Recognizing the outstanding efforts of the individuals and communities who volunteered or donated items to the North Platte Canteen in North Platte, Nebraska, during World War II from December 25, 1941, to April 1, 1946.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Franks) for yielding me this time, another member of the Committee on Armed Services.

As was mentioned, on December 25, 1941, it was rumored that there would be a troop train coming through North Platte, Nebraska and would have a number of North Platte area troops on it. So it being Christmas Day, a great number of residents of the community decided that they ought to go down and meet the train and provide some food and show them they were appreciated on Christmas Day. It turned out that the troops were not from Nebraska, as was mentioned earlier, but rather from Kansas. So I guess the citizens of North Platte were a little bit disappointed. But at the same time, they saw the appreciation and they saw the need for this. So Rae Wilson asked the citizens of North Platte to do this for all troop trains.

Many people are not familiar with the geography of Nebraska, but North Platte is a major railroad center. And at that time, most of the trains moving from the East Coast to the West Coast went through North Platte, Nebraska. So this was a massive undertaking. And from that day, December 25, 1941, through April 1, 1946, a span of about 5\1/2\ years, the members of North Platte and surrounding communities met every troop train that went through there, and that averaged sometimes as many as 23 trains a day; and this went on day and night. So sometimes the troop train arrived at 3 or 4 o'clock in the morning, and yet there were people there to meet them.

As was mentioned earlier, about 55,000 volunteers served in this effort, and this is somewhat notable in that North Platte itself had a population of 12,000. This is a sparsely populated area. So probably the whole population within 100 miles of North Platte did not much exceed the 55,000. So people from northern Kansas, from Colorado, from that part of Nebraska served in this rather massive effort over the time.

It was mentioned what the daily amount of food dispensed was, and I thought I would flesh this out a little bit and give the Members a monthly total. This was documented at one time. It is estimated that each month troops consumed 40,000 cookies, 30,000 hard-boiled eggs, 6,500 doughnuts, 4,000 loaves of bread, 3,000 pounds of meat, 450 pounds of butter, 1,300 pounds of coffee, 1,200 quarts of ice cream, and so on. And as was mentioned earlier, again, this was done during a time of rationing.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, I am old enough to remember that time. And at that time I think the speed limit was 45 miles an hour to conserve gasoline. One could only get so many gallons of gasoline per week. They could not buy an automobile. Butter was rationed. Meat was rationed. So these people were really donating items from their own families' allotment and using their own gasoline to do this because there was not one dime of Federal money that was involved in this effort. So it was rather interesting.

The other thing that was done in this particular effort was that at that time there were no pay phones around; so if a soldier wanted some family member called, these people would take down the number and they would call the family and say, We met so and so, he was coming through here, he is fine, or mail letters and so on. So these things were all very important to the servicemen.

I wanted to introduce this resolution for two reasons: number one, as we know, many of the veterans of World War II are not going to be with us much longer; and also those who served at the North Platte Canteen, many of them have passed on and a few of them are still left, and they are not going to be with us much longer either. So we wanted to recognize them while there was still time. And this has been certainly memorialized in a book that has been written, a television documentary that was done as well.

And then the second reason was I wanted to simply point out what unity of purpose can accomplish. Right now we are locked in a struggle, and the question is, How unified are we? What direction are we going as a country? And at that time in 1941, December 25, we were certainly not a military power. We certainly were not anywhere near what the Soviet Union at that time or certainly Germany or Japan were militarily. And yet within about a year and a half, we became the strongest military in the world; and within 4

years we had pretty much taken control in World War II.

So I would just like to mention that Rosy the Riveter, the Victory Gardens, and all of those things that took place at that time were critical. And it was so critical that everyone pulled together, everyone was willing to sacrifice, everyone was willing to give up something from their own family, from their own well-being to serve the troops. So we appreciate the support of this particular resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and I rise in support of House Concurrent Resolution 161 introduced by the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne).

I am very pleased to be here today with my colleague on the House Committee on Armed Services, the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Franks), to recognize the wonderful efforts of the citizens of North Platte, Nebraska, for their support of the troops during World War II.

Mr. Speaker, as I have learned about this, I am amazed to find out how hard the people of North Platte worked to find out about the brave young men that were heading off to battle. Their compassion and the generosity displayed by these fine citizens should be commended as a shining example of kindness for future generations of Americans.

As World War II reached its peak, the canteen was serving 3,000 to 5,000 service members each day. The daily shopping list included 160 to 175 loaves of bread, 100 pounds of meat, 15 pounds of cheese, 18 pounds of butter, 45 pounds of coffee, 40 quarts of cream, 500 half-pints of milk and 35 dozen rolls, along with 18 to 20 birthday cakes given to those celebrating their birthdays.

This may not sound like much today, but it is truly amazing since many of these individuals and families were donating all of these items while food and other goods were being rationed across the country.

Another thing that struck me was how the North Platte Canteen came into existence. On December 17 of 1941, rumors abounded throughout the town that a train carrying members of the Nebraska National Guard was to arrive. The train did, carrying hundreds of soldiers; but they were not from Nebraska. The troops traveling that day through North Platte were from Kansas. This did not stop hundreds of local citizens from North Platte from greeting the soldiers from out of state and from expressing their deep gratitude.

