The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE BALKANS TRADE MISSION MEMORIAL” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Commerce was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H1655-H1656 on April 3, 2000.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE BALKANS TRADE MISSION MEMORIAL
(Mr. FARR of California asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks and include extraneous material.)
Mr. FARR of California. Mr. Speaker, on April 3, 1996, the Department of Commerce suffered the greatest tragedy in its history when 35 people perished in a plane crash while conducting a trade mission to the Balkans.
Ronald H. Brown, then Secretary of Commerce, was leading a delegation of private sector businessmen and government officials on a trade mission to seek ways to implement the civilian aspects of the Dayton peace accords through trade ties and investment opportunities. Secretary Brown and his staff were accompanied by a group of chief executive officers of major companies who agreed to help restore Bosnia's buildings, its water and energy systems, its tourism and its banking system. The goal of the trip was to start our U.S. commercial presence, to start economic reconstruction and to include U.S. companies in the development of the region. It was a mission of hope for the war torn region and an opportunity for American business. The members of the trade mission thought they would be able to use the power of the American economy to help peace take hold in the Balkans. Their quest was cut short on an unwelcoming mountain in Croatia.
Today, the families of all of those victims of that crash gathered here in Washington to unveil a memorial, a memorial that is a lasting testimonial written by the families of those loved ones who were lost on that fateful day. I took part in the dedication of that memorial at the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record the names of the people that were on that memorial and hope everyone will take advantage of visiting it in our beautiful Department of Commerce.
``All of them were so full of possibility, even as we grieve for what their lives might have been, let us celebrate what their lives were.''
President William Clinton
Trade Mission Participants
Staff Sergeant Gerald V. Aldrich II, Flight Mechanic, United States Air Force.
Niksa Antonini, Photographer, Republic of Croatia.
Dragica Lendic Bebek, Interpreter, Republic of Croatia.
Ronald H. Brown, Secretary of Commerce.
Duane R. Christian, Security Officer, United States Department of Commerce.
Barry L. Conrad, President and CEO, Barrington International Hospitality, Inc.
Paul Cushman III, Executive Vice President, Riggs Bank/CEO, Riggs International.
Adam N. Darling, Confidential Assistant, United States Department of Commerce.
Captain Ashley J. Davis, Pilot, United States Air Force.
Gail E. Dobert, Deputy Director, Office of Business Liaison, United States Department of Commerce.
Robert E. Donovan, President, ABB, Incorporated.
Claudio Elia, President and CEO, Anjou International and Air and Water Technologies.
Staff Sergeant Robert Farrington, Jr., Steward, United States Air Force.
David L. Ford, President, InterGuard Corporation.
Carol L. Hamilton, Press Secretary, United States Department of Commerce.
Kathryn E. Hoffman, Senior Advisor for Strategic Schuduling and Special Initiatives, United States Department of Commerce.
Lee F. Jackson, Executive Director, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, United States Department of Treasury,
Stephen C. Kaminski, Senior Commercial Officer in Austria, United States and Foreign Commercial Service, United States Department of Commerce.
Kathryn E. Kellogg, Confidential Assistant, Office of Business Liaison, United States Department of Commerce.
Technical Sergeant Shelly A. Kelly, Steward, United States Air Force.
James M. Lewek, Economic Analyst, Central Intelligence Agency.
Frank A. Maier, President, Ensearch International Corporation.
Charles F. Meissner, Assistant Secretary for International Economic Policy, United States Department of Commerce.
William E. Morton, Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Economic Development, United States Department of Commerce.
Walter J. Murphy, Senior Vice President of Sales/Marketing, AT&T Submarine Systems, Inc.
Nathaniel C. Nash, New York Times, Frankfurt Bureau Chief.
Lawrence M. Payne, Special Assistant, United States and Foreign Commercial Service, United States Department of Commerce.
Leonard J. Pieroni, Jr., Chairman and CEO, Parsons Corporation.
John A. Scoville, Chairman, Harza Engineering Company.
Captain Timothy W. Shafer, Pilot, United States Air Force.
I. Donald Terner, President, Bridge Housing Corporation.
P. Stuart Tholan, President, Bechtel-Europe, Africa, Middle East, Southwest Asia.
Technical Sergeant Cheryl A. Turnage, Steward, United States Air Force.
Naomi P. Warbasse, Deputy Director, Central and Eastern Europe Business Information Center, United States Department of Commerce.
Robert A. Whittaker, Chairman and CEO, Foster Wheeler Energy International.
____
Adam Noel Darling
Adam was born on December 20, 1966, in Livermore, California . . . As my universe grows infinitely larger, may my loyalty to beloved friends grow dearer. As the world becomes exponentially complex, may my passion for the truth fathom its extremities. As the pursuit of peace grows costly and elusive, steel my resolve . . . Temper my candor with kindness, my directness with humor. Guard me from the temptation to substitute personal devotion for the simple truth, and save me from sacrificing the life of one friend or foe for abstract principle or selfish ambition. Make me at home with prime ministers and farm workers alike in order that power may be less arrogant and the humble may know the power of their true worth . . . May I take no notice of another's deliberate smallness, nor make one decision from fear, nor withhold my resources in stinginess. In defeat liberate me in expansive faithfulness and in victory delivery me from devaluing large principles by personal meanness . . . Let me spurn accolades that I may be truly honorable. Let me aspire to the vision of youth that I may be always young. Let me respect and receive the patience of my grandfather that I may be wise, the tenacity of my grandmother that I may endure, the love of my parents that I may be at home at the heart of the universe, the devotion of my sister and my niece that I may have a future, the joy of my brother that I may dance with him forever . . . And in the end may I be swept away in the infinite fierce tenderness of true love . . . Adam was serving as Confidential Assistant to Secretary Ron Brown while on this trade mission to Bosnia. In 1994, Adam was appointed Speech Writer and Confidential Assistant to David Barram, Deputy Secretary of Commerce, traveling throughout Asia, Australia, Canada, and the U.S. Previously, he was International Trade Administration Deputy Public Affairs Director. In 1991-92, Adam worked in the German Bundestag as a Carl Duisberg Fellow . . . ``I want to renovate the homes, refurbish the schools, retool the factories, and rededicate the churches of American cities. I now know that rebuilding America's cities will be my life's passion and my life's work. I have a special talent for this work and therefore a responsibility to do it.''
____________________
