By Wise                                               H.C.R. No. 11
         77R354 BE-D                           
                             HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 1-1           WHEREAS, The Texas Legislative Medal of Honor was established
 1-2     by the 58th Texas Legislature to honor gallant and intrepid service
 1-3     by a member of the State Military Forces of Texas, and through his
 1-4     courageous actions during battle in the Vietnam War, Master
 1-5     Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez distinguished himself as a worthy
 1-6     recipient of this prestigious honor; and
 1-7           WHEREAS, A native Texan, Sergeant Benavidez was born on
 1-8     August 5, 1935, in DeWitt County, the son of a sharecropper;
 1-9     orphaned at an early age and raised  by relatives, he dropped out
1-10     of school at the age of 14 to work in the fields before enlisting
1-11     in the U.S. Army in June 1955; and
1-12           WHEREAS, While on his first tour of duty in Vietnam, this
1-13     admirable soldier was injured by a land mine and though doctors
1-14     feared he might never walk again, Sergeant Benavidez recovered
1-15     fully and returned to Vietnam with the Green Berets, an elite
1-16     Special Forces unit; and
1-17           WHEREAS,  On the morning of May 2, 1968, while assigned to
1-18     the Loc Ninh base in South Vietnam, Sergeant Benavidez learned that
1-19     12  members of a Special Forces reconnaissance team were surrounded
1-20     by enemy troops inside Cambodia and under heavy fire; this heroic
1-21     Texan courageously volunteered for the evacuation mission to aid in
1-22     the rescue of his fellow soldiers; and
1-23           WHEREAS, Though intense small-arms and anti-aircraft fire
1-24     made the rescue operation tremendously dangerous, Sergeant
 2-1     Benavidez jumped from the helicopter into enemy gunsights; even
 2-2     before he reached the stranded team's position he had been wounded
 2-3     in his right leg, face, and head, yet despite his painful injuries,
 2-4     Sergeant Benavidez carried the wounded men to the waiting
 2-5     helicopter and provided protective fire to cover the remaining
 2-6     crew; and
 2-7           WHEREAS, The mission grew more complicated as Sergeant
 2-8     Benavidez retrieved classified documents from dead and wounded team
 2-9     members, and he worked quickly to secure them despite sustaining
2-10     more severe wounds from gunshots to his abdomen and grenade
2-11     fragments in his back; while attempting takeoff, the pilot was
2-12     mortally wounded and the helicopter crashed; despite the chaos
2-13     around him,  Sergeant Benavidez freed those aboard from the
2-14     wreckage and established a defensive perimeter under increasing
2-15     enemy gunfire and grenade attacks; and
2-16           WHEREAS, Acting as medic,  directing by radio the fire from
2-17     gunships overhead, and even engaging in hand-to-hand combat with
2-18     the enemy, Sergeant Benavidez bravely weathered a harrowing six
2-19     hours in the field and saved the lives of eight men through his
2-20     leadership and action; he had been clubbed, shot, and bayoneted,
2-21     yet Sergeant Benavidez prevailed, and when his actions were praised
2-22     as awesome and extraordinary, he defined them only as duty; and
2-23           WHEREAS, For his exceptional valor, Sergeant Benavidez was
2-24     awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and in 1981 he was
2-25     presented with the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Ronald
2-26     Reagan; even after his retirement from the military he continued to
2-27     serve his country by devoting his time and energy to veterans
 3-1     groups and by visiting schools to speak to youths on critical
 3-2     issues such as education, drug use, and gangs; and
 3-3           WHEREAS, Though this brave soldier died on November 29, 1998,
 3-4     the extremely valorous actions displayed by Master Sergeant Roy P.
 3-5     Benavidez in the face of overwhelming odds continue to serve as an
 3-6     inspiration; the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor is the highest
 3-7     commendation Texans can bestow on members of our state military
 3-8     forces, and it is truly fitting that it be awarded to Sergeant
 3-9     Benavidez; now, therefore, be it
3-10           RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas
3-11     hereby posthumously confer the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor on
3-12     Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez in recognition of his heroic
3-13     service and express to his family our deepest appreciation on
3-14     behalf of all his fellow Texans; and, be it further
3-15           RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
3-16     prepared for the family of Sergeant Benavidez as an expression of
3-17     highest regard by the Texas Legislature.