Mr. Speaker, today I rise in memory of Army First Lieutenant (1LT) Donald Clayton Carwile who paid the ultimate sacrifice while defending our great nation on August 15, 2008, during Operation…
Mr. Speaker, today I rise in memory of Army First Lieutenant (1LT) Donald Clayton Carwile who paid the ultimate sacrifice while defending our great nation on August 15, 2008, during Operation Enduring Freedom. 1LT Carwile was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Kentucky. 1LT Carwile was killed when his vehicle was struck by a roadside bomb and then attacked by insurgents with small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades in Wardak Province, Afghanistan. Army Private First Class (PFC) Paul E. Conlon, Jr. of Somerville, Massachusetts was also killed.
1LT Carwile enlisted in the Army shortly after he graduated from Lafayette High School. Following a three-year enlistment, he returned home to his family after the death of his stepmother. During that time, he served as a police officer at the Batesville Police Department and later, at the Oxford Police Department. While he was working in law enforcement, 1LT Carwile earned his degree in criminal justice at the University of Mississippi.
In 2006, 1LT Carwile re-enlisted in the Army and qualified for Officer Candidate School, where he was commissioned as an infantry officer. He was assigned as a platoon leader in the 101st Airborne Division. His wife, Jennifer, was asked about her husband's experience in the Army by the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. ``He cared so much about the men in his platoon,'' Jennifer said. ``He always said his first goal was to bring his men home, and his second, only after that, was to come home himself.''
In 2016, the House and the Senate approved legislation I introduced to honor 1LT Carwile. H.R. 5309, designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 401 McElroy Drive in Oxford, Mississippi as the Army First Lieutenant Donald C. Carwile Post Office Building. Family, friends, emergency responders, and local officials came to the dedication ceremony held in April 2017.
1LT Carwile distinguished himself as a leader in the Army which earned him many awards. He received the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart, Combat lnfantryman Badge, Air Assault Badge, Parachutist Badge, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Global War on Terrorism Medal, and the Army Service Ribbon.
1LT Carwile is survived by his wife, Jennifer; two daughters, Avery Claire and Elizabeth Reese; and his parents, Dennis and Judy Carwile.
1LT Carwile is a hero. We will never forget his sacrifice to protect our freedoms in this great nation. It is important to honor notable Mississippians who are willing and proud to pay that price. Everyone who passes through the doors of the post office will be reminded of a soldier who loved his country.
