Honoring the citizen-soldiers of the National Guard of the State of Pennsylvania, including the 56th Brigade Combat Team (Stryker) of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard on its return to the United States from deployment in Iraq.

Mr. Speaker, at this time, I would like to yield such time as he might consume to my colleague from Pennsylvania (Mr. Dent).

I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

At this time, I would like to yield such time as he might consume to my colleague from Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson).

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for me to rise today in support of House Resolution 754, which honors the citizen-soldiers of the Pennsylvania National Guard, including the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, on its return to the United States from a deployment in Iraq. I am proud to have authored this resolution with my colleague, Mr. Holden from Pennsylvania. It is an honor, as I said, to speak in favor of this resolution and to have the support and cosponsorship of the entire Pennsylvania delegation.

The men and women being honored today are not only brave soldiers; they are also our neighbors, friends, and relatives. Their mission in Iraq was vital to our national security, and they served with honor and distinction.

In November of last year, I was joined by my colleagues, Mr. Holden, Mr. Gerlach and Mr. Dent, to visit the members of the 56th Stryker Brigade when they were training at Camp Shelby in Mississippi and at Fort Polk in Louisiana in preparation for their deployment.

In June of this year, Mr. Holden and I, along with Mr. Dent and Mrs. Dahlkemper, visited Iraq to meet with our deployed troops from Pennsylvania to thank them for their service. We also met with troops at Camp Liberty outside of Baghdad, and in Taji. While there, we also were able to meet with General Odierno, the commander of the Multinational Force in Iraq. And General Odierno spoke in glowing terms of the Pennsylvania Guard and told us that our soldiers are doing an outstanding job bringing security to Iraq.

I also had the opportunity to meet with many of my constituents, and there were dozens and dozens. And they truly are citizen-soldiers. I just want to highlight three of them. Lieutenant Colonel Sam Hayes, who is a native of Tyrone, Pennsylvania. His father also happened to be the former Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary. Sergeant Buchannan, a resident of Altoona, Pennsylvania, and is employed by McAleers Plumbing and Heating. He is my plumber and spent time in my basement trying to fix leaky plumbing. So it is good to have Sergeant Buchannan home. And, finally, Sergeant Gibbons, another neighbor, a friend. His son plays on the Hollysburgh High School soccer team with my son. In fact, I will be on the sidelines tonight talking to Sergeant Gibbons.

I also wanted to thank and to remember Chad Edmundson, one of my constituents who gave the ultimate sacrifice. Our thoughts and our prayers continue to go out to his family and, again, to thank him for his service and his sacrifice to this Nation.

The text of this resolution speaks for itself. It is my pleasure to express our gratitude and commend our soldiers on their most recent deployment and recognize their achievements. I hope to be participating on November 8 in a major parade in Tyrone, Pennsylvania, welcoming home our soldiers.

I would also like to thank my staff for their work on this resolution, in particular my Army fellow, Lieutenant Colonel Eric Estep, for his great work and late hours in putting this together.

I urge all Members of the House to support this important resolution.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Washington for yielding me the time.

I rise in strong support of House Resolution 754, Mr. Speaker, to honor and say ``thank you'' to the members of the Pennsylvania National Guard from the 56th Stryker Brigade on their return home from Iraq and ``a job well done.'' And I want to commend and thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Shuster) and all the members of the Pennsylvania delegation for being cosponsors of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, during the deployment of the 56th Stryker Brigade, I had the opportunity to travel to Mississippi and Louisiana with Congressman Shuster, Congressman Gerlach and Congressman Dent, and then we had the opportunity, along with Congresswoman Dahlkemper, to travel over to Iraq to see our citizen-soldiers in action. And I can tell you that we, as members of the Pennsylvania delegation and the entire Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, are very proud of our

citizen-soldiers' performance, as I believe the entire country is.

They have returned home with the job well done. As a matter of fact, when we had the opportunity to be in Iraq and meet with General Odierno and General Jacoby and talk about the performance of General Wright's soldiers under the command of Colonel Ferraro, they expressed how proud they were as commanders in theater for the job that was well done.

The Pennsylvania National Guard is the only National Guard who hosts a Stryker Brigade. And, Mr. Speaker, that did not happen by a lottery held at the Pentagon. It happened because of the strong professionalism, the training and the work that this brigade has done previously in their deployment. They are the second-most deployed National Guard unit of any in the country. And the reason is because of the job that they do when they are asked and they are called upon to serve our country and to serve the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

During their deployment, they served with distinction. The awards that were granted to the 56th Stryker Brigade include four Bronze Star Medal for Valor, 10 Army Commendation Medal for Valor, 33 Purple Hearts, and unfortunately they had two tragic deaths during their deployment, Staff Sergeant Mark Baum and Specialist Chad Edmundson. And certainly our prayers and thoughts go out to the families of those two who made the supreme sacrifice during their deployment.

Again, as a member of the Pennsylvania delegation speaking in concert with the other members of the delegation and on behalf of this entire body, I want to congratulate and commend the 56th Stryker Brigade on their performance.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman for recognizing me.

