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[Pages H4436-H4437]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING LUTHER EUGENE ROLLINS
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
South Carolina (Mr. Norman) for 5 minutes.
Mr. NORMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the life of Luther
Eugene Rollins. Gene, as he was better known, was the son of Mr. and
Mrs. James F. Rollins of Greer, South Carolina.
Gene, like many Americans, wanted to serve his country, and he joined
the Army during the Vietnam war and was assigned to Company A in the
6th Battalion Infantry in the 9th Division.
The commander of his battalion was Captain Vernon Green, who quickly
became his lifelong friend. Gene's unit was known as the Polecats or
Bearcats and, in March of 1968, was assigned to the advance party in
Southeast Asia.
{time} 1015
While serving in combat on the front lines, he quickly became known
as the ``preacher'' because of his daily reading of the Bible and
dedicated prayer life. During an attack on his battalion, Gene was
asked to lead his men in prayer, which he did on numerous occasions.
Gene credits his many prayers to God as the reason for his survival
during an attack when his M60 machine gun jammed and he was unable to
return fire to the enemy.
Gene became a radio operator during his service in Vietnam, attaining
the rank of platoon sergeant. When his best friend, Captain Green was
promoted to the battalion staff, Gene was invited to join him. He
declined to do
[[Page H4437]]
so saying, ``I want to stay with my men.'' As he later told members of
his hometown church, his service in the Vietnam war was a ``missionary
journey'' where he was doing what God wanted him to do. For Sergeant
Rollins' heroic efforts, he was awarded the Bronze Star and two Purple
Hearts.
After the war, he returned to Rock Hill, South Carolina, where he
married his wife, Brenda Faye, and had three children, a son, Wendell,
and two daughters, Tabatha and Tonya. He worked as a machinist for
several years until joining Duke Energy in June of 1973 where he was an
operator and coordinator for maintenance, working until March of 2016
at the Catawba Nuclear Station in York County, South Carolina.
Just as Gene Rollins had heeded the call of God during his service in
Vietnam, he continued to serve his Lord by joining Woodhaven Baptist
Church, where he served as Sunday school superintendent, finance
committee member, and usher. Gene and his family united with their
grandchildren by joining Calvary Baptist Church. And as said by Pastor
Reggie Hopkins, ``We love having a man of God like Gene Rollins and his
family'' in our church.
He spends his time by continuing to serve his fellow man by cutting
his neighbor's grass, giving rides to those who need medical care, and
numerous other tasks that epitomize the saying ``to live is to serve.''
Gene Rollins is a man who continues to serve his God, his country,
his family, and, just as our Savior Jesus Christ did, his fellow man.
May God continue to bless Gene Rollins for years to come.
____________________