H.R. No. 1927
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, April 21, 2011, marked the 22nd anniversary of the
death of United States Army Colonel James Nicholas Rowe, and many
residents of McAllen paused on that day to somberly reflect on his
heroism and remarkable achievements; and
WHEREAS, The son of Lee and Florence Rowe, "Nikki" Rowe was
born in McAllen on February 8, 1938; he graduated from McAllen High
School and the United States Military Academy at West Point; in
1963, three months after he was posted to South Vietnam as a Special
Forces advisor, he was taken prisoner in a firefight; he was held
for five years under horrific conditions but remained strong and
defiant, earning the nickname "Mr. Trouble" from his captors; on
December 31, 1968, he became one of only 34 American prisoners of
war to escape from the Viet Cong; and
WHEREAS, Colonel Rowe applied for voluntary recall to active
duty when he returned home and taught a POW-MIA planning and
training program at Fort Bragg in North Carolina; in 1971, he
published a bestselling, critically acclaimed account of his
ordeal, Five Years to Freedom; he left the military in 1974, and he
authored several other books before rejoining the army as a
lieutenant colonel in 1981 to head its Green Beret training program
at Fort Bragg; guided by his POW experiences, he developed and ran
the Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape program, known as
SERE, which is used today by other branches of the military as well;
and
WHEREAS, From 1985 until 1987, Colonel Rowe commanded Fort
Bragg's First Special Warfare Training Battalion; he was then
appointed chief of the Army Division at the Joint United States
Military Advisory Group headquarters in Quezon City, Philippines;
on April 21, 1989, he was killed in an ambush on his way to work by
members of the New Peoples' Army, a Communist rebel group; and
WHEREAS, This courageous Texan was the recipient of numerous
decorations, among them the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit, two
Bronze Stars, and two Purple Hearts; he received myriad nonmilitary
awards as well, including the American Patriot Award and George
Washington Honor Medal from the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge
and the Outstanding Young Man of America award; in McAllen, Second
Street and VFW Post No. 2369 were renamed in his honor, and James
Nikki Rowe High School also stands as a testament to the community's
enduring pride in his accomplishments; and
WHEREAS, Nikki Rowe's patriotism, valor, and iron
determination remain a source of inspiration to all Americans, and
through his leadership in creating the SERE program, he left an
extraordinary legacy that continues to benefit members of our
nation's military around the world; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas
Legislature hereby honor the life of Colonel James "Nikki" Rowe and
commemorate the 22nd anniversary of his death.
Gonzales of Hidalgo
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 1927 was unanimously adopted by a
rising vote of the House on May 19, 2011.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House