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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The House of Representatives of the State of Texas |
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joins the citizens of Texas in remembering the life and legacy of |
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Medal of Honor recipient Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez and the |
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loaning of his Medal of Honor to the new National Medal of Honor |
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Museum in Arlington; and |
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WHEREAS, A native Texan, Master Sergeant Benavidez was born |
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on August 5, 1935, in Lindenau, the son of a sharecropper; orphaned |
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at an early age and raised by relatives, he dropped out of school at |
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the age of 14 to work in the fields before enlisting in the U.S. Army |
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in June 1955; and |
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WHEREAS, While on his first tour of duty in Vietnam, this |
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admirable soldier was injured by a land mine, and though doctors |
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feared he might never walk again, Master Sergeant Benavidez |
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recovered fully and returned to Vietnam with the Green Berets, an |
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elite Special Forces unit; and |
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WHEREAS, On the morning of May 2, 1968, while assigned to the |
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Loc Ninh base in South Vietnam, then-Sergeant Benavidez learned |
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that 12 members of a Special Forces reconnaissance team were |
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surrounded by enemy troops inside Cambodia and under heavy fire; |
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this heroic Texan courageously volunteered for the evacuation |
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mission to aid in the rescue of his fellow soldiers; and |
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WHEREAS, Though intense small-arms and antiaircraft fire |
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made the rescue operation tremendously dangerous, Sergeant |
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Benavidez jumped from the helicopter into enemy gunsights; even |
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before he reached the stranded team's position, he had been wounded |
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in his right leg, face, and head, yet despite his painful injuries, |
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Sergeant Benavidez carried the wounded men to the waiting |
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helicopter and provided protective fire to cover the remaining |
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crew; and |
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WHEREAS, The mission grew more complicated as Sergeant |
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Benavidez retrieved classified documents from dead and wounded team |
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members, and he worked quickly to secure them despite sustaining |
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more severe wounds from gunshots to his abdomen and grenade |
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fragments in his back; while attempting takeoff, the pilot was |
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mortally wounded, and the helicopter crashed; despite the chaos |
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around him, Sergeant Benavidez freed those aboard from the wreckage |
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and established a defensive perimeter under increasing enemy |
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gunfire and grenade attacks; and |
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WHEREAS, Acting as a medic, directing by radio the fire from |
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gunships overhead, and even engaging in hand-to-hand combat with |
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the enemy, Sergeant Benavidez bravely weathered a harrowing six |
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hours in hell and saved the lives of eight men through his |
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leadership and action; he had been clubbed, shot, and bayoneted, |
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yet Sergeant Benavidez prevailed, and when his actions were praised |
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as awesome and extraordinary, he defined them only as duty; and |
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WHEREAS, For his exceptional valor, Sergeant Benavidez was |
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awarded the Distinguished Service Cross; then on February 24, 1981, |
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44 years ago today, Master Sergeant (Ret.) Roy P. Benavidez was |
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presented with the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Ronald |
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Reagan; and |
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WHEREAS, Even after his retirement from the military, he |
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continued to serve his country by devoting his time and energy to |
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veterans groups and by visiting schools to speak to youths on |
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critical issues such as courage, commitment, education, faith, |
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patriotism, and staying away from drug use and gangs; and |
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WHEREAS, Though this brave soldier died on November 29, 1998, |
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his widow Hilaria "Lala" Coy Benavidez and their three children, |
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son Noel and daughters Yvette and Denise, have carried on Master |
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Sergeant Benavidez's legacy by remaining active in their community |
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with various civic organizations and volunteering their time with |
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the Boy Scouts of America, which paved the way for six of Master |
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Sergeant Benavidez's grandsons to earn the rank of Eagle Scout; and |
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WHEREAS, On February 6, 2011, the late Hilaria "Lala" Coy |
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Benavidez generously loaned her husband's Medal of Honor to the |
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Ronald Regan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, where |
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it was on display for tens of thousands of museum visitors to see |
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and learn about the life and legacy of Master Sergeant Roy P. |
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Benavidez; and |
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WHEREAS, On January 3, 2025, the children of Master Sergeant |
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Roy P. Benavidez traveled to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library |
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to take part in a handoff ceremony, which consisted of the Ronald |
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Reagan Presidential Library handing over Master Sergeant Roy |
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P. Benavidez's Medal of Honor to his three children so that it can |
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return home to Texas; and |
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WHEREAS, The children of Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez |
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have generously loaned their father's Medal of Honor to the new |
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National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington, where it will be one of |
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several Medals of Honor from living and deceased recipients that |
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have been either donated or loaned to the new museum and will be on |
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display for the public to see; and |
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WHEREAS, A deserving recipient of the highest and most |
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prestigious military decoration of valor, Roy Benavidez |
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demonstrated extraordinary courage in the line of duty, and he will |
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forever be remembered with great admiration; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life and legacy of Master |
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Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez and extend to his family sincere |
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appreciation for their generosity in sharing his inspiring story |
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with others; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for his family as an expression of deepest gratitude from |
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the Texas House of Representatives and that when the House adjourns |
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this day, it do so in memory of Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez and |
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his wife Lala. |