Bill Text: TX HCR44 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Introduced

Texas House Concurrent Resolution 44 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Directing the governor to posthumously award the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor to 1st Lieutenant Andrew Jackson Lummus Jr.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-04-26 - Left pending in committee [HCR44 Detail]

Download: Texas-2021-HCR44-Introduced.html

	87R6698 CW-D

	By: Ellzey	H.C.R. No. 44



	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 U.S. Marine Corps First Lieutenant
	Andrew Jackson Lummus Jr., who was killed in the Battle of Iwo Jima
	during World War II, proved himself a deserving recipient of this
	prestigious award; and
	WHEREAS, Jack Lummus was born in Ennis on October 22, 1915,
	and he grew up on his family's cotton farm during the Great
	Depression; a gifted athlete, he earned scholarships to Texas
	Military College and to Baylor University, where he played baseball
	and football for the Bears; in early 1941, he left college to enlist
	in the U.S. Army Air Corps but was given an honorable discharge when
	he failed to complete flight school; he then accepted an offer to
	play professional football with the New York Giants, and it was
	during the team's game on December 7, 1941, that he learned of the
	attack on Pearl Harbor; determined to serve his country, he
	enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, and after a series of training
	and duty assignments in the United States, he was deployed to the
	Pacific theater as an officer in the 2nd Battalion, 27th Marines,
	5th Marine Division; and
	WHEREAS, Lieutenant Lummus led his rifle platoon ashore at
	Iwo Jima as part of the initial contingent of marine forces to land
	on the island; on March 8, 1945, his unit advanced against a line of
	Japanese pillboxes along the island's rugged Nishi Ridge; moving
	ahead of his men under fierce enemy fire, he destroyed one pillbox
	with grenades even as he was wounded and knocked off his feet by a
	blast from an enemy grenade; undaunted, he eliminated a second
	pillbox and returned to his platoon before attacking and knocking
	out a third pillbox; he urged his fellow marines forward while
	continuing to fire into enemy foxholes with his carbine; and
	WHEREAS, This courageous Texan's one-man assault was ended
	when he stepped on a land mine; though he lost both of his legs in
	the explosion, he continued to shout to his men, "Don't stop now!
	Keep going!" and by nