Second Regular Session
Seventy-third General Assembly
STATE OF COLORADO
REVISED
LLS NO. R22-0875.01 Ashley Athey x2291
HJR22-1019
House Committees Senate Committees
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 22-1019
C
ONCERNING THE DESIGNATION OF A PORTION OF COLORADO STATE101
H
IGHWAY 85 AS THE "PVT. JOE P. MARTINEZ MEMORIAL102
H
IGHWAY".103
WHEREAS, Joseph "Joe" P. Martinez was born in Taos, New1
Mexico, in 1920 to Jose Manuel Martinez and Maria Eduvigen Romo;2
and3
WHEREAS, In 1927, when Joe was 7 years old, his parents moved4
the family to Ault, Colorado; and5
WHEREAS, Joe Martinez was drafted into the United States Army6
in 1942 at the age of 22, and he shipped off to Camp Roberts in7
California for basic training; and8
SENATE
Final Reading
May 2, 2022
HOUSE
Final Reading
May 2, 2022
HOUSE SPONSORSHIP
Van Beber and Holtorf, Amabile, Bacon, Baisley, Benavidez, Bernett, Bird, Bockenfeld,
Boesenecker, Bradfield, Caraveo, Carver, Catlin, Cutter, Daugherty, Duran, Esgar, Exum,
Froelich, Garnett, Geitner, Gonzales-Gutierrez, Gray, Hanks, Herod, Hooton, Jodeh,
Kennedy, Kipp, Larson, Lindsay, Lontine, Luck, Lynch, McCluskie, McCormick, McKean,
McLachlan, Michaelson Jenet, Mullica, Neville, Ortiz, Pico, Ransom, Rich, Ricks, Roberts,
Sandridge, Sirota, Snyder, Soper, Sullivan, Tipper, Titone, Valdez A., Valdez D., Van
Winkle, Weissman, Will, Williams, Woodrow, Woog, Young
SENATE SPONSORSHIP
Sonnenberg and Cooke, Bridges, Buckner, Coleman, Coram, Danielson, Donovan,
Fenberg, Fields, Gardner, Ginal, Gonzales, Hansen, Hinrichsen, Hisey, Holbert, Jaquez
Lewis, Kirkmeyer, Kolker, Lee, Liston, Lundeen, Moreno, Pettersen, Priola, Rankin,
Rodriguez, Scott, Simpson, Smallwood, Story, Winter, Woodward, Zenzinger
Shading denotes HOUSE amendment. Double underlining denotes SENATE amendment.
Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing statute.
Dashes through the words indicate deletions from existing statute. WHEREAS, Upon completing his training, Pvt. Martinez was1
assigned to Company K, 32nd Infantry, 7th Infantry Division. The 7th2
Infantry Division was part of the force that landed at Attu in the Aleutian3
Islands of Alaska; and4
WHEREAS, The Japanese invaded the Aleutian Islands in June5
1942, the first time American soil had been invaded by a foreign power6
since the War of 1812, and held a key defensive position in the7
snow-covered mountains between East Arm Holtz Bay and Chichagof8
Harbor; and9
WHEREAS, On May 26, 1943, after repeated efforts to drive the10
enemy back, troop dispositions were readjusted, and a trial coordinated11
attack by a reinforced battalion was launched; and12
WHEREAS, In the face of severe hostile machine gun, rifle, and13
mortar fire, Pvt. Martinez, an automatic rifleman, rose to his feet and14
resumed his advance, occasionally stopping to urge his comrades on; and15
WHEREAS, After a most difficult climb, Pvt. Martinez eliminated16
resistance from part of the enemy position by Browning Automatic Rifle17
Fire (BAR) fire and hand grenades, but this success only partially18
completed the action; and19
WHEREAS, The main Holtz-Chichagof Pass rose about 150 feet20
higher, flanked by steep rocky ridges, and passage was barred by enemy21
fire from either flank and from tiers of snow trenches in front; and22
WHEREAS, Despite these obstacles, and knowing of their23
existence, Pvt. Martinez again led the troops on and up, personally24
silencing several trenches with BAR fire and ultimately reaching the pass25
itself; and26
WHEREAS, Just below the rim of the pass, Pvt. Martinez27
encountered a final enemy-occupied trench and, as he engaged in firing28
into it, he was mortally wounded; and29
WHEREAS, The pass, however, was taken, and its capture was a30
key victory in defeating and driving the Japanese from United States soil;31
and32
WHEREAS, Pvt. Joe Martinez was posthumously awarded the33
1019
-2- Medal of Honor, the first Hispanic American to have received that award;1
now, therefore,2
Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the Seventy-third3
General Assembly of the State of Colorado, the Senate concurring herein:4
(1) That the portion of Colorado State Highway 85 from the5
intersection of Colorado State Highway 85 and 1st Street in Ault to the6
intersection of Colorado State Highway 85 and E Main Avenue in Pierce7
be designated as the "Pvt. Joe P. Martinez Memorial Highway".8
(2) That the Colorado Department of Transportation may accept9
and expend gifts, grants, and donations for the purposes of the initial10
placement of signs to mark Colorado State Highway 85 from the11
intersection of Colorado State Highway 85 and 1st Street in Ault to the12
intersection of Colorado State Highway 85 and E Main Avenue in Pierce13
as the "Pvt. Joe P. Martinez Memorial Highway".14
(3) That the Colorado Department of Transportation may explore15
a cooperative agreement with the Board of County Commissioners for16
Weld County for the maintenance of the signs marking the "Pvt. Joe P.17
Martinez Memorial Highway".18
Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this Joint Resolution be sent19
to members of Pvt. Joe Martinez's family: Christopher Martinez, Julia20
Patterson, Frances Salmeron, Susan Gonzales, Mary Taylor, and Gary and21
Vicki Vigil.22
1019
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