Political Quotes

“Mr. President, it is with a heavy heart that Senator Carper and I come to the floor this evening to honor Chris Leach and Jerry Fickes, two brave Wilmington firefighters who lost their lives this past Saturday night. In any State or in any community, the loss of a firefighter or police officer is devastating, but in our small State of neighbors, a close-knit State with an even closer knit first responder community, a community that includes families and multiple generations, it is especially hard. To those who knew Chris and Jerry, it must be little comfort now that we are here on the floor of the U.S. Senate to pay tribute to their lives, but in the next few minutes, we hope to capture just a fraction of the light they brought to their families and our community with their love and service. Lieutenant Christopher Leach wasn't supposed to be working on Saturday night, but he filled in for another firefighter, likely thinking it would be a shift like any other shift. He was always willing to step forward and serve. After getting the call that there was a fire in a Canby Park row house, Chris did what he had been training to do since 1993. Chris did what he told his friends, all the way back to Salesianum High School, he always wanted to do as long as they could remember--fight fires. Chris grew up in the volunteer fire service. He joined the Tallyville Fire Company in 1993 at the age of 18, rising steadily through the ranks of the volunteer fire service to captain.…”