[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 16562]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              HONORING PRIVATE FIRST CLASS JOHN R. ALLMAN

  Mr. UDALL. Mr. President, I wish to say a few words about PFC John R. 
Allman. John was born November 22, 1963, in Carlsbad, NM. He played 
fierce football for the Carlsbad High School Cavemen and graduated in 
1982.
  John always wanted to be a Marine--like his father and grandfather 
before him. He fulfilled his dream and became a marine weeks after 
graduating from high school.
  Tragically, John was killed in a terrorist bomb attack on his 
barracks while on a multinational peacekeeping mission in Beirut, 
Lebanon. John and his fellow marines were stationed in Lebanon to help 
stabilize the country from civil war.
  On April 18, 1983, the U.S. Embassy in Beirut was hit by a suicide 
truck bomb--one of the first suicide attacks in the region--killing 63 
people, including 17 Americans.
  On October 23, 1983, two truck bombs struck separate buildings 
housing American and French military forces in Beirut--members of the 
multinational force. The attack on American barracks housed the 1st 
Battalion 8th Marines, John's battalion. The bomb striking the marines' 
quarters was the largest nonnuclear explosion that had ever been 
detonated, equaling in force between 15,000 and 21,000 pounds of TNT. 
The death toll was 220 marines, 18 sailors, and 3 soldiers, John among 
them. It was the deadliest single-day death toll for the Marine Corps 
since World War II's Battle of Iwo Jima and the deadliest single 
terrorist attack on American citizens prior to the September 11 
attacks. The blasts led to withdrawal of the international peacekeeping 
force.
  John's hometown of Carlsbad and Eddy County proclaimed Veterans Day 
2016 as ``John Allman Day'' in his honor. That day, the community 
celebrated with a parade, speeches, and tributes to John. A bench was 
made and commemorated in John's name and sits permanently in Carlsbad 
Veterans Memorial Park.
  John was humble, quiet, dedicated, fun-loving, intelligent. He was 
honest and proud. John always gave his all.
  John was born the day of John F. Kennedy's assassination. He was not 
supposed to be named John, but his parents did so in honor of the slain 
President. Of veterans, President Kennedy said, ``As we express our 
gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to 
utter words, but to live by them.'' We must honor John by doing all we 
can for our veterans.
  PFC John Allman gave his life in the service of peace in the Middle 
East. We do not forget his sacrifice and the sacrifice of his family. 
And we honor John's service and the ultimate sacrifice he made on 
behalf of our country.

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