| 1 | 1 | | 88R26742 BPG-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Flores S.C.R. No. 49 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | CONCURRENT RESOLUTION |
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| 6 | 6 | | WHEREAS, The courageous service of U.S. Army Captain Henry T. |
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| 7 | 7 | | Waskow of Belton during World War II has inspired his fellow |
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| 8 | 8 | | Americans for nearly 80 years; and |
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| 9 | 9 | | WHEREAS, In January 1944, The Washington Daily News ran a |
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| 10 | 10 | | profoundly moving dispatch by legendary World War II correspondent |
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| 11 | 11 | | Ernie Pyle on its front page; the story related the tragic death of |
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| 12 | 12 | | Captain Waskow, who led B Company of the 1st Battalion, 143rd |
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| 13 | 13 | | Infantry Regiment, and had earned the tremendous respect, loyalty, |
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| 14 | 14 | | and affection of the men under his command before being killed in |
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| 15 | 15 | | action; and |
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| 16 | 16 | | WHEREAS, Captain Waskow first experienced combat during the |
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| 17 | 17 | | landings in Salerno, Italy, in September 1943; subsequently, his |
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| 18 | 18 | | company fought in the mountains of southern Italy, enduring |
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| 19 | 19 | | miserable, freezing conditions; he impressed his men with his |
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| 20 | 20 | | efficiency and his calm demeanor, even under artillery and machine |
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| 21 | 21 | | gun fire; on December 14, during the ferocious battle for San |
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| 22 | 22 | | Pietro, he was leading his men from a tree line to attack a German |
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| 23 | 23 | | position when he heard an incoming artillery shell; he shoved his |
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| 24 | 24 | | radio operator, crying "Hit the ground!," but he was cut down |
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| 25 | 25 | | himself by a piece of shrapnel; and |
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| 26 | 26 | | WHEREAS, When it was at last possible for the radio operator |
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| 27 | 27 | | to bring Captain Waskow's body back down the mountain three days |
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| 28 | 28 | | later, Mr. Pyle witnessed the final farewells of the captain's |
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| 29 | 29 | | grief-stricken men and wrote, "In this war I have known a lot of |
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| 30 | 30 | | officers who were loved and respected by the soldiers under them. |
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| 31 | 31 | | But never have I crossed the trail of any man as beloved as Captain |
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| 32 | 32 | | Henry T. Waskow of Belton, Texas"; the heartbreaking account, |
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| 33 | 33 | | syndicated by the Scripps-Howard news service and read over the |
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| 34 | 34 | | radio, resonated powerfully with the American public as an |
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| 35 | 35 | | illustration of humble nobility and the strong bonds of camaraderie |
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| 36 | 36 | | forged in wartime; and |
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| 37 | 37 | | WHEREAS, Henry T. Waskow was born in DeWitt County on |
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| 38 | 38 | | September 24, 1918, to Frank and Mary Waskow, first-generation |
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| 39 | 39 | | Americans of German descent; he grew up on a farm in Bell County |
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| 40 | 40 | | with seven siblings; quiet, serious, dutiful, and industrious, he |
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| 41 | 41 | | graduated as president of his class at Belton High School and |
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| 42 | 42 | | attended Temple Junior College before working his way through |
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| 43 | 43 | | Trinity University as a campus janitor; he enlisted in the Texas |
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| 44 | 44 | | National Guard while preparing for a career in teaching, and after |
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| 45 | 45 | | he was called to active duty, he rose quickly through the ranks; in |
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| 46 | 46 | | January 1943, he was promoted to captain, and his division was |
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| 47 | 47 | | deployed to Algeria that April; and |
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| 48 | 48 | | WHEREAS, Captain Waskow's grave near Nettuno, Italy, has been |
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| 49 | 49 | | visited by countless people, and he is not forgotten at home; VFW |
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| 50 | 50 | | Post No. 4008 in Belton and the Belton New Tech High School @Waskow |
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| 51 | 51 | | are named in his honor; and |
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| 52 | 52 | | WHEREAS, Exemplifying the highest ideals of the U.S. armed |
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| 53 | 53 | | forces, Captain Henry T. Waskow has long been revered as a moving |
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| 54 | 54 | | example of the heroism demonstrated by American service members as |
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| 55 | 55 | | well as the sacrifices made in defense of our nation, and it is |
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| 56 | 56 | | indeed fitting to further honor his memory by officially |
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| 57 | 57 | | commemorating the anniversary of his birth; now, therefore, be it |
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| 58 | 58 | | RESOLVED, That the 88th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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| 59 | 59 | | hereby designate September 24 as Captain Henry T. Waskow Day; and, |
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| 60 | 60 | | be it further |
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| 61 | 61 | | RESOLVED, That, in accordance with the provisions of Section |
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| 62 | 62 | | 391.004(d), Government Code, this designation remain in effect |
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| 63 | 63 | | until the 10th anniversary of the date this resolution is finally |
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| 64 | 64 | | passed by the legislature. |
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