Patrick Leahy: “I join my good friend, the Senator from California, in paying tribute to a remarkable young woman from Lakeport, CA…”

“I join my good friend, the Senator from California, in paying tribute to a remarkable young woman from Lakeport, CA, Marla Ruzicka. There are times when we are called upon to give speeches such as this on the floor. They are never easy. Sometimes they are speeches given about somebody at the end of a long and full life. Here we are speaking about a young woman at the beginning of a life already full but with promise for decades to come. Marla was the founder of a humanitarian organization called Campaign for Innocent Victims in Conflict which is devoted to helping the families of Afghan and Iraqi citizens who have been killed or suffered other losses, such as their homes destroyed, businesses destroyed, as a result of U.S. military operations. We know such suffering occurs no matter how careful the military may be. But Saturday, Marla died in Baghdad. She died from a car bomb, a car bomb not directed at her but directed at a convoy. She was doing the work she loved and which so many people around the world admired her for. She was on her way to help somebody else. It was the case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. But it was not unusual because she had risked her life so many times in Afghanistan and Iraq. I met Marla 3 years ago when she first came to Washington. She was barely 26 years old. She had been in Afghanistan. She had seen the effects of the U.S. bombing mistakes that destroyed the homes and lives of innocent Afghan citizens.…”