May 24, 1995 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks E 1107

and the ‘‘special right’’ to have photographs on

your desk, to have picnics in public places,

and to care for your friends who are sick. He

has worked for the ‘‘special right’’ to be free

and equal and unafraid in America.

Tom has done all this by speaking, teaching, advocating, organizing, and writing. He

has been a model for young people who care

about progress, and he has been a reminder

for older people that not all justice has yet

been done. Tom is the kind of American who

has made the Nation make the quantum leap

from thinking about gay civil rights as a fringe

issue to gay civil rights as a fundamental

issue.

The Alliance for Justice has made these

leaps before, leading the Nation closer to liberty and justice for all. I am pleased to join

with the Alliance in honoring Tom Stoddard as

a pioneer in that fight, and as a man whose

work has changed politics for the better and

forever.

TRIBUTE TO 2D LT. WAYLAND E.

BENNETT, USMC

f

HON. STEVE LARGENT OF OKLAHOMA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 23, 1995

Mr. LARGENT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to

pay tribute to 2d Lt. Wayland E. Bennett, a

Marine Corps pilot who perished on a training

mission during World War II, but was only recently brought back to this country for burial.

The story of his return is a remarkable tale of

friendship and dedication and deserving of

special recognition.

Mr. Bennett was a young man of 18 when

he left home to join the war effort in the South

Pacific. In 1943 he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps and was

sent to a small island 1,200 miles northeast of

Australia to complete his training and join the

elite Black Sheep Squadron of fighter pilots.

On October 22, 1943 his Corsair crashed into

a jungle area of the island too dense and too

dangerous to risk a patrol. The wreckage and

Mr. Bennett’s remains were considered by the

military to be unrecoverable.

But the story doesn’t end there, thanks in

large measure to the devotion of Mr. Robert

Bowden of Texarkana, TX. He refused to let

his memories of his childhood friend end with

a plane crash in the jungle. In 1988, he began

a friendship with Dr. Dan Bookout, and together the two men decided to search for the

wreckage. Enlisting family, friends, and strangers alike, Mr. Bowden and Dr. Bookout began

to raise money and to organize an expedition

to the South Pacific to scour the jungle for the

plane.

Dr. Bookout led his teams of volunteer

searchers on four trips to Vanuatu, the first in

1988. He made friends with and enlisted natives to aid in the searches. The team endured

many hardships and dangers in the jungles,

each trip bringing them nearer to their objective as they eliminated improbable sites. Then

in March and April of 1994, local villagers assisting in excavating a crash site told the

CILHI team that they knew of another crash

site and led the CILHI team to this site. From

April 2 to 5, 1994, the CILHI team conducted

an excavation of this newly revealed crash site

and recovered the remains tentatively identified as being those of 2d Lt. Wayland E. Bennett. The board appointed to review the matter

after all tests were completed acted with characteristic military thoroughness and on August

23, 1994, confirmed positive identification of

the remains as being those of 2d Lt. Wayland

E. Bennett, USMC. Lt. Bennett’s nearest survivors were so informed, and on September 16,

1994, 2d Lt. Wayland E. Bennett’s remains

were interred in the family plot in Texarkana,

TX. Dr. Bookout continued to act as the Bennett family representative until the interment.

I know I speak for all Members of Congress

when I say the selflessness and dedication of

Mr. Bowden and Dr. Bookout deserves recognition. I hope you will join me in extending

best wishes to them, as well as to the families

of Lieutenant Bennett. I am proud that their efforts led to his return.

CATHOLICS UNDER ATTACK IN

BANJA LUKA

f

HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH OF NEW JERSEY

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 23, 1995

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker,

today I want to bring to the attention of my

colleagues the deteriorating conditions in the

region of Banja Luka in northern Bosnia. It

seems the latest atrocities committed by

Bosnian Serb militants, who control the area,

are directed at Catholic Church leaders and

Catholic believers, who are primarily Croats.

