Ken Calvert: “as the author of H.R. 988, I rise today to pay tribute to First Lieutenant Todd Bryant. The legislation would designate…”

“as the author of H.R. 988, I rise today to pay tribute to First Lieutenant Todd Bryant. The legislation would designate a post office in my district as the ``Lieutenant Todd Bryant Post Office.'' Todd was born on January 14, 1980, in Long Beach, California. Todd came from a military family and his desire and determination to join the military was nothing short of resolute. He enlisted in the Army Reserve and completed Basic Training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma before his senior year of high school. In the fall of 1997, Todd came to my office seeking a nomination to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and the following March, Todd accepted an Appointment to West Point. I was proud to nominate this ambitious young man who I knew would distinguish himself throughout his military service, just as he had done throughout his whole life. Todd interned in my district office before his senior year at West Point and graduated with a degree in Political Science on June 1, 2002. He would often joke that he was going to run for my congressional seat some day--I have no doubt he would have succeeded. After graduation, Todd attended the Armor Officer's Basic Course at Fort Knox, Kentucky, graduating in December 2002. On August 30, 2003, Todd and Jenifer Reardon were married in Pennsylvania, 9 days before shipping out with his unit in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.”