Senate Resolution 27

A RESOLUTION COMMENDING AND CONGRATULATING DR. VAL HUSLEY, CURATOR OF THE MARITIME AND SEAFOOD INDUSTRY MUSEUM IN BILOXI, MISSISSIPPI, ON THE OCCASION OF THE MAJOR EXPANSION OF THE MUSEUM.

WHEREAS, the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum in Biloxi, Mississippi, will be unveiling its $2 Million expansion on Friday, February 21, 2003; and

WHEREAS, the continuing success and popularity of this museum is due, in no small part, to the efforts of Dr. Val Husley, Curator of the Museum; and

WHEREAS, a Biloxian whose ancestors immigrated from Switzerland in the 1850's, Val Husley received his Doctorate in History from Mississippi State University in 1970. After military duty in Vietnam, he taught History and served as an Academic Administrator at West Virginia Institute of Technology. He returned to Biloxi in 1984 as the City's Historical Administrator and helped develop the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum and other city historical assets; and

WHEREAS, as Curator of the Maritime Seafood Industry Museum, Val has labored for more than a decade to bring national awareness of the history and heritage of Biloxi and its life-giving historic seafood industry; and

WHEREAS, author of numerous articles on the American Civil War, American South and Maritime History, Val also designed, constructed and illustrated a wide range of museum exhibits nationally. As a member of a variety of historical organizations, his interests have also led him into living history reenacting and competitive shooting with historical firearms. His hobbies include: crafting Pennsylvania rifles and other historically accurate eighteenth and nineteenth century firearms; and

WHEREAS, Val's untiring efforts to promote the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum and Biloxi's seafood heritage also bring favorable attention to the overall history of Biloxi and the Mississippi Gulf Coast; and

WHEREAS, the State of Mississippi applauds the efforts of Dr. Val Husley, as well as the work being done by the entire board and membership of the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum in Biloxi:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby commend and congratulate Dr. Val Husley, Curator of the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum in Biloxi, Mississippi, on the occasion of the upcoming milestone expansion at the museum, and we do hereby recognize the efforts of Val and the museum staff and all who make this grand reopening possible, and extend to the museum the best wishes of the Senate for continued success.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to Dr. Husley and his family and museum staff at the grand reopening of the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum and be made available to the Sun Herald and members of the Capitol Press Corps.