National Police Week

Floor Speech

Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, it has been my practice over the past decade to honor the men and women of law enforcement during National Police Week.

This week is National Police Week. The annual candlelight vigil at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial will take place this evening. I should mention that 2013 marks the 25th anniversary of the candlelight vigil. This year, the names of 320 officers killed in the line of duty are being added to the memorial. These 320 names include 119 officers who were killed during 2012, plus 201 officers who died in previous years but whose stories of sacrifice had been lost to history until now.

Alaska did not suffer a law enforcement casualty in 2012. However, we have suffered three since the beginning of 2013, and I would like to take this opportunity to remember the three Alaskans who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for the heroes they are.

Today I recognize three men, each of different backgrounds but all united in their bravery and willingness to go the extra step. John 15:13 says: ``There is no greater love than this, that a man lay down his life for his friend.'' In Alaska, where we treat strangers in need of a helping hand as friends, these three individuals demonstrated a spirit not only worthy of their profession but that of a State and a people forever grateful for their sacrifice.

THOMAS MADOLE

In law enforcement there is spirited debate over who walks the toughest beat in America. The men and women of corrections think they have won that debate hands down, but I would suggest that Alaska's village public safety officers, or VPSOs, our first responders in the last frontier, are formidable contenders.

Alaska's VPSOs wear all four hats of first response. They are at the same time police officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and search-and-rescue coordinators. They are the sole first responders in the bush villages of Alaska--villages with populations that might number 400 to 600 people--and carry out their dangerous work with no backup in the immediate community. The closest backup is often an Alaska State trooper in a rural hub, who must fly in to the village by air--assuming weather conditions allow the troopers to fly. I would submit to you that our village public safety officers, who patrol unarmed, in fact walk the toughest beat in America.

Thomas Madole, age 54, was the village public safety officer in Manakotak, AK. Manakotak has a population of about 400. It is in Alaska's Bristol Bay region. Ninety-four percent of its residents are Alaska Native descendants of the original people to occupy the area. Officer Madole was killed on March 19, 2013 while responding to a report of a possibly suicidal person. He was unarmed. His assailant was not.

There is much to say for how Officer Madole lived his life. He will be remembered as a man of peace. An ordained minister of the Assemblies of God Church, he preached and mentored in the Yupik hub community of Bethel Alaska for 6 years before moving to Manakotak.

Patricia Zulkosky, a board member of the Bethel Assemblies of God Church, referred to Madole in this way: ``He was a man of God, he walked his talk.'' And in the community of Manakotak, Madole is remembered as a friend and a role model for the youth as much as a cop.

MEL NADING AND TAGE TOLL

Alaska is remarkable for many reasons, among which that the wilderness begins literally beyond the backyards of our homes. The Alaska State troopers rely extensively on aviation resources to get where they need to go and their pilots are some of the best in the world.

Mel Nading, originally a Hawkeye from Manchester, IA, was hired in December 2000 to be the primary pilot for the Alaska Department of Public Safety's Helo-1. Helo-1 bore the tail number ``N911AA.''

During Mel's 13 year career, he was the primary search-and-rescue pilot for the department and interacted with other agencies to coordinate search and rescue efforts, going on almost-weekly missions. Mel also provided air support for law enforcement missions. In 2012 alone, Mel flew over 200 hours logging 73 rescues and 13 medical evacuations. He recovered eight bodies and assisted with two arrests.

In 2008, Mel and trooper Sergeant Bryan Barlow shared the Governors Denali Award Peak Performance for saving the life of a kayaker caught in a bore tide. During that daring rescue, Mel was able to hold the helicopter steady and close to the waters as Barlow leaned out and pulled the kayaker from Turnagain Arm, saving the man's life. This act was but one of many saves he made in his career.

These remarkable numbers, however, are just a small part of what made Mel a valued member of the team. He was well known and well respected among the search and rescue community and was known for his attention to safety.

Trooper Tage Toll, of Talkeetna, joined the Alaska State troopers in 2003 after spending 2 years with the Kansas Highway Patrol. He served in Fairbanks, Glennallen, and Northway. Then in September of 2009, he transferred to Talkeetna at the gateway to Denali National Park. He was an expert marksman and a member of the regional SWAT team what we in Alaska refer to as the SERT. Like Mel, Tage was also a pilot and loved to fly his Super Cub.

On March 30, the Alaska State troopers dispatched Helo-1 to rescue a snowmachiner who crashed near Larson Lake, 7 miles east of Talkeetna. Mel flew from Anchorage to Talkeetna, picked up Tage and began a search. The pair found the snowmachiner around 10 p.m. They intended to fly to a nearby gas station to rendezvous with EMS personnel. The helicopter crashed a little over an hour later, and there were no survivors.

This National Police Week, as America focuses on the daily sacrifices of what those in law enforcement refer to as the ``Thin Blue Line,'' I am honored to share the stories of these three outstanding Alaskans, who paid the ultimate sacrifice, with the Senate. In valor, there is hope.

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