A concurrent RESOLUTION

to recognize and honor Ira Ellis "Bud" Coward II, Broker-In-Charge and Co-Owner of Coward & McNeill Real Estate, LLC, and TO congratulate him upon being inducted into the South Carolina Aviation Hall of Fame.

Whereas, the South Carolina General Assembly is pleased to learn that Ira Ellis "Bud" Coward II has been inducted into the South Carolina Aviation Hall of Fame as an Elite Aviator during the South Carolina Aviation Association's annual conference in February 2023 in Spartanburg; and

Whereas, established in 1991, the Hall of Fame honors pioneers and leaders in the aviation industry who have made significant contributions to the development, advancement, or promotion of aviation and who have close ties to South Carolina; and

Whereas, other members of the South Carolina Aviation Hall of Fame include astronauts Charles Duke, Ronald McNair, Frank Culbertson, and retired Marine Corps Major General Charles Bolden, a former administrator at NASA, as well as Fritz Hollings, who represented South Carolina in the United States Senate for nearly forty years and served as South Carolina's 106th governor, and Robert Sumwalt, a former National Transportation Safety Board chairman; and

Whereas, Bud Coward began his career in aviation at age seventeen, being active in the South Carolina Wing of the Civil Air Patrol in high school and appointed cadet commander of the Aiken Composite Squadron; and

Whereas, he earned a commercial pilot certificate and became a certified flight instructor, and he completed the requirements for an airline transport pilot certificate; and 

Whereas, Mr. Coward earned a bachelor's degree from The Citadel, and in the patriotic tradition of the sons of South Carolina, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force.  He was based in Laughlin, Texas, and Newport News, Virginia, until 1976.  Following active service, he served in the Air Force Reserve, assigned to the 437th Civil Engineering Squadron at the Charleston Air Force Base, also known as Joint Base Charleston, and retired from the military in 1998; and

Whereas, from 1999 to 2004, Mr. Coward served as the executive director of the South Carolina Division of Aeronautics.  During his tenure, the division developed the Comprehensive Aviation Information Reporting System and extensively revised Title 55 of the South Carolina Code of Laws that governs the Division of Aeronautics and public airports.  He helped to execute the first memorandum of understanding with the Federal Aviation Administration's Flight Standards District Office in South Carolina.  From 2008 to 2012, he served as the commissioner of District Three, and from 2015 to 2019, he served as the commissioner of District Two; and

Whereas, as the broker-in-charge and co-owner of Coward & McNeill Real Estate, LLC, he works in commercial real estate and the development of recreational and timber lands.  He is also a general partner at Barrington Farms, LLC, in Aiken; and

Whereas, deeply committed to his community, he is a member of the Rotary Club of Aiken and a past president of the organization; and

Whereas, he lives in Aiken with his beloved wife, Bonnie, and together they reared a fine daughter, Caroline, who is an attorney in Charleston; and

Whereas, the South Carolina General Assembly deeply appreciates the dedication of citizens of the Palmetto State who serve our great State and nation, like Bud Coward, and the members celebrate with him on his well-deserved induction into the Aviation Hall of Fame.  Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring:

That the members of the South Carolina General Assembly, by this resolution, recognize and honor Ira Ellis "Bud" Coward II, broker-in-charge and co-owner of Coward & McNeill Real Estate, LLC, and congratulate him upon being inducted into the South Carolina Aviation Hall of Fame.

Be it further resolved that the copy of this resolution be presented to Ira Ellis "Bud" Coward II.

----XX---