SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 474
WHEREAS, The Smokey Bear Wildfire Prevention campaign is
celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2019, providing a fitting
occasion to pay tribute to its success in educating generations
of Americans in the prevention of wildfires; and
WHEREAS, During World War II, many firefighters were away at
war, and the prevention of forest fires and wildfires became a
matter of urgent importance across the nation; the United States
Department of Agriculture Forest Service organized the Cooperative
Forest Fire Prevention program in 1944, with the help of the War
Advertising Council and the National Association of State
Foresters; and
WHEREAS, The program's first poster featured characters
from the Disney animated film Bambi, but later that year, artist
Albert Staehle created a poster featuring a bear pouring a bucket
of water on a campfire, and Smokey Bear was born; in 1950, an
orphaned bear cub survived a forest fire in New Mexico and was
placed in the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., where until his
death in 1976 he served as a living symbol of Smokey Bear; and
WHEREAS, Over the years, the program's slogan evolved from
"Smokey Says - Care Will Prevent 9 Out of 10 Forest Fires" to the
more memorable "Remember . . . Only YOU Can Prevent Forest Fires,"
and in 2001, it was updated again to "Only You Can Prevent
Wildfires" to emphasize that not all natural fires occur in
forests; many Americans of a certain age remember the popular tune
"Smokey the Bear," in which the songwriters inserted "the" into
Smokey's official name to maintain the rhythm of the song; and
WHEREAS, The longest-running public service campaign in
the nation's history, the Smokey Bear program has been credited
with reducing the number of acres lost across the nation each
year to fire from 9.1 million to 8.5 million; the campaign
remains vital through the ongoing partnership of the federal
Forest Service, the Texas A&M Forest Service, the National
Association of State Foresters, and the Ad Council; and
WHEREAS, Now three-quarters of a century old, Smokey Bear
is one of the world's most recognized characters, and today he
continues to instruct new generations of Texans on the prevention
of human-caused wildfires and the preservation of the scenic
beauty of the Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 86th
Legislature, hereby commemorate the 75th anniversary of the
Smokey Bear Wildfire Prevention campaign and extend to all
those associated with the program sincere best wishes for
continued success.
Nichols
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President of the Senate
I hereby certify that the
above Resolution was adopted by
the Senate on March 25, 2019.
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Secretary of the Senate
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Member, Texas Senate