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“TRIBUTE TO TY WOODS” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E586-E587 on May 3, 2013.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
TRIBUTE TO TY WOODS
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HON. JOSEPH J. HECK
of nevada
in the house of representatives
Friday, May 3, 2013
Mr. HECK of Nevada. Mr. Speaker, I come to the floor today to pay my most solemn respects to and commemorate the life of Ty Woods, a former Navy SEAL and my constituent who was killed in the attack on the American diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, on the occasion of his name being enshrined on the American Foreign Service Association memorial plaque.
The memorial honors ``diplomatic and consular officers of the United States who while on active duty lost their lives under heroic or tragic circumstances.'' The events that surrounded the untimely loss of Ty Woods were at once tragic and heroic and it is fitting that his name be added to the memorial. He lived a life of service to his country and in the end made the ultimate sacrifice in its defense.
After twenty years of honorable service in the Navy, Ty, who led raids and reconnaissance missions in the most volatile parts of the Middle East, could have chose a life of relative ease as a decorated war hero. Instead, the man who Secretary of State Hillary Clinton memorialized as having ``the hands of a healer as well as the arm of a warrior,'' again answered the call to serve and joined the State Department Diplomatic Security team.
Since 2010, Ty protected American diplomatic personnel in dangerous posts from Central America to the Middle East but it was at Benghazi where he demonstrated exemplary courage under fire. In Benghazi, while defending an under-secured, besieged diplomatic mission, Ty Woods gave his life so that other Americans could escape to safety. According to reports, Ty saved the lives of thirty staff members by heroically engaging the insurgents even after sustaining mortal wounds. For his heroism in the face of grave danger, Ty has earned his place on the memorial that hangs at the State Department. His name joins dozens of others who have given their lives in the service of the country they loved.
Ty Woods was a loving son, husband, and father who lived up to the highest ideals of the United States Navy and the State Department. I thank him for his service and his selfless sacrifice and commend to his memory yet another honor so well deserved.
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