Of course, North Platte resident Miss Rae Wilson suggested that the town establish a canteen to welcome all the troops traveling through the city so that those heading off to war could have a taste of home on their long journey. The 12,000 citizens of North Platte agreed, and over time clubs and organizations began to contribute volunteers, food, and funding. And pretty soon everyone got together to support the canteen. There were benefit movies and dances, scrap metal drives, and other donations. All contributed to the effort. In all, men, women, and children from over 125 communities, some as far as Colorado and Kansas, worked together to care for the troops during these quick 10-minute train stops. When the doors of the Service Men's Canteen in the Union Pacific Railroad Station in North Platte closed on April 1, 1946, almost 55,000 volunteers from 125 communities had served 6 million servicemen and -women.

While other canteens existed across the country during World War II, North Platt's canteen may have been the most famous. We no longer have canteens across the country to support our troops, but American citizens still continue the spirit of charity through their support of USO centers and other organizations around the world.

I urge my fellow Americans to follow in the footsteps of these patriotic citizens and continue their efforts to support our brave servicemembers today. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar).

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I am so pleased to have this opportunity today to join with my colleagues in thanking the people of North Platte for setting such a fine, genuine example of support and patriotism for our troops and for our country.

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 161) recognizing the outstanding efforts of the individuals and communities who volunteered or donated items to the North Platte Canteen in North Platte, Nebraska, during World War II from December 25, 1941, to April 1, 1946, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration, H. Con. Res. 161.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and I stand today in support of House Concurrent Resolution 161, sponsored by my good friend and colleague, the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne). This very appropriate resolution recognizes the true American spirit demonstrated by the people of North Platte, Nebraska, during the Second World War. It is the spirit of unwavering dedication to a cause and noble sacrifice for our troops. This is the same spirit that won the Second World War, Mr. Speaker.

The actions of these Americans to build a community center, a canteen, if you will, for our troops, at their own expense and not at the U.S. Government's expense exemplifies the generous heart and patriotic resolve of the people of the Great Plains. Their past devotion to our men in uniform is unforgettable, and it is only fitting that when our country is now at war with terrorism that we recognize the efforts of those on the homefront in our history.

I commend the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne) for his fine work

with this legislation. Today, we in the United States Congress are honored to express our sincere gratitude to the people of North Platte, Nebraska, and our great friend, the gentleman from Nebraska, and to join him in this fine resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne), the sponsor of this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Terry), cosponsor of the resolution.

(Mr. TERRY asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Moran), another cosponsor of this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I would just remind all of us that we are fortunate to have people like those in North Platte, Nebraska, that have such a patriotic spirit and are so committed to serving our troops. I would encourage my colleagues to support this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I want to compliment the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne) for introducing this. He represents the North Platte area.

This is such a magnificent piece of our Nebraska history, and it really represents the comradery and spirit of America here. The gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne) had mentioned that even in a town of 12,000 that over the period of the months of this canteen, there were literally tens of thousands of volunteers that came to help the servicemen and provide them services at this canteen in North Platte. And this canteen needed all of the support that it could get.

And word spread, literally spread, around the community and all of Nebraska; 125 communities came together to join in this effort. And due to fuel rationing, volunteers often carpooled from nearby communities to North Platte. Cities throughout Nebraska gave, through donations, time, money, supplies, food, meat. And it is really an incredible example of what it means to be an American at that time. The entire community gathered together to support and comfort these troops. Men, women, children all gave their time, money, efforts. Though it may not have been well known throughout the rest of the world, the memory of the North Platte Canteen still glows in the hearts of many Nebraskans. In fact, my own press secretary's mother talks proudly of peeling potatoes as a young child to help her older sisters at the canteen.

Lorene Huebner, of Hershey, Nebraska, just a teenager during this time, still remembers the piano in the canteen, and how it was always being played by either a volunteer or one of the troops and how packed the canteen would get with people talking, having coffee and laughing. She still feels that the whole U.S. was opened up to her through the troops from all across the country that she met in this canteen.

From December 25, 1941, through April 1, 1946, a total of 54 months, over 6 million troops were served at the North Platte Canteen. The outreach of communities to support each other remains an enduring mark of compassion and patriotism. That spirit is with us today in a different form, yes, but no less potent.

It is with great honor that I cosponsored this with my colleague, the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne), and really look forward to the vote on this.

Madam Speaker, I am here to lend my support for not only this resolution, but for the epitome that it represents, the story it tells about folks from the middle of the country, in this case from Nebraska.

Sometimes, particularly during football season, it is unusual for any Kansan to be here speaking about something good happening in Nebraska, but it is this story that the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne) tells about an historic event that is still part of people's lives of Nebraska and how it affected Kansas. In fact, it affected many soldiers across the country who made the trek across Nebraska on the train and stopped in North Platte at the canteen. In fact, the first soldiers that were cared for at the canteen were from my State of Kansas.

The gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne) explained this story to me one day 4 or 5 months ago, and as he was talking about the sacrifice that those Nebraskans made, those individual farmers, those families, those young men and women, those kids, to try to make a difference in the lives of soldiers who were facing an uncertain future, I could just sense the emotion that the gentleman had for the sacrifice that was made. In fact, it seems to me that tears kind of welled up in the eyes of the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne).

Again, I think those of us who come from middle America recognize the kind of people that we have the honor to represent, recognize the people who make up the history and tradition of our States and what a difference they make, how much they care.

So I am here to join the gentleman from Nebraska in honoring something that happened that was great about middle America, but really exemplifies not only America then, not only middle America, but all of America, and, most importantly, exemplifies what still goes on in our country today, the concern for our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines.

Once again, as our country is calling our men and women in active duty to service in the war on terror, it is an appropriate time for us to recognize those who cared in the past, and once again call upon all Americans to serve and sacrifice for the soldiers and families who serve our country so nobly today.