[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 8]
[Senate]
[Pages 10417-10418]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     REMEMBERING TROOPER JAMES A. MOEN AND RECOGNIZING MEGAN PETERS

 Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, on Thursday, the Alaska State 
Troopers will pause to recognize the 14th anniversary of the loss of 
Trooper James A. Moen. Trooper Moen, assigned to fish and wildlife 
protection duties, was killed in an aircraft accident while on law 
enforcement patrol near Lake Iliamna, AK. Trooper Moen was piloting the 
single-engine Piper Cub float plane when it crashed for unknown 
reasons. His remains were recovered by troopers who hiked in to the 
scene. Trooper Moen had served with the Alaska State Troopers--fish and 
wildlife protection for over 18 years and had over 4,000 hours of 
flight time as both a military and civilian pilot. He was survived by 
his wife and four children.
  One of Trooper Moen's children is Megan Peters, a spokesperson for 
the Alaska State Troopers. Megan's name is perhaps better known among 
Alaskans than her father's was. But one thing that Alaskans may not 
know is that Megan plays a leading role in organizing the Alaska police 
memorial ceremony each May. While all Alaska's law enforcement officers 
who gave their lives in the line of duty are recognized in this 
ceremony, the emphasis is on honoring those who passed in the preceding 
year.
  There is a certain irony to Megan's involvement in all this. During 
Police Week, Megan devotes her energy to comforting the families of 
other fallen officers. But who is there to recognize and comfort Megan, 
herself a survivor of a law enforcement tragedy? That irony was not 
lost on Mallory Peebles, a reporter from KTUU Television in Anchorage. 
During the 2013 ceremony, Mallory devoted a segment of Channel 2 News 
to telling Megan's story--then and now.
  So this year, through this message in the Congressional Record, it is 
my intention to honor both father and daughter. The legacy of Trooper 
James A. Moen very much lives on in the work of his daughter Megan. I 
didn't know Trooper Moen, but I have to believe that he would be very 
proud of Megan's work.
  My staff and I rely on Megan throughout the year for information on 
public safety issues in Alaska. She is the go-to person and gets us the 
answers we need on short deadline. We appreciate her knowledge and 
diligence, but rarely do we think to take a moment to say thank you.
  I ask unanimous consent that Mallory Peebles report on the work of 
Megan Peters be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                  [From Channel 2 News, May 20, 2013]

    Lost in the Line of Duty: A State Trooper's Story 12 Years Later

         (By Mallory Peebles and Photojournalist Shawn Wilson)

       Anchorage, AK.--When a service member or civilian in 
     uniform makes the ultimate sacrifice, they are officially 
     considered lost in the line of duty. Channel Two is looking 
     back at three Alaskans and their families who have paid the 
     ultimate price. On May 10, The State of Alaska recognized 
     Peace Officers Memorial Day. It's a somber yet iconic event 
     to mark and mourn Alaska's law enforcement officers who have 
     lost their lives in the line of duty. This year the annual 
     event was organized by State Trooper spokeswoman Megan 
     Peters. For Peters it's more than just a work assignment, 
     it's personal. ``My dad was a fish cop, fish and wildlife. So 
     he was a brown shirt,'' Peters said. Peters said growing up 
     she always knew her father did important work with the Alaska 
     Troopers--sometimes even dangerous work--but as a child she 
     didn't focus on the dangers of the job. ``He would go out on 
     the boat all the time. He loved flying,'' Peters said. 
     ``People say yeah, it's something that you know could happen 
     but I was a little kid, and my dad was a trooper the whole 
     time, so why would something happen?'' When Peters was just 
     18-years-old something did happen. Her father was flying on a 
     routine sport fishing patrol near Iliamna when his plane 
     crashed. It was May 25, 2001. Megan was studying abroad in 
     Finland when her mother called with the news. ``I was just 
     walking down the street, and I'll never forget the first 
     thing she said was `I'm so sorry Megan,''' Peters said. ``I 
     don't remember anything after that phone call. I don't 
     remember packing. I didn't have to change my plane tickets 
     because I was already leaving. I just came home, and it was a 
     different life.'' It was a life without a father who had 
     meant the world to her. ``When he wasn't working he was 
     always taking us out. We had a boat and we had our own plane 
     in high school,'' Peters said. ``My dad loved Alaska and 
     that's why he came up here. He came up with the intent on 
     wanting to be a State Trooper.'' James Arthur Moen was a 
     productive Alaska State Trooper. For 18 years he served The 
     State of Alaska. A member of the Special Emergency Response 
     Team, SERT and dive unit, Moen assisted in numerous rescues 
     and recovery missions. Today, he is still remembered for his 
     contributions across the state. A trooper boat is named after 
     Moen and still operates out of Petersburg. While serving 
     Alaskans, Moen also served as a strong role model for his 
     daughter. She decided to follow in her father's footsteps and 
     is now working with the State Troopers. Peters joined the 
     Troopers in 2007 where she is tasked with writing a press 
     release each time a plane crashes in Alaska and troopers 
     respond. Just like her father's hat that sits on her desk in 
     the office, each press release serves as a constant and often 
     painful reminder of the high cost of duty. ``I might not 
     understand what it is that the troopers are doing every 
     single day and what they're facing but I grew up around it 
     enough to know what their jobs do entail,'' said Peters, 
     ``and to know what it's like to be in that environment.'' 
     Alaska Peace Officers Memorial Day serves as a stark reminder 
     of the life and death situations law enforcement officers 
     face every day while on duty. The harsh realities that come 
     along with the responsibilities of duty in Alaska can mean 
     it's possible they may not come home. Moen's name was added 
     to this memorial more than a decade ago and joins many

[[Page 10418]]

     like it. This year 40-year-old State Trooper Tage Toll of 
     Talkeetna had his name added. He died only two months ago 
     when Helo-One crashed while executing the rescue of a 
     stranded snowmachiner. Village Public Safety Officer Thomas 
     Madole also had his named added to the memorial this year. He 
     was shot and killed while responding to a 911 call in 
     Manokotak. All the names added serve as a reminder of the 
     lives sacrificed for a job, country and state they loved. 
     ``My dad was a trooper and a pilot and he loved both, and you 
     could see it every day when he came home,'' Peters said. ``He 
     was happy, he loved his life.''

  Ms. MURKOWSKI. Very touching story. This year, once again, we reflect 
on the service of Trooper James A. Moen to our State. At the same time 
we recognize the continuing contributions of his daughter, Megan, 
without whom we would not know as much about the triumphs, the risks 
and the sacrifices made by the troopers who keep Alaskans safe.

                          ____________________