These attacks come on the heels of Croatia’s

efforts to regain control over some of its territory occupied by the Croatian Serb militants

since 1991. Around 40,000 Croats still live in

northern Bosnia despite significant ethnic

cleansing by the Serbs. An estimated 50,000

Croats and hundreds of thousands of Moslems have been expelled from this region

alone during the past 3 years.

In one recent incident in Banja Luka, a

priest and nun were reportedly doused with

gasoline and set on fire in the parish rectory

as militants blew up the parish church building

next door. This tragic act of barbarity is part of

a larger campaign directed against the Catholic community in the diocese of Banja Luka.

On May 4, militants forcibly expelled nuns

from two convents in the region. Since that

time, a total of five churches and one monastery have been destroyed. In all, since the

beginning of the war, 40 churches in the diocese have been completely destroyed and another 25 have sustained heavy damage.

The bishop of Banja Luka, Franjo Komarcia,

has repeatedly called upon the Bosnian Serb

leadership to stop the attacks. These pleas

have fallen on deaf ears. Bishop Komarica, in

an open appeal, described the current situation in his diocese: ‘‘Fear and panic, for their

lives, has overcome the Catholics remaining in

the area because they are totally unprotected

from the local and newly arrived Serbian extremists. They are virtually [sic] hostages and

are faced with the real threat of immediate catastrophe or widespread banishment.’’ Bishop

Komarica began a hunger strike recently to

draw attention to the gravity of the situation

faced by the Catholic community in Banja

Luka. Late last week, an urgent appeal was

sent to the head of the Serbian Orthodox

Church urging his intervention to ensure the

protection of Catholics in the Serb stronghold.

The senseless attacks in Banja Luka have

been roundly condemned by Pope John Paul

II.

Mr. Speaker, these tragic developments are

but the latest examples of the campaign of

death and destruction directed against innocent civilians by the Bosnian Serb militants in

Banja Luka and elsewhere in Bosnia and

Herzegovina.

TRIBUTE TO WILLIAM K. WATERS

fHON. JACK REED

OF RHODE ISLAND

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 23, 1995

Mr. REED. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay

tribute to a gentleman who has dedicated his

life to one of our Nation’s most honorable and

arduous professions: teaching. Mr. William K.

Waters has been a social studies teacher at

Park View Junior High School in Cranston, RI,

for his entire 31 year tenure with the Cranston

public school system. At the end of this school

year, Mr. Waters will retire after his many

years of teaching.

Mr. Waters first went to Park View as a student teacher while studying at Rhode Island

College in 1963. The following year, he returned to Park View as a full-time social studies teacher. He quickly became immersed in

this dynamic school, and soon his duties extended far beyond the classroom.

Mr. Waters has worked tirelessly with students on Park View’s award winning yearbook

for over 20 years. As the ninth grade class advisor for 28 years, Mr. Waters’ encouragement

and guidance instilled qualities of responsibility

and leadership. However, Mr. Waters’ legacy

to Park View will be most remembered as advisor to the student council, a position he has

held for 29 years.

Park View’s student council has long been

the envy of junior high schools throughout

Rhode Island. The council’s many longstanding traditions and services have benefited students, teachers, and the community. Students

chosen by their peers to represent their class

on the student council have managed school

stores, a student handbook, all-school dances,

the ninth grade dance, and fundraisers. Overseen by the always attentive and dedicated

Mr. Waters, these were not merely student activities, they fostered a cooperative and active

student body within the Park View community.

And for the students fortunate enough to

serve on the council, it served as a life-long

lesson. Someone believed that at their age

they could be trusted with money, to carry out

responsibilities, and to deliver results. Leadership and commitment are not easily learned,

but Mr. Waters not only encouraged these, he

expected them.

The student council’s organizational skills

and resources also benefited the local community. The Meeting Street Center, the Heart

Association, the R.I. Lung Association, and

Rhode Island’s senior citizens have all come

to recognize that Park View is not just another

junior high school. At the same time, students

were able to learn about life beyond the confines of classes, teachers, and friends.

Of course, none of this would have been

possible had someone not taken on the enormous responsibility of going beyond the afternoon school bell. Junior high school teachers