H.C.R. No. 3
 
 
 
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 
         WHEREAS, The Texas Legislative Medal of Honor was established
  to recognize gallant and intrepid service by a member of the state
  or federal military forces, and Audie Murphy, the most highly
  decorated American soldier of World War II, would be a fitting
  recipient of this prestigious award; and
         WHEREAS, Born in Kingston, Hunt County, on June 20, 1925,
  Audie Leon Murphy was one of 12 children; he received several years
  of formal education before leaving school to help support his
  family; in addition to working a variety of jobs, he hunted small
  game for food and became a crack shot; and
         WHEREAS, Audie Murphy tried to enlist in the armed forces
  after the attack on Pearl Harbor but was rejected because he was
  underage; later, when he claimed to be a year older than he actually
  was, the marines and paratroopers turned him down on the grounds
  that he was too short and thin; finally, in June 1942, still
  misrepresenting his date of birth, he managed to join the army
  infantry; determined to become a combat soldier, he successfully
  resisted the effort of his company commander to have him
  transferred to a cook and bakers school; and
         WHEREAS, In early 1943, Private Murphy shipped overseas to
  Morocco as a replacement in Company B, 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry
  Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division; while stationed in North Africa,
  he participated in extensive training maneuvers; he saw his first
  combat in July 1943, when the 3rd Division invaded Sicily, and he
  subsequently took part in the landing at Salerno, the Volturno
  River Campaign, the landing at Anzio, and the march on Rome; during
  those months in Italy, Audie Murphy demonstrated both exceptional
  skill as a marksman and a sound grasp of small-unit tactics; his
  proficiency as a soldier earned him repeated promotions and several
  decorations for valor; and
         WHEREAS, On the morning of August 15, 1944, Staff Sergeant
  Murphy landed with the 3rd Division in southern France; that same
  day, he earned the Distinguished Service Cross, this nation's
  second-highest award for heroism, for his actions in
  single-handedly destroying a German machine gun crew and several
  other enemy positions, feats that made possible the capture of a
  fiercely contested hill; the following October 2 and October 5, he
  earned Silver Stars for further heroic action; and
         WHEREAS, That fall, Audie Murphy received a battlefield
  commission as a second lieutenant; soon afterward, he sustained a
  wound that removed him from action for the next 10 weeks; though not
  completely healed, he returned to his unit early the next year, and
  on January 25, 1945, he became company commander; and
         WHEREAS, At that time, Lieutenant Murphy's men were engaged
  in the effort to clear German soldiers from an area in eastern
  France known as the Colmar Pocket; on January 26, in bitter cold and
  with several feet of snow covering the ground, Company B came under
  attack by six German tanks and 250 German infantrymen; Lieutenant
  Murphy ordered his troops, whose effective strength had been
  reduced by about 40 percent, to fall back; he remained forward and
  continued to direct Allied artillery fire by telephone; when the
  German tanks drew abreast of his position, he mounted a burning tank
  destroyer and, though exposed to fire on three sides, employed its
  machine gun against the enemy, causing the German infantry to waver
  and the tanks to fall back; he continued to hold his ground in the
  firefight for an hour, wiping out a German squad that had reached
  within 10 yards of his position; when his ammunition was exhausted,
  he made his way back to his company, refused medical treatment for a
  leg wound, and led his men in a successful counterattack, enabling
  his unit to save the woods that had been the Germans' objective;
  Lieutenant Murphy was credited with personally killing or wounding
  about 50 enemy combatants in that encounter, and his exceptional
  bravery earned him the Medal of Honor; and
         WHEREAS, The following month, Audie Murphy was withdrawn from
  the front lines, promoted to first lieutenant, and made a liaison
  officer; he returned to the States in mid-June 1945, having earned
  28 medals, including several from France and Belgium; he was not yet
  21; and
         WHEREAS, Lieutenant Murphy received his discharge from the
  army in September 1945; he joined the Texas National Guard in 1950,
  after the outbreak of the Korean War, and eventually attained the
  rank of major; assigned to inactive status in 1957, he transferred
  to the United States Army Reserve in 1966 and continued as a member
  of the reserve until his death in 1971; and
         WHEREAS, Though his extraordinary record in the war brought
  him widespread fame, Audie Murphy remained profoundly humble,
  highlighting his comrades' courage, rather than his own, in his
  autobiography and requesting a plain government headstone for his
  grave, instead of one adorned with the gold gilt that typically
  signifies a Medal of Honor recipient; and
         WHEREAS, Audie Murphy repeatedly risked his life to save the
  lives of his fellow soldiers and to help advance their mission, and
  for his remarkable heroism he is most assuredly deserving of this
  state's supreme military award; now, therefore, be it
         RESOLVED, That the 83rd Legislature of the State of Texas,
  2nd Called Session, hereby direct the governor of the State of Texas
  to award the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor posthumously to Audie
  Murphy in recognition of his valiant actions in World War II.
 
 
Turner of Collin Flynn
 
Anderson Lavender
 
Miller of Fort Bend Allen
 
Ashby Bell
 
Bonnen of Galveston Branch
 
Burkett Callegari
 
Capriglione Carter
 
Cook Cortez
 
Creighton Darby
 
S. Davis of Harris Frank
 
Frullo Goldman
 
Gonzales N. Gonzalez of El Paso
 
Guillen Howard
 
Hughes Isaac
 
Kacal Klick
 
Krause Kuempel
 
Larson Laubenberg
 
Leach Miles
 
Moody Munoz, Jr.
 
Otto Price
 
Raney Ratliff
 
Raymond Rodriguez of Travis
 
Sanford Sheffield of Coryell
 
Sheffield of Bell Simmons
 
Smith Springer
 
Stephenson Stickland
 
Taylor Thompson of Brazoria
 
Turner of Tarrant Turner of Harris
 
Villalba Vo
 
White Zedler
 
 
  ______________________________ ______________________________
     President of the Senate Speaker of the House     
 
 
         I certify that H.C.R. No. 3 was adopted by the House on July
  18, 2013, by the following vote:  Yeas 135, Nays 0, 1 present, not
  voting.
 
  ______________________________
  Chief Clerk of the House   
 
 
         I certify that H.C.R. No. 3 was adopted by the Senate on July
  25, 2013, by the following vote:  Yeas 28, Nays 0.
 
  ______________________________
  Secretary of the Senate   
  APPROVED: __________________
                  Date       
   
           __________________
                Governor