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Dear Friends,
On April 11, 1945, around 3:00 in the afternoon, General Patton’s Third Army liberated Buchenwald concentration camp. One of the young U.S. Army officers who entered the camp that afternoon was a 22-year-old captain by the name of Bill McKenzie. Captain McKenzie said of the day, “I will not describe the horrible sight of our entry into Buchenwald, but I will tell you this—that the crematorium was still burning, dead were stacked like cord wood on large trailers and the living dead were starving.” His words truly depicted the horrible atrocities committed against the Jewish people during the Holocaust.
Some 65 years later, I would give the eulogy at my father-in-law Captain McKenzie’s funeral. As part of the eulogy, I read a letter sent to our family following his death from Michael Levin – the nephew of Jacques Graubart, a survivor of Buchenwald – who wanted to send his condolences. In the letter, Levin wrote:
It was my privilege to attend the dinner in Brussels in 1995 that marked the 50th anniversary of the liberation of Buchenwald concentration camp. What made the evening unforgettable was the presence of Bill McKenzie, who liberated the camp, among whose inmates was my great-uncle Jacques.
Jacques’ love and admiration for Bill was abundant, and his gratitude for Bill’s courage was undiminished by the fifty years that had passed since that unforgettable event. For those of us who had the privilege to be present, the love and the bond between liberator and former prisoner was the purest display of love of one’s fellow man that we had ever seen.
All of the speakers referred to Bill as a hero. I was seated very close to Bill, and I glanced at him when such references were made. He immediately shook his head rapidly and firmly, denying with absolute conviction that anything he did represented heroism. Bill made clear to all of us that night that he was simply doing his job as an American soldier."
Simply doing his job.
Though he would never admit it, Bill McKenzie will always be a hero, and his role in the War and in liberating innocent people from the wrath of Nazi Germany is a proud distinction for our family. His service, and the service of all the other heroes of the greatest generation, will always remain a source of pride for our Nation.
Bill McKenzie outside the American Embassy in Paris in the Spring 1945. |
Having heroes like Bill McKenzie in my life, has given me a great appreciation for those among us who have gone above and beyond to serve their fellow man. That is why, when my office was contacted by a constituent, Jack Shields, who was the unit commander of four Vietnam veterans who flew their helicopter into enemy territory to rescue the crew of a downed C-130, I knew I had to help. Mr. Shields had been trying to help those four men receive Silver Stars for their actions since 2005.
Over the last 14 months, my staff, Jack Shields, and I have worked with the Department of Defense to get Robert J. Monette of Madison, Alabama, John F. Deslouriers of Galveston, Texas, Leonard B. Shearer of Glendale, Arizona, and Robert A. Frank of Leavenworth, Kansas the Silver Stars they deserve for their heroic actions in Vietnam.
At 8:00 AM CT, on Tuesday, the 45th anniversary of their combat rescue mission, I will present each of them with their Silver Stars at Trapnall Hall in Little Rock. Expected to be in attendance are survivors from the C-130 crash that were rescued by Monette, Deslouriers, Shearer, and Frank. On what will be undoubtedly an emotional morning, it will be an absolute honor to be in the presence of these representatives of another great generation of American heroes as they receive a long overdue thank you for their service to our country.
Sincerely,
Representative French Hill |
Rep. Hill meeting with Women & Children First discussing work they do to serve families in the community and strategies to improve the safety and access to services for victims of domestic violence. |
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Rep. Hill at the Open Hands Clinic in Little Rock to see first-hand the work Community Health Centers do to provide health care to underserved communities in Arkansas. |
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Art Competition Submissions Due
High school students in Arkansas’s Second Congressional District wishing to participate in the 2017 Congressional Art Competition need to submit their entries to the office of Congressman French Hill (AR-02) by Monday, May 1, 2017.
The Artistic Discovery Contest is open to all high school students in the Second Congressional District. The winning artwork from the Second Congressional District’s competition will be displayed for one year in the U.S. Capitol in Washington. The exhibit in Washington will include the winning artwork from all participating congressional districts from around the country. The winning artwork also will be featured on the U.S. House of Representatives’ Congressional Art Competition page.
Click here for more information on how to submit and entry.
News for the Week
For accountability
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4/7/2017
Aristotle exec chosen for broadband panel
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4/7/2017
Senator Cotton & Arkansas Delegation Applauding Strike On Syria
KUAR NPR
4/7/2017
Representative Hill: Here's what the defenders of the CFPB ignore
Housingwire
4/10/2017
LA Times columnist writes scathing piece against House Financial Services Chairman
Housing Wire
4/11/2017
Hill, Cotton set joint public meeting in Little Rock
Arkansas Online
4/12/2017
Press Releases
Hill Statement on Strikes Against Syria
April 6, 2017
Representative Hill released the following statement on the military strikes against Syria:
“This strategic attack against Syrian military targets was an appropriate and proportionate response to Assad’s use of deadly chemical weapons. Tonight, our president has told Assad that America will no longer ignore his unspeakable acts of aggression against innocent people. Now, the United Nations must follow our lead and respond to Assad’s actions by pursuing a cease fire in Syria, creating safe zones, and holding him accountable for his war crimes.”
Hill Statement on ISIS Attack in Egypt
April 9, 2017
Representative Hill released the following statement after the ISIS attacks in Egypt:
"Earlier this year, I visited St. Peter and St. Paul’s Coptic Church in Egypt. Just two months prior to my visit, an ISIS jihadist suicide bomber disguised as a woman entered the church and murdered 25 innocent people. Today, Egypt's Coptic Christians again were attacked by ISIS jihadists. These cowardly acts perpetrated by ISIS in the churches of our allies in Egypt can't be overlooked, and this type of terror must be rejected and defeated by the entire civilized world."
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