E1596 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks July 23, 2007 from other parts of the United States such as ven A. Davis. I call upon my colleagues to re- I would add parenthetically that in Vermont, Virginia, Illinois and New York member him as a man who gave his life pro- Georgi Vins and four other Soviet moved in to begin farming the land there as tecting the American people. were expelled from the Soviet Union in ex- well. This area also attracted people from f change for two convicted Soviet spies. In Au- other parts of the world including England, gust 1985, the Helsinki Commission, of which Germany, Ireland, and Switzerland. CELEBRATING THE BIRTH OF MISS I am honored to serve currently as Chairman, On April 23, 1957, with a population of JOELLA GALE MURRAY heard Pastor Vins’ dramatic testimony on the 5,231, area residents voted to incorporate as plight of the unregistered Baptist church at the Village of Shoreview. During the 1970s HON. JOE WILSON Congressional hearings in Buffalo, New York, and 1980s Shoreview experienced rapid OF SOUTH CAROLINA devoted to the subject of Soviet forced labor growth. In the 1990s, the city matured as less IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES practices. land was available for development. City plan- Monday, July 23, 2007 Meanwhile, as a result of his determination ning has shifted from new development to Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Madam to preserve the freedom to worship without infill, redevelopment and preserving its natural Speaker, today, I am happy to congratulate state interference, Pastor Kryuchkov was ar- habitat. Joseph and Kathryn Murray of Alexandria, Vir- rested and sentenced to three years in labor Fifty years after incorporation, Shoreview ginia, on the birth of their beautiful baby girl. camp from 1966 to 1969. In 1970, under has grown into a large suburb. It is a thriving Joella ‘‘Ella’’ Gale Murray was born on Thurs- threat of continued persecution, he went into community that is home to quiet neighbor- day, June 21, 2007, at 1:03 pm weighing 7 hiding and spent 20 years working under- hoods, small businesses, excellent schools, pounds 4 ounces and measuring 19 inches ground, preaching to fellow believers in clan- and expansive wetlands, trails, parks and long. Ella has been born into a loving home, destine gatherings, publishing ‘‘illegal’’ reli- lakes. where she will be raised by parents who are gious literature, and staying one step ahead of Madam Speaker, in honor of the history of devoted to her well-being and bright future. the KGB. Shoreview, Minnesota and the events cele- Her birth is a blessing. Only when the chains of religious repression brating it, I am pleased to submit this state- in the Soviet Union were cast off as a result f ment for the CONGRESSIONAL RECORD recog- of the new thinking that characterized the gov- nizing Shoreview’s 50th anniversary. PASSING OF GENNADI KRYUCHKOV ernment of Communist Party General Sec- f retary , was Pastor HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS Kryuchkov able to emerge from the shadows HONORING THE LIFE OF PRIVATE and return to his family and loved ones in the FIRST CLASS STEVEN A. DAVIS OF FLORIDA IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Tula Oblast, still fervently preaching the Scrip- tures and standing fast for separation of Monday, July 23, 2007 HON. TOM DAVIS church and state. OF VIRGINIA Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Madam Speaker, Madam Speaker, like the Soviet Union itself, IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES on July 14, 2007, the Russian Federation lost the days of cruel religious persecution and mil- one of its great leaders, although I am certain Monday, July 23, 2007 itant atheism in Russia are pretty much a thing he would steadfastly reject such a character- of the past. But let us not forget the courage Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Madam Speak- ization of himself. and persistence of church leaders like er, I rise today to honor the life of Private First He certainly wasn’t a famous political figure, Gennadi Kryuchkov, who, like the ‘‘Remnant’’ Class Steven A. Davis and to recognize his or a wealthy philanthropist, or a brilliant sci- of Old Testament times, kept the flame of faith service to our nation. entist, and his name was rarely found on the of burning during the dark days of persecution. PFC Davis was a true patriot who served pages of the major media. Gennadi f his country with honor. Throughout his life he