PRINTER'S NO. 1296
No. 158 Session of 2007
INTRODUCED BY KASUNIC, JULY 10, 2007
INTRODUCED AND ADOPTED, JULY 10, 2007
A RESOLUTION
1 Recognizing with great sadness the supreme sacrifice made by
2 Army First Sergeant Christopher C. Rafferty, who died from
3 combat wounds suffered in Afghanistan.
4 WHEREAS, Army First Sergeant Christopher C. Rafferty, 37,
5 died on July 21, 2006, from a wound received in combat on July
6 20, 2006, in Sharana, Afghanistan; and
7 WHEREAS, Sgt. Rafferty, a native of Brownsville, enlisted in
8 the National Guard with his mother's permission while he was a
9 junior at Bethlehem-Center High School and went active duty upon
10 graduating the next year; and
11 WHEREAS, Sgt. Rafferty was assigned to the 37th Engineer
12 Battalion of Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and was First Sergeant
13 of C Company at the time of his death; and
14 WHEREAS, Sgt. Rafferty's military service record was
15 laudatory, though none of his achieved medals, accomplished
16 specializations or promotions can overshadow the high regard,
17 respect and love bestowed on him by the servicemen who served
18 with him throughout his 19 years in the Army; and
1 WHEREAS, Friends from ten states came to his visitation and
2 said Sgt. Rafferty was the consummate soldier who lived by the
3 seven Army values: loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service,
4 honor, integrity and personal courage, and Captain Richard
5 Ojeda, who served with him in the 37th Engineer Battalion, said:
6 He always did the right thing....He put his men well in
7 front of his own safety....Many of the soldiers in the
8 unit cried when they learned of his death;
9 and
10 WHEREAS, Sgt. Rafferty, who was buried in Arlington National
11 Cemetery on August 4, 2006, is survived by his wife, Wendy; by
12 their two daughters, Samantha and Kayla; and by his mother,
13 Sandy Hustava, and stepfather, Lee Hustava; and
14 WHEREAS, The Senate wishes to honor Sgt. Rafferty
15 posthumously for his courageous service in Operation Enduring
16 Freedom; therefore be it
17 RESOLVED, That the Senate recognize with great sadness the
18 supreme sacrifice of Army First Sergeant Christopher C.
19 Rafferty, who died from enemy fire while courageously serving
20 our nation in Afghanistan.
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