 
nation? Your world?'' The great thing about living in America is we can 
choose the answers to those questions.
  Pat Johns will be remembered for many things: living through war, 
famine, natural disasters, incredible human suffering; and for bringing 
hope to victims everywhere he went. But Sean Callahan, chief operating 
officer for Catholic Relief Services, put it best. He said, ``Perhaps 
the greatest thing about Pat was that he was a gentleman and a greatly 
caring person. He could work nonstop for 50 hours in terrible 
conditions, but still have the

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heart to offer comfort and friendship to those around him.'' That's a 
legacy to be proud of.
  Today, the best way we can honor Pat Johns is by continuing his 
life's work. We need this generation of Americans to live up to the 
example set by Pat Johns. We have big shoes to fill, but Pat showed us 
that, with the right commitment, we can get it done.

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