Kryuchkov’s leadership was in the spiritual selflessly dedicated himself to his fellow sol- realm. He was a courageous and principled HONORING MR. PETE DLABAL OF diers, family and friends, and to our country. leader of the unregistered Evangelical Baptist ELLSWORTH, KANSAS His family moved to Woodbridge, Virginia, in Church in the Soviet Union in the days when 2001. Before joining the Army, PFC Davis merely sharing one’s religious faith with a HON. JERRY MORAN worked in a fast food restaurant to try and pay neighbor could lead to a ‘‘discussion’’ at the OF KANSAS for college. Yearning to serve his country, he local police station or the feared KGB office, IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES enlisted in the Army in September 2005, and and actively preaching the Gospel without per- Monday, July 23, 2007 began his first deployment shortly thereafter. mission from the government was usually PFC Davis was assigned to C Company, 2nd good for a ticket to one of the many forced Mr. MORAN of Kansas. Madam Speaker, Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry labor camps that comprised the infamous today I rise to express my respect and high Division, Fort Carson, Colorado. Tragically, he . regard for a Kansan who is truly a member of was killed on July 4, 2007, after sustaining in- Born in 1926, Gennadi Kryuchkov came to ‘‘the Greatest Generation’’—Mr. Pete Dlabal of juries from grenades detonated near his faith in 1951, and became active in an unreg- Ellsworth. The time has come to recognize mounted patrol. He was honored with the Pur- istered congregation of Baptist believers. In this man who has served his community and ple Heart and Bronze Star prior to his death. 1960, when he felt the officially registered country while remaining devoted to his family. PFC Davis is survived by his parents Guy Baptist organization had too deeply com- Mr. Dlabal was born to a family that in- and Tess, his wife Ayla and their one-year-old promised itself with Soviet authorities by sub- cluded nine brothers and sisters in one of the daughter Elizabeth, and his brother Specialist mitting to repressive new regulations, he be- fine small towns I have the privilege of rep- Chris Davis, who is also a soldier currently de- came one of the leaders of the Initsiativniki, resenting, Wilson, Kansas. Following his grad- ployed to Iraq. His mother, Tess, is working in the unregistered and essentially underground uation from Wilson High School and the Wich- Iraq as a paramedic, and his grandfather is network of congregations that defied Caesar’s ita Business School, he joined the millions of working there as a mechanic. His father, Buck, intrusion into the spiritual realm. Gennadi other selfless young men of his generation is also an Army veteran. Kryuchkov became president of the under- and enlisted in the United States Army. After Words cannot express the gratitude feel ground church council and the late Georgi serving in the Army for four and a half years to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice Vins was chosen as secretary. In May 1965, during World War II, he returned to Ellsworth for our nation; it is a debt that can never be Pastor Kryuchkov and Pastor Vins led an County, Kansas. repaid. I recognize that words are of little com- open march on Communist Party head- Upon returning home, his service to his fort for the family and friends of PFC Davis, quarters in to protest government re- community continued, serving as the county who are truly suffering in the wake of the loss strictions on believers in the Soviet Union. treasurer for two years. He then began his of this intelligent and dedicated man. I hope According to church council statistics, by tenure at the Ellsworth County Farmers Co- they will take some solace in I knowing that 1972 the unregistered or ‘‘reform’’ Baptist operative Union in 1949. In this position he we will never forget PFC Davis and the tre- church numbered around 450 congregations would remain for 31 years, including 24 years mendous sacrifice he made while defending and 18,000 members. Another reputable as General Manager. In honor of his dedica- our country. source reported in the mid-1980s that there tion and leadership, Mr. Dlabal was one of Madam Speaker, in closing, I would like to were 2,000 reform Baptist congregations with only four individuals inducted into the Kansas honor the memory of Private First Class Ste- approximately 70,000 adult members. Cooperative Hall of Fame this past March.

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