[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 16889]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




          REMEMBERING WWII VETERANS IN UMATILLA COUNTY, OREGON

  Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I wish to commemorate the honorable 
veterans and civilians of Umatilla County, OR, who worked tirelessly 
and fought valiantly for their community and country during the Second 
World War. These brave men and women served in a variety of capacities 
on all fronts, working to support the war effort at home, defending our 
coastlines from attack, and risking their lives in battle overseas. As 
the country continues to mark the 70th anniversary of World War II this 
year, I am proud to raise my voice to pay tribute to the men and women 
of Umatilla County for their part in the Allied victory.
  Umatilla County played a unique and important role in helping our 
country achieve victory in World War II. In 1941, the U.S. Army Corps 
of Engineers created an airport in Pendleton, OR, which became home to 
the U.S. Army Air Forces 17th Bombardment Group. Following the attack 
on Pearl Harbor, the 17th Bombardment Group was called upon to defend 
the west coast from Japanese submarines. The group's aircraft and many 
of its members participated in the daring Doolittle Raid on Tokyo--the 
first U.S. bombing of the Japanese homeland. All 80 of Jimmy 
Doolittle's raiders trained in Pendleton, and 5 of them were 
Oregonians.
  Umatilla County also played home to another facility vital to the war 
effort: the Umatilla Army Depot, located near Hermiston, OR. The 
Umatilla Army Depot was a repository for munitions and supplies in 
hundreds of semisubterranean silos. The depot created an economic boom 
for Hermiston--then a town of 800--which ended up harboring 7,000 new 
workers. The Umatilla County Depot became the largest munitions 
facility in the world and stayed active in Hermiston until 2001.
  Umatilla County lost 86 people during World War II, but their spirit 
and stories live on through their families and in their communities. 
One of these men, SGT Modie L. Hubbard, even has a great nephew who now 
works in my office. Sergeant Hubbard was killed in action, and his is 
just one of many stories of those fearless men and women who died 
preserving the freedom of future generations.
  There is sometimes a temptation to focus on the massive scale of 
events like World War II, on the number of tanks built or brigades in 
the field. As we reflect on these and other aspects of America's war 
effort, I would encourage people to remember the communities across 
this country--communities like Umatilla County--that built those tanks 
or provided those soldiers. It must be our responsibility to honor 
these communities and their sacrifices to this great country, and it is 
my hope that their stories will continue to live on and inspire future 
generations of Americans to service.

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