MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2005 2nd Extraordinary Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) Mettetal, Brown, Browning, Burton, Butler, Carmichael, Chaney, Clarke, Davis, Dearing, Flowers, Frazier, Gollott, Gordon, Harden, Hewes, Jackson (15th), Jackson (11th), Jordan, King, Kirby, Lee (35th), Little, Michel, Moffatt, Morgan, Pickering, Posey, Thomas, Walley, Walls, White, Wilemon
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REMEMBERING THE GALLANT SERVICE AND COMMENDING THE LIFE OF CORPORAL AUDREY DARON LUNSFORD OF SARDIS, MISSISSIPPI, WHO WAS A COMBAT CASUALTY IN IRAQ ON MONDAY, MAY 23, 2005, AND EXPRESSING THE SYMPATHY OF THE LEGISLATURE.
WHEREAS, Corporal Audrey Daron Lunsford, 29, of Sardis, Mississippi, was killed on Monday, May 23, 2005, when a bomb exploded near his Humvee in Haswa, 30 miles south of Baghdad, Iraq, one of four members of the Mississippi-based 155th Brigade Combat Team; and
WHEREAS, carried by a military honor guard, he came home to his community and family, and was buried Thursday, June 2, 2005, with full military honors; and
WHEREAS, the 155th Infantry Brigade Combat Team includes 3,500 soldiers from Mississippi and others from Vermont and Arkansas. The 155th, which is attached to the II Marine Expeditionary Force, operates in the Karbala, Najaf and Babil provinces of Iraq. The soldiers trained at Camp Shelby before being deployed to Iraq in January. The deaths of these four brave guardsmen brings the total in the 155th Brigade to at least 10 in 2005. Since military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq began, 32 soldiers with ties to Mississippi have died. The Mississippi National Guard has sustained the fourth-highest number of casualties of any state; and
WHEREAS, Corporal Lunsford would have celebrated his 30th birthday on May 31, 2005. He had attended Northwest Mississippi Community College, had worked for the Batesville Fire Department, and had been a member of the Sardis Police Department before leaving to work as a plumber; and
WHEREAS, Reverend Steve Cannon was Corporal Lunsford's father-in-law and Pastor who stated that Daron was "witty, funny and always polite." He had previously served in the Army prior to joining the Mississippi National Guard in December 2004 to "contribute to his country and to his family." He loved to take his wife and daughter on evening rides in his Jeep, and his last communication to his wife promised to take them on a family trip; and
WHEREAS, during his funeral, Corporal Lunsford was awarded the Bronze Star, the Mississippi Medal of Valor and the Purple Heart posthumously by Major General Harold Cross, Adjutant General of Mississippi; and
WHEREAS, his family received an outpouring of sympathy and support from across the state, demonstrating the community's acknowledgment of the sacrifice made by the Mississippi National Guard; and
WHEREAS, he is survived by his wife, Vangi Cannon Lunsford of Sardis, Mississippi; his young daughter, Paris-Audrey McKalayne Lunsford; his mother, Martha Brown Lunsford of Sardis; one sister, Donna Green Miller of Guin, Alabama; two brothers, David Smith of Sardis and Danny Green of Russelville, Arkansas; his grandmother, Louise Brown of Sardis; and other relatives and numerous close friends; and
WHEREAS, to a country, a fallen soldier means a national loss, to a community, a fallen soldier means a true hero; to a parent, a fallen soldier means a son who will not be coming home. Mississippians understand the costs of conflict, because we have paid them in the past. It is with great pride and humility that we recognize the heroic action of this great American and Mississippian, who was the guardian of civilization as we know it today:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby remember the gallant service and commend the life of Corporal Audrey Daron Lunsford of Sardis, Mississippi, who was a combat casualty in Iraq on Monday, May 23, 2005, and express to his surviving family the thoughts and prayers of the Legislature and our sorrow on his passing.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to the surviving family of Corporal Lunsford and be made available to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.