HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1-1 WHEREAS, United States Senator John Glenn is visiting the 1-2 State Capitol on April 22, 1999, and this outstanding occasion 1-3 provides a fitting opportunity to reflect on the remarkable 1-4 achievements of this American hero; and 1-5 WHEREAS, A native of Ohio, Senator Glenn holds a bachelor of 1-6 science degree in engineering as well as nine honorary doctoral 1-7 degrees; in 1942 he joined the Naval Aviation Cadet Program and was 1-8 commissioned in the Marine Corps the following year; and 1-9 WHEREAS, Senator Glenn then became a highly skilled fighter 1-10 pilot, flying 59 combat missions during World War II and 90 combat 1-11 missions during the Korean War; he next excelled as a Navy test 1-12 pilot, setting a transcontinental speed record from Los Angeles to 1-13 New York and accumulating nearly 9,000 hours of flying time, 1-14 including 3,000 in jet aircraft; and 1-15 WHEREAS, One of the original seven American astronauts, 1-16 Senator Glenn joined the NASA Mercury project in 1959; on February 1-17 20, 1962, he accomplished an extraordinary feat by piloting the 1-18 first American-manned orbital mission, circling the earth three 1-19 times in the Mercury-Atlas 6 "Friendship 7" spacecraft; and 1-20 WHEREAS, He resigned from the Manned Spacecraft Center in 1-21 1964 and, following a promotion to colonel, retired from the Marine 1-22 Corps in 1965; Senator Glenn then pursued business interests until 1-23 1974 when he was elected by the citizens of Ohio to the office of 1-24 United States senator, in which capacity he served with the utmost 2-1 distinction for 24 years; and 2-2 WHEREAS, After retiring from the senate in October 1998, he 2-3 once again achieved fame as an astronaut when he returned to space 2-4 36 years after his initial Mercury flight as a part of the STS-95 2-5 crew of the space shuttle Discovery; and 2-6 WHEREAS, Senator Glenn has received numerous prestigious 2-7 honors, including the Distinguished Flying Cross on six occasions, 2-8 the Air Medal with 18 Clusters for his service during World War II 2-9 and Korea, the National Defense Service Medal, United Nations 2-10 Service Medal, the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, the 2-11 Congressional Space Medal of Honor, and a host of others too 2-12 numerous to mention; and 2-13 WHEREAS, In all his endeavors, Senator Glenn has brought 2-14 great honor to this nation, and it is our distinct privilege to 2-15 honor him for his many significant accomplishments; now, therefore, 2-16 be it 2-17 RESOLVED, That the 76th Legislature of the State of Texas 2-18 hereby welcome Senator John Glenn to the State Capitol and extend 2-19 to him sincere best wishes for continued success and happiness; 2-20 and, be it further 2-21 RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be 2-22 prepared for Senator Glenn as an expression of highest regard by 2-23 the Texas House of Representatives and Senate. Eiland Davis of Harris _______________________________ _______________________________ President of the Senate Speaker of the House I certify that H.C.R. No. 238 was adopted by the House on April 22, 1999, by a non-record vote. _______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House I certify that H.C.R. No. 238 was adopted by the Senate on April 23, 1999, by a viva-voce vote. _______________________________ Secretary of the Senate APPROVED: _____________________ Date _____________________ Governor