House Concurrent Resolution 121

(As Adopted by House)

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE CIVIL AIR PATROL UPON THE AUSPICIOUS OCCASION OF ITS 75TH ANNIVERSARY AND RECOGNIZING THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 27 THROUGH DECEMBER 3, 2016, AS CIVIL AIR PATROL WEEK THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI.

WHEREAS, Civil Air Patrol was founded on December 1, 1941, by a fledgling group of volunteers, led by civilian pilots who flew their own planes at their own expense to support America's efforts in World War II, primarily by flying reconnaissance missions near the country's coasts to protect cargo ships, especially vital oil tankers being sunk at an alarming rate that, according to United States Army Chief of Staff General George Marshal, "now threaten our entire war effort"; and

WHEREAS, so many subs were spotted by these "subchasers" that a decision was soon made by the military to arm their light aircraft with small bombs and their larger aircraft with 325-pound depth chargers, putting these brave civilians at great risk because they often flew more than 100 miles from shore in all kinds of weather; and

WHEREAS, over the next year and a half, these subchasers played an integral role in the defense of America's home front during World War II, spotting 143 German submarines, attacking 57 while directing shore-based fighting units to their targets and forcing the enemy to move further offshore; and

WHEREAS, the wartime effort, which included border patrol operations, search and rescue, disaster relief, forest fire patrol, emergency transportation of personnel and critical cargo and towing practice targets for the United States military, also resulted in the loss of 26 coastal patrol members and 90 aircraft in the war's beginning stages and 66 deaths and 150 lost aircraft by war's end; and

WHEREAS, as the Coastal Patrol was heralded as a great success, prompting President Harry S. Truman to sign Public Law 476 in 1946, which chartered the Civil Air Patrol as a benevolent, nonprofit organization, and nearly two years later, in 1948, the Congress of the United States passed Public Law 557, permanently establishing the Civil Air Patrol as the auxiliary of the United States Air Force with the three primary missions of emergency services, cadet programs and aerospace education; and

WHEREAS, since that auspicious beginning, a modern-day Civil Air Patrol has emerged to become one of the nation's premier humanitarian service organizations, saving lives, finding those who are lost, helping fellow citizens in times of disaster, working to keep America safe, preparing future leaders, offering aerospace education to inspire our nation's youth and honoring our military; and

WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol, forged by a late-century revolution in search and rescue technology, became known worldwide for its unique emergency services operations, performing vital search and rescue, disaster relief and other important emergency missions for what now numbers more than 1,400 communities across America, as well as the nation's capitol and Puerto Rico; and

WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol, supported by the world's largest fleet of single-engine aircraft equipped with high-tech tools like full-motion video, infrared cameras and glass cockpit instrumentation, has established itself among the nation's search and rescue elite, now participating in up to 90 percent of the Air Force's inland search and rescue missions; and

WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol has more than 8,000 air crew members and 30,000 emergency responders trained to Federal Emergency Management Agency standards, has contributed $164 million in man-hours in 2015 by serving the disaster relief and emergency service needs of communities in all 50 states has saved thousands of lives in its 75-year history, and has a fleet of more than 950 emergency services vehicles for training and mission support; and

WHEREAS, as a top resource for disaster relief, Civil Air Patrol is often the first on the scene, providing aerial photography and damage assessment to help emergency officials pinpoint critical infrastructure needs in real time as well as ground team support, often providing door-to-door services, which includes water, food and supply delivery, even laundry services for victims; and

WHEREAS, recent high-visibility Civil Air Patrol missions have included responses to tornadoes that ravaged communities across America, forest fires in numerous states, Hawaiian and Pacific Coast tsunamis, Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, wildfires in the Southwest, Midwest flooding, the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and counterdrug missions across the nation that have helped remove over $1 billion in illegal drugs from our communities; and

WHEREAS, the aircraft of Civil Air Patrol were the only nonmilitary planes allowed in the skies over the United States in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attacks in 2001, and the Civil Air Patrol has since performed admirably in other homeland security missions, including responding to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a 118-day continuous effort, by taking tens of thousands of aerial photographs necessary for assessing environmental damage, deploying containment assets and successfully working side-by-side with numerous state and federal agencies, all the while saving the federal government an estimated $22 million to $38 million for these services; and

WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol sets the world standard for volunteer aviation emergency services, prompting other nations like Denmark and the United Kingdom to use the Civil Air Patrol model to establish or improve their own similar volunteer programs; and

WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol's youth program currently includes more than 24,000 cadets who benefit from a curriculum that trains them to be leaders, offers them opportunities for flight, including pilot training, and also teaches emergency services techniques, including lifesaving; and

WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol reaches tens of thousands of the country's school-age children and their teachers, regardless of their membership in the Civil Air Patrol, with a comprehensive selection of academic programs that stress the STEM subjects of science, technology, engineering and math, in additions to programs that encourage a drug-free lifestyle; and

WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol's membership includes more than 475 chaplains who fulfill critical needs for deployed United States military chaplains and provide counseling services for soldiers and their families, as well as disaster victims; and

WHEREAS, in partnership with Wreaths Across America, the Civil Air Patrol annually honors military veterans by helping sponsor and placing tens of thousands of wreaths at the graves of fallen soldiers at United States cemeteries nationwide and overseas; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of this Legislature to recognize and honor the outstanding contributions of organizations like the Civil Air Patrol, which selflessly serves the needs of people across the world with honor and dignity, while expecting nothing in return:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE SENATE CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby honor the men and women who have served and those who continue to serve their fellow citizens through the Civil Air Patrol, during their 75th anniversary, and recognize the week of November 27 through December 3, 2016, as Civil Air Patrol Week throughout the State of Mississippi.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to Colonel Mallory Woodcock, Commander of the Civil Air Patrol, Mississippi Wing and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.