I want to rise today in proud and enthusiastic support to House Resolution 754, honoring the citizen-soldiers of the Pennsylvania National Guard, including the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, known as the Stryker Brigade of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, on its return to the United States from deployment in Iraq.

On January 15, 2009, the 56th Stryker Brigade was deployed to Taji, Iraq. Just last month, this extraordinary combat team, 4,000 strong, returned to their families in Pennsylvania after an incredibly successful deployment. They were welcomed home with proud, open arms throughout our State.

In June, I was grateful and honored to have had the opportunity to visit Iraq and to meet personally with members of the 56th Stryker Brigade from the Third District of Pennsylvania. These brave Pennsylvanians embodied the fire of patriotism and the humility of sacrifice. I was in awe of their accomplishments and the high standard of excellence by which they executed their mission.

Just yesterday, I was on a plane ride back to Washington sitting next to a general whose son's division from Fort Hood took the place of our 56th Stryker Brigade from Pennsylvania, and he mentioned to me how honored his son was to take over from such an excellent group of soldiers. It was certainly a joy and an honor to greet our troops as they returned to Cambridge Springs just last month, the division out of my district.

Never had I felt such intense pride in our country as I did when meeting these extraordinary soldiers and witnessing the sacrifices they have made so that we may live in freedom and prosperity.

Our Pennsylvania National Guard has answered the call to defend these United States of America and ensure the security of our people and our way of life. Today, we honor these Guardsmen and thank them for their service. In doing so, we also renew our pledge to provide our men and women in uniform with the highest quality of care and benefits they have earned. In doing so, we show our intense gratitude and enormous respect for our soldiers who so rightly deserve it.

Mr. Speaker, I offer my unwavering support of House Resolution 754. I thank Congressman Holden for bringing this resolution forward. Our Pennsylvania National Guard and our 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team certainly deserve this recognition. May God bless our troops.

Mr. Speaker, I, too, rise today as an original cosponsor and strong supporter of House Resolution 754, and I would like to thank Congressman Tim Holden of Schuykill County for introducing this resolution.

The United States National Guard is the oldest component of our Armed Forces, dating back to pre-Revolutionary War times. Over the past 8 years, we have witnessed thousands of Guard members answer the call as they are asked to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Approximately 4,000 members of the Pennsylvania Guard were deployed to Iraq last fall, the largest deployment of the Pennsylvania National Guard since the Korean war. Prior to the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team's deployment to Iraq, I, along with some of my colleagues, Tim Holden, Bill Shuster and Jim Gerlach, visited the Pennsylvania Stryker Brigade in Mississippi and Louisiana at Camp Shelby and Fort Polk as they prepared for their mobilization overseas.

In June 2009, I traveled to Iraq to meet with the Pennsylvania National Guard 56th Stryker Brigade and other Pennsylvania troops, accompanied by many Members who are here in the Chamber today, including Representative Dahlkemper.

During my visit to Iraq, I saw a significant improvement in the security conditions on the ground. And the fact that we were able to safely drive through the bustling streets of Baghdad was an encouraging and welcome development. I know, without a doubt, it is the sacrifice, perseverance and bravery of these young men and women that enabled such progress.

I am pleased that just 1 year later, the 56th Stryker Brigade is returning home. As of late September, most of the brigade has returned home. I am honored to be standing here today to pay tribute to these heroes. Our military families demonstrate tremendous bravery as they watch their loved ones go overseas to fight in harm's way for the freedoms we experience every day in this great Nation. We say ``thank you'' to the entire Pennsylvania National Guard for protecting the families and communities of our great Commonwealth and standing at the ready to defend our homeland.

I urge Members to support House Resolution 754.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to ask this chamber to recognize the students, faculty, and staff at California University of Pennsylvania who have valiantly served their country in Iraq. Cal. U. students have an exemplary record of serving our country in times of need and have done so again during the war in Iraq.

There have been nineteen California University students who have been deployed to Iraq. Furthermore, five members of the staff and faculty were also deployed. Many were part of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, north of Baghdad. This was the largest National Guard call-up in support of a single operation in the history of the university. I have joined my colleagues in recognizing the 56th Stryker Brigade by becoming an original cosponsor of H. Res. 754, which honors the citizen-soldiers of the National Guard of the State of Pennsylvania, including the 56th Brigade Combat Team (Stryker) of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard on its return to the United States from deployment in Iraq.

Madam Speaker, these students, just like countless others across Pennsylvania and the rest of the country, are choosing to serve their nation and put their own education on hold.

I have seen the consequences and effects of returning home after combat and I am pleased that Cal. U. has an Office of Veterans Affairs. This office has been instrumental in helping veterans reintegrate into the university community and has helped to facilitate the issuance of G.I. Bill benefits. This is an excellent way to help those who have given so much to our country.

I wish to conclude my remarks by commending the California University of Pennsylvania students, faculty and staff members who have selflessly dedicated themselves to our great nation by serving their country. I would also like to commend students and university staff and faculty across our great nation who have done the same.