Tribute to United States Marine Corps Staff Sergeant Dennis W. Hammond

Tribute to United States Marine Corps Staff Sergeant Dennis W. Hammond -- (Extensions of Remarks - April 22, 2004)

SPEECH OF

HON. ROBERT E. ANDREWS

OF NEW JERSEY

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

THURSDAY, APRIL 22, 2004

Mr. ANDREWS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to United States Marine Corps Staff Sergeant Dennis W. Hammond who was captured by the Viet Cong on February 8, 1968 and died in a Prisoner of War camp in March, 1970. Staff Sergeant Hammond was one of several American POWs who were held at a camp in Quang Nam Province numbered ST18. He attempted escape with the other POWs in the spring of 1968 and was shot in the leg by Montagnards in a nearby village. After 36 long years, the Department of Defense has positively identified Staff Sergeant Hammond's remains and will lay him to rest with full military honors in Bremond, Texas on May 22, 2004.

Staff Sergeant Hammond's story was brought to my attention by a patriotic and thoughtful newspaper reporter for the Gloucester County Times named Jim Six. Mr. Six has collected more than 400 dog tags from Vietnam and has spent over ten years trying to return these identification tags to their rightful owner or next of kin. As part of this statement, I am submitting three columns published by Jim Six to be included as part of the RECORD.