IV 
111TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 1684 
Honoring the memories of Ronald H. Brown, 32 other remarkable Americans 
and 2 distinguished Croatians who prematurely lost their lives on April 
3, 1996, while on a trade mission to the Balkans. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 29, 2010 
Mr. TURNER (for himself and Mr. DELAHUNT) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
RESOLUTION 
Honoring the memories of Ronald H. Brown, 32 other re-
markable Americans and 2 distinguished Croatians who 
prematurely lost their lives on April 3, 1996, while on 
a trade mission to the Balkans. 
Whereas, after visiting troops at the American headquarters 
in Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the delegation aircraft 
crashed into a mountainside while attempting an instru-
ment approach to Cilipi airport, outside of Dubrovnik, 
Croatia; 
Whereas, the aircraft carried U.S. Secretary of Commerce 
Ronald H. Brown, a public servant, who defended the 
United States as a soldier, bettered our society as a civil 
rights pioneer, and built economic bridges for people of 
all races and creeds as the U.S. Secretary of Commerce; 
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Whereas, Ronald H. Brown served as the first African-Amer-
ican United States Secretary of Commerce from January 
22, 1993, until his honorable service to our country came 
to an unexpected end on April 3, 1996, in that tragic air-
plane accident; 
Whereas, 32 remarkable American government and business 
leaders as well as a Croatian photographer and inter-
preter also lost their lives in the accident; 
Whereas, the contributions of all of the deceased ultimately 
promoted Bosnia and Herzegovina’s transition towards 
peace, stability and economic viability; 
Whereas, Secretary Brown’s mission advanced the goals of 
the Dayton Peace Accords, negotiated at Wright-Patter-
son Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, concluded on No-
vember 21, 1995, when the leaders of Bosnia and 
Herzegovina, Croatia, and Serbia all agreed to a break-
through peace settlement to halt conflicts that began in 
Bosnia and Herzegovina in April 1992; 
Whereas, on December 14, 1995, the General Framework 
Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, known 
as the Dayton Accords, ended a conflict that threatened 
to destabilize Europe and resulted in the death of ap-
proximately 250,000 people, and the displacement of 
more than two million men, women and children; 
Whereas, President Bill Clinton charged Secretary Brown, 
those who joined him in this mission of peace, and those 
who followed him on future missions, to contribute to the 
successful implementation of the civilian aspects of the 
Dayton Accords; by starting the economic reconstruction 
and inviting U.S. companies to help maintain the peace 
through creating economic opportunity; 
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•HRES 1684 IH 
Whereas, Secretary Brown and those who followed him in fu-
ture missions promoted prosperity in the Balkans, estab-
lished U.S. commercial presence there increasing the ef-
forts for peace through openness and trade opportunities; 
Whereas, every participant brought hope and inspiration to 
the war torn region through the U.S. investment in re-
constructing buildings, rebuilding water and energy infra-
structure, and revitalizing banking and tourism indus-
tries; 
Whereas, Secretary Ron Brown, along with the outstanding 
business leaders, brave members of the military, brilliant 
correspondent and dedicated public servants on the mis-
sion, sought to highlight the strength of the U.S. econ-
omy as a positive force for peace; 
Whereas, on April 7, 1996, President Bill Clinton honored 
the patriotism of the dead by calling them ‘‘the best of 
America’’ and recalling that ‘‘they believed that America, 
through their efforts, could help restore a broken land, 
help to heal a people of their hatreds, help to bring a bet-
ter tomorrow through honest work and shared enter-
prise’’; 
Whereas, the United States negotiating team, led by Richard 
Holbrooke, guided peace negotiations endorsed by mem-
bers of the European Union and Russian Federation, and 
ultimately enabled the transition within the Balkan states 
