MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2004 Regular Session

To: Rules

By: Representative Capps, Akins, Aldridge, Baker (74th), Barnett, Beckett, Bondurant, Coleman (65th), Cummings, Denny, Flaggs, Formby, Gibbs, Guice, Hines, Jennings, Lott, Malone, Martinson, Masterson, Mayo, McBride, Montgomery, Moody, Moss, Parker, Patterson, Peranich, Pierce, Read, Robinson (84th), Rogers (61st), Rotenberry, Scott, Shows, Smith (59th), Staples, Stevens, Thomas, Turner, Upshaw, Ward, Weathersby, Whittington, Zuber, Arinder, Bailey, Baker (8th), Banks, Bentz, Blackmon, Bounds, Broomfield, Brown, Buck, Burnett, Calhoun, Carlton, Chism, Clark, Clarke, Coleman (29th), Compretta, Davis, Dedeaux, Dickson, Eaton, Ellington, Ellis, Espy, Evans, Fillingane, Fleming, Franks, Fredericks, Frierson, Gadd, Green, Gunn, Hamilton (109th), Hamilton (6th), Harrison, Holland, Holloway, Horne, Howell, Huddleston, Hudson, Ishee, Janus, Markham, Mayhall, McCoy, Middleton, Miles, Mims, Moak, Moore, Morris, Myers, Nicholson, Perkins, Reed, Reeves, Reynolds, Robinson (63rd), Rogers (14th), Simpson, Smith (27th), Smith (39th), Snowden, Straughter, Stringer, Sullivan, Taylor, Vince, Warren, Watson, Wells-Smith, West, Woods, Young

House Concurrent Resolution 105

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING ALL MISSISSIPPI NATIONAL GUARD TROOPS SERVING THE UNITED STATES, BOTH DOMESTICALLY AND ON FOREIGN SOIL AND ENCOURAGING THE CITIZENS OF MISSISSIPPI TO SUPPORT AND CONTACT SERVICEMEN CURRENTLY DEPLOYED.

     WHEREAS, the Mississippi Legislature wishes to acknowledge the many sacrifices made by the thousands of members of the Mississippi National Guard and other military reserve organizations based in Mississippi in the war against terrorism that is being waged by the United States both at home and overseas; and

     WHEREAS, Mississippi's citizens have always been more than willing to serve their country during times of conflict across the world, and many have given the ultimate sacrifice of their lives in times of war; and

     WHEREAS, the United States Military is in the process of engaging in the war against terrorism both at home and overseas, which has included thousands of Mississippi Guardsmen; and

     WHEREAS, the Mississippi National Guard, upon receiving only a few days' notice in many cases, has embarked upon both missions to secure and preserve peace and to protect the lives and interests of all Americans, thus exhibiting the high caliber and readiness of our state’s troops; and

     WHEREAS, most of these servicemen are “citizen soldiers” who have undergone extensive training through their respective National Guard units while maintaining a living and raising families of their own in the private world; and

     WHEREAS, 485 members of Task Force Rifles, headquartered in McComb, Mississippi, and composed of soldiers from across the State of Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, and successfully completed a tour of duty in Bosnia and Herzegovina; and

     WHEREAS, 83 members of Company C, 2nd Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group, headquartered in Elliot, Mississippi, were called to service abroad, and successfully completing a tour of duty defeating the Taliban regime in Afghanistan; and

     WHEREAS, 109 members of the 114th Military Police Company, headquartered in Clinton, Mississippi, were called to active service abroad, successfully completing a tour of duty at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and subsequently completing a follow-on tour at Fort Hood, Texas; and

     WHEREAS, 17 members of the 220th Finance Detachment, headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, were called to service abroad, and successfully completing a tour of duty in Bosnia and Herzegovina; and

     WHEREAS, 29 members of the 210th Finance Battalion and 19 members of the 230th Finance Detachment, both headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, were called to active service and successfully completed a tour of duty providing financial support at Fort Hood, Texas; and

