[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 32, Number 27 (Monday, July 8, 1996)]
[Pages 1162-1163]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]
<R04>
Remarks at the Memorial Service for American Servicemen Killed in Saudi
Arabia at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida
June 30, 1996
Governor Chiles, Lieutenant Governor MacKay, Congressman King,
Congressman Weldon, General Shalikashvili, Secretary White, Secretary
Widnall, General Fogleman, Under Secretary DeLeon, General Hawley,
General Hinson, Colonel Carr, Colonel Friers, Lieutenant Colonel
Holliway, Lieutenant Colonel Jozayt, Chaplain Nguyen, and Chief Graves;
to the wounded airmen who are here, whose survival we give thanks for;
to the families and friends of those we come to honor.
Today, in this place, we honor seven sons of America who sacrificed
their lives in the service of our Nation. To their loved ones and their
friends and their families and to their family here at Patrick, I know I
bring the thoughts and the prayers of all Americans with me. As one we
mourn your loss, we share your grief, we thank God for the lives of your
loved ones.
Five of our fallen sons come from this base. They were pilots and
navigators, communicators and engineers. Each was a part of the 71st
Rescue Squadron, whose motto hangs especially heavy on our hearts today,
``So that others may live.'' Two others came from further away, but
they, too, are now back home in this land that they loved and that they
gave everything to defend.
To the families and the loved ones of these fine men, I say I know
well that no one can ever make whole the loss of your father, your
husband, your brother or son, your fiance, or your best friend. But I do
hope you can find some solace in the strength they showed every day, in
the pride they took in their work, in the love and respect they
engendered from so many others, love and respect which surround you
today.
They were extraordinary Americans who made a difference. They made a
difference in Operation Desert Storm. Afterward they made a difference
in enforcing the no-fly
[[Page 1163]]
zone over Iraq, in helping to defend Iraq's neighbors. They made a
difference in Bosnia, delivering planeload after planeload of food and
equipment and medicine, allowing the people of Bosnia the chance to
rebuild their lives and their land. They made a difference in seeking
for others the blessings of liberty we hold so dear. And they made a
difference in smaller ways, teaching others their hard-won skills,
taking care of their crews, giving a helping hand, lending a sympathetic
ear.
They were of diverse races and regions and religions and ethnic
groups. But to the man, they were liked by their peers, loved by their
families, admired by their communities. And they were united in their
love of country and the mission they assumed. They represented the best
of our Nation, and they gave America their best.
Let me say to their families and friends, as I did who mourned the
12 Americans from Eglin Air Force Base who also lost their lives in
Dhahran: America stands with you in your sorrow and in your outrage.
Your loved ones were taken before their time, felled by the hands of
hatred in an act whose savagery is matched only by its cowardice. We
will not rest until our efforts to capture, prosecute, and punish those
who did this evil deed are successful.
But today let us just for a moment put aside our anger to remember
those who were lost, to find strength in the service they gave, to thank
God for the lives that they did live, and to resolve to continue the
struggle for freedom and decency to which they were so devoted.
We are blessed to live in a prosperous land at a time of peace. But
we see here again today, in heartbreaking reality, that this time is not
free of peril. While the modern world opens many new opportunities to
us, it also opens us to the forces of intolerance and destruction and
especially to the forces of terrorism that are so often rooted in ethnic
and religious hatred. We know now painfully that terrorists can strike
anywhere, from a subway in Tokyo to the streets of London, from the
sacred ground of the Holy Land to the World Trade Center in New York and
Oklahoma City and now in Saudi Arabia.
My fellow Americans, during the long struggles of World War II and
the cold war, our Nation stood fast for freedom. In our time, terrorism
is the enemy of peace and freedom. America must not and America will not
be driven from the fight against terrorism. In this effort, every
American must stand with the men and women of our armed services. Every
American must stand against violence and hatred and stand for dignity
and tolerance at home as well as abroad. We must honor the memory of
those we have lost by upholding the ideals for which they lived and the
mission for which they gave their lives.
The men we mourn today made the most of their lives. And they made
all the rest of our lives richer and safer. We are the poorer for their
passing. But the bright light of their devotion still shines. May their
names live on forever. May we never forget Captain Christopher Adams,
Captain Leland Haun, Master Sergeant Michael Heiser, Staff Sergeant
Kevin Johnson, Airman First Class Justin Wood, Staff Sergeant Ronald
King, and Airman Christopher Lester.
They gave their lives for our freedom. May they now rest in the warm
embrace of God. May God bring peace to their families and their loved
ones. And may God bless the country for which they gave the last full
measure of their devotion. Amen.
Note: The President spoke at 3 p.m. in the theater. In his remarks, he
referred to Brig. Gen. Robert C. Hinson, USAF, Commander, Col. Patrick
Carr, USAF, Vice Commander, and Chief Master Sgt. David Graves, USAF,
Senior Enlisted Adviser, 45th Space Wing; Lt. Col. Tom Friers, USAF,
Commander, and Lt. Col. Robert Holliway, USAF, Deputy Commander, 1st
Rescue Group; Lt. Col. Donald R. Jozayt, USAF, Commander, 71st Rescue
Squadron; and Capt. Philip Nguyen, USAF, base chaplain.