María Elvira Salazar: “I rise to remember a Coloradan lost to us in Iraq. Army PFC Jeffrey A. Avery was just 19 years old when he was lost to…”

“I rise to remember a Coloradan lost to us in Iraq. Army PFC Jeffrey A. Avery was just 19 years old when he was lost to this life late last month in Muqudadiyah, Iraq. Jeffrey attended Coronado High School in 2005 and went on to attend Pikes Peak Community College, where he was studying criminal justice with the hopes of becoming a police officer. He enjoyed the outdoors and would spend his summers in California with his grandparents. But instead of these pursuits, Jeffrey decided to answer his Nation's call. In Iraq, Specialist Avery served as a military police officer, training for his future. At the time he was killed, he was manning a checkpoint, helping to keep others safe from harm. President John F. Kennedy once said, "Every area of trouble gives out a ray of hope, and the one unchangeable certainty is that nothing is certain or unchangeable." Private First Class Avery embodied this hope with his service to our Nation. He chose to put himself into the area of trouble and to assume the responsibility of hope for millions of Iraqis and Americans. He will be missed by all those around him, and he and his family will remain in our prayers.”