     WHEREAS, 45 members of the 31st Rear Operations Center, headquartered in Jackson, were called to active service to serve abroad, and successfully completed a tour of duty in Kuwait and Iraq; and

     WHEREAS, 146 members of the 113th Military Police Company, headquartered in Brandon, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad and successfully completed a tour of duty in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Uzbekistan, becoming the most mobilized unit in the Mississippi Army National Guard over the past ten years; and

     WHEREAS, 22 pilots of Company D, 159th Aviation, headquartered in Tupelo, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, successfully completing several missions that include the operation which resulted in the deaths of Odai and Qusai Hussein; and

WHEREAS, 647 members of the 223rd Engineer Battalion, headquartered in West Point, Mississippi, with six other locations, including Aberdeen, Calhoun City, Bruce, Charleston, Webb and Clarksdale, were called to active duty to serve abroad, and successfully completed a tour of duty in Iraq while restoring critical services to the Iraqi people; and

WHEREAS, 191 members of the 2nd Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group, headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, successfully conducting approximately 1,000 combat missions in Afghanistan resulting in the death or capture of more than 500 Al Qaeda operatives; and

WHEREAS, 17 members of Special Operations Detachment South, headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, were called to active duty to serve abroad, and successfully completed their tour of duty overseas; and

     WHEREAS, six members of Company K, 185th Aviation, headquartered at Camp Shelby, Mississippi, and a detachment in Southaven were called to active service to serve abroad; and

     WHEREAS, seven members of Company I, 185th Aviation, headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi, were called to active duty to serve abroad; and

     WHEREAS, 170 members of the 1st Battalion, 204th Air Defense Artillery, headquartered in Newton, Mississippi, were called to active duty to protect the skies over our nation’s capitol in Washington, D.C.; and  

     WHEREAS, 76 members of the 168th Engineer Group, headquartered in Vicksburg, Mississippi, were called to active duty to serve abroad in Iraq; and

     WHEREAS, 650 members of the 890th Engineer Battalion, headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi, with seven other locations, including Picayune, Pascagoula, Lumberton, Columbia, Wiggins, Purvis and Richton, were called to active service to serve abroad, and successfully completed a tour of duty in Iraq while restoring critical services to the Iraqi people; and

     WHEREAS, 71 members of the 1108th Aviation Classification and Repair Activity Depot, headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, and successfully completed a tour of duty in Kuwait; and

     WHEREAS, 182 members of the 367th Maintenance Company, headquartered in Philadelphia, Mississippi, were called to active duty to serve abroad, deploying and providing support for the newly formed Stryker Brigade Combat Team in Northern Iraq; and

     WHEREAS, 125 members of the 114th Area Support Group, headquartered in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad; and

     WHEREAS, 58 members of the 298th Corps Support Battalion, headquartered in Philadelphia, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad; and

     WHEREAS, 24 members of the 1st Cavalry Division’s Rear Operations Center, headquartered in Tupelo, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, becoming one of only six Army National Guard units nationwide directly affiliated with an active component division; and

     WHEREAS, 57 members of the 112th Military Police Battalion, headquartered in Canton, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, and the battalion had previously received recognition for its distinguished service in Operation Desert Storm; and

     WHEREAS, 24 members of the 114th Army Liaison Team, headquartered in Greenville, Mississippi, were called to active duty to serve abroad; and

     WHEREAS, 143 members of Company G, 185th Aviation Group, headquartered in Meridian, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, flying the Chinook helicopter, the Army’s premier cargo aircraft; and

     WHEREAS, 84 members of the 185th Aviation Group, headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, holding the distinction of commanding the largest National Guard Aviation Task Force ever deployed overseas; and

     WHEREAS, 62 members of the Mississippi Air National Guard, 255th Air Control Squadron, headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi, were called to active service; and

     WHEREAS, 500 members of the Mississippi Air National Guard, 172nd Airlift Wing, headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad and successfully completed their missions overseas; and

