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REMARKS FOR
THE HONORABLE NORMAN Y. MINETA
SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION
“HURRICANE HEROES” THANK-YOU EVENT AT LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE
SAN ANTONIO, TX
JANUARY 25, 2006
1:15 P.M.
Thank you very, very much,
General Hertog [her-TOG], for that kind introduction and for welcoming me here
today. What an honor it is to be with you.
General Young and Colonel Lewis, thank you also for your warm hospitality.
And let me especially thank the Lackland community for giving this former Army
guy such a warm welcome!
I am here today to make sure that the world never forgets the extraordinary
feats of public service that took place at this Base, in the wake of Mother
Nature’s wrath.
Our Nation owes a profound debt of gratitude to the men and women here today for
the critical role that you played in carrying out the largest domestic airlift
in United States history, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
When Katrina’s flood waters rose, causing thousands of tired, homeless, and
hungry evacuees to flee their homes… you were ready to help.
From the medical teams… to the flight crews… to the personnel who waited for the
arrival of thousands of frightened and weary evacuees… you were ready to serve.
And the results were impressive. In the days following Katrina, approximately
25,000 residents were evacuated from the Gulf Coast region. Here at Lackland
alone, you welcomed nearly 10,000 of those evacuees.
As I stand in this hangar today, I can only imagine how scared they were.
How reassuring it must have been, knowing that they were in the hands of our
Nation’s finest, the men and women of Team Lackland.
You witnessed first-hand one of the most devastating disasters this country has
ever had to endure.
And, you rose to the challenge… meeting it with a level of professionalism and
compassion that is unmatched.
Your medical teams provided on-the-spot care and attention… to hundreds of your
fellow Americans.
Your pilots rescued thousands and brought them to their temporary home in San
Antonio.
And, your personnel here at Lackland, worked around the clock assembling
thousands of cots and other supplies to comfort those who faced the wrath of the
hurricane and survived.
Thousands of lives and hundreds of families were saved, because you, our
Hurricane Heroes, were ready to help. No American should ever forget that.
The entire Nation owes you a debt of gratitude. Not only because of the fine
work that you have done for the Gulf Coast, but because you always stand ready
to help and defend this great Nation.
It’s impossible to put into words everything that you mean to our country, so
let me simply say -- Thank you.
Thank you for your commitment… thank you for your dedication… and thank you
especially for the warm and gracious hospitality that you provided to the
evacuees.
Your steadfast leadership is an example to the world and is the reason each and
every American can rest easy knowing that you are standing guard.
May God bless you, and may God continue to bless the United States of America.
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