Tom Lantos: “On May 31st we will commemorate Memorial Day. Across our great land, thousands of American flags, proudly waving, will…”

“On May 31st we will commemorate Memorial Day. Across our great land, thousands of American flags, proudly waving, will mark the final resting place of those who gave their lives so that we in the United States and people in other lands might enjoy the blessings of liberty. We are deeply saddened by their deaths, but eternally grateful for their sacrifice. One such sacrifice in freedom's name was made on March 22, 2004, when a 20-year-old Marine Lance Corporal Andrew S. Dang's life was cut short in a gun battle during patrol near Ar Ramady, Iraq. Cpl. Dang was from Foster City, California, and he graduated from Aragon High School. Those who knew Andrew Dang best describe him as someone with a passion for science and technology who spent his free time building robots and rockets. He was one of the founding members of Aragon's renowned robotics team and by his senior year, he was taking multiple advanced placement classes in physics and chemistry. He also excelled in athletics as a wrestler and football player. The oldest of three brothers raised by a single mom, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps less than a year ago to make a better future for himself and to give back to his country. His life had just begun when bullets stole it away.”