     WHEREAS, numerous members of the 183rd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, based in Jackson, Mississippi, were called to active service and successfully completed their patient evacuation missions in an exemplary manner; and

     WHEREAS, 500 members of the Mississippi Air National Guard, 186th Air Refueling Wing, headquartered in Meridian, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, and successfully completed their missions overseas; and

     WHEREAS, numerous members of the Mississippi Air National Guard, 238th Air Support Operations Squadron and the 248th Air Control Squadron, based in Meridian, Mississippi, were called to active service to serve abroad, and successfully completed their missions in an exemplary manner; and

     WHEREAS, Mississippi Air National Guard Security Flights from the 172nd Airlift Wing and the 186th Air Refueling Wing were called to active service to serve abroad, and successfully completed their overseas missions; and

     WHEREAS, 75 soldiers made up of various units of the Mississippi National Guard were called to active duty in the State of Mississippi with security missions at seven airports statewide, and successfully completed their missions; and

     WHEREAS, 45 soldiers from units with the 1st Battalion, 155th Infantry, headquartered in McComb, Mississippi, were called to active duty in the State of Mississippi with security missions at five Mississippi ports as well as the Grand Gulf Nuclear Power Facility; and

     WHEREAS, 177 soldiers, known as Task Force Falcon, made up of various units of the Mississippi Army National Guard, have been mobilized and are serving on active duty in the State of Mississippi with security missions at Columbus Air Force Base, Keesler Air Force Base and the Mississippi Air National Guard Bases in Jackson and Meridian; and

     WHEREAS, the United States Army 1st Armored Division, Old Ironsides, which is composed of several Mississippi members, were called to active service to serve abroad, successfully completing a tour of duty in Germany, and subsequently engaging in a follow-on-tour in Baghdad; and

     WHEREAS, since September 11, 2001, more than 5,000 soldiers and airmen of the Mississippi National Guard have been called to active service in defense of our nation’s freedom, constituting the largest overseas deployment of the Mississippi National Guard since the Korean War; and

     WHEREAS, dedication of the many men and women of the Mississippi National Guard in providing valuable assistance to the United States Military has helped instill confidence in the general public that they are committed to this nation’s security; and

     WHEREAS, this Legislature seeks to make Mississippi citizens aware that they too can show support for our troops by sending messages of encouragement and letters to our troops by going online to the following websites:  www.defendamerica.mil/nmam.html; www.operationuplink.org; www.anyservicemember.org; www.operationdearabby.net; www.messages@estripes.com; www.usometrodc.org/care.htm; www.opsos.org; www.fisherhouse.org; www.adoptaplatoon.org; www.usocares.org/home.html and www.army.mil/operations/iraq/faq/html; and

     WHEREAS, these organizations, through their websites, provide the convenience and service of supplying troops with donated calling cards to contact family and friends back home, encouraging web-messages, letters, virtual thank you cards, emails and other electronic greetings; and

     WHEREAS, numerous Mississippi churches and other civic and social groups have expressed their support for our troops by sponsoring benefits and homecoming activities in addition to being Good Samaritans by raising money and other items for the troops and their families left behind; and

     WHEREAS, Governor Haley Barbour, Commander in Chief, along with Adjutant General Major General Harold Cross, whose leadership and dedication is known throughout the military of the United States, continues to guide and command units of the Mississippi National Guard in mobilizations and deployments, and through state emergencies including hurricanes, tropical storms, tornadoes and security at critical sites in the State of Mississippi; and

     WHEREAS, the Mississippi House of Representatives finds it most appropriate to recognize and commend the diligence of these outstanding Mississippians for the devotion to their state and nation to secure and insure peace and to preserve and protect  freedom for all:

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE SENATE CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend all Mississippi National Guard personnel serving the United States both domestically and on foreign soil and encourage the citizens of Mississippi to support and contact the servicemen currently deployed.

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to the commanding officers of each of the aforementioned organizations, the Adjutant General of the Mississippi National Guard and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.