from the former Yugoslavia’s communist regime to an 
open market economy; and 
Whereas the mission and sacrifice by Secretary Brown laid 
the foundation for Bosnia and Herzegovina’s eventual 
successful transition to free markets, as well as Slovenia’s 
accession to the European Union (EU) and adoption of 
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•HRES 1684 IH 
its currency, Croatia’s progress towards EU membership 
expected in 2012, Montenegro’s May 2010 Stabilization 
and Association Agreement with the EU, Serbia’s De-
cember 22, 2009, application for EU membership and 
Macedonia’s accession negotiations which commenced on 
October 14, 2009, for EU membership: Now, therefore, 
be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) honors the memories of Secretary of Com-
merce Ronald H. Brown, and 32 other remarkable 
Americans and two distinguished Croatian citizens 
who lost their lives on April 3, 1996, serving their 
countries on a trade mission to the Balkans; 
(2) commends the service of the following 
Americans: Staff Sergeant Gerald Aldrich (Flight 
Mechanic), Duane Christian (Security Officer for 
Secretary Brown), Barry Conrad (Chairman and 
CEO of Barrington Group, Miami, Florida), Paul 
Cushman III (Chairman and CEO of Riggs Inter-
national Banking Corp., Washington, DC), Adam 
Darling 
(Confidential 
Assistant 
for 
Secretary 
Brown), Captain Ashley James Davis (Pilot), Gail 
Dobert (Deputy Director, Department of Commerce 
Office of Business Liaison), Robert Donovan (Presi-
dent and CEO, ABB Inc., Norwalk, Connecticut), 
Claudio Elia (Chairman and CEO, Air & Water 
Technologies Corp., Somerville, New Jersey), Staff 
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Sergeant Robert Farrington, Jr. (Steward), David 
Ford (President and CEO, InterGuard Corp. of 
Guardian International, Auburn Hills, Michigan), 
Carol Hamilton (Press Secretary for Secretary 
Brown), Kathryn Hoffman (Senior Advisor for Stra-
tegic Scheduling and Special Initiatives for Secretary 
Brown), Lee Jackson (Treasury Department), Ste-
ven Kaminski (Commercial Counselor, Department 
of Commerce U.S. and Foreign Commercial Serv-
ices), Katheryn Kellogg (Confidential Assistant, De-
partment of Commerce Office of Business Liaison), 
Technical Sergeant Shelley Kelly (Steward), James 
Lewek (Analyst, Central Intelligence Agency), Frank 
Maier (President, Enserch International Ltd., Dal-
las, Texas), Charles Meissner (Assistant Secretary of 
Commerce for International Trade), William Morton 
(Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Eco-
nomic Development, Department of Commerce), 
Walter Murphy (Senior Vice President, AT&T Sub-
marine Systems Inc., Morristown, New Jersey) Law-
rence Payne (Special Assistant, Department of Com-
merce U.S. and Foreign Commercial Services), Na-
thaniel Nash (Frankfurt Bureau Chief, New York 
Times), Leonard Pieroni (Chairman and CEO, Par-
sons Corp., Pasadena, California), Captain Timothy 
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Schafer (Pilot), John Scoville (Chairman, Harza En-
gineering Co., Chicago, Illinois), I. Donald Terner 
(President, Bridge Housing Corp., San Francisco, 
California), P. Stuart Tholan (President, Bechtel- 
Europe/Africa/Middle East/Southwest Asia, San 
Francisco, 
California), 
Sergeant 
Cheryl 
Ann 
Turnage (Steward), Naomi Warbasse (International 
Trade Specialist, Department of Commerce), and 
Robert Whittaker (Chairman and CEO, Foster 
Wheeler Energy International, Clinton, New Jersey); 
(3) recognizes the contributions of Croatian 
citizens Niksˇa Antonini (photographer) and Dragica 
Lendic´-Bedek (interpreter), who also sacrificed their 
lives in the effort to promote peace and prosperity 
in their homeland, and for the benefit of their coun-
trymen; and 
(4) extends its deep gratitude to the contribu-
tions of all of these brave and dedicated men and 
women, both Americans and Croats, who helped to 
put the Balkans on the path towards peace, stability 
and economic viability by making this visionary mis-
sion to Bosnia and Herzegovina; and who thereby 
worked to share with other countries the chance to 
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live the Dream of peace and prosperity, which is the 
American Dream. 
Æ 
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