Whereas Lieutenant Commander Louis A. Conter was born on September 13, 1921, in Ojibwa, Wisconsin; Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter enlisted in the United States Navy in 1939; Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter served as a Quartermaster and reported to the USS Arizona in 1940; Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter was aboard the USS Arizona when the Japanese began their attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941, at 7:48 a.m.; Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter was on the stern of the USS Arizona when the sirens announced the Japanese attack; Whereas a bomb hit the ammunition magazine located between the turrets on the USS Arizona at 8:05 a.m.; Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter was knocked forward to the deck after the bomb went off; Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter recovered from the explosion and immediately began helping other wounded sailors onto lifeboats; Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter was able to escape the USS Arizona before it ultimately sank; Whereas 1,177 officers and crew members lost their lives aboard the USS Arizona on December 7, 1941; Whereas 2,403 Americans in total lost their lives during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941; Whereas following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Lieutenant Commander Conter attended flight school and served as a Patrol Bomber (PBY) Catalina Pilot in the Pacific Theater; Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter served for the duration of World War II and was shot down twice during his time as a pilot in the Pacific Theater; Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter continued his military service beyond World War II and participated in combat missions as an intelligence officer during the Korean war; and Whereas Lieutenant Commander Conter retired from the United States Navy in 1967 after 28 years of service to the Nation: Now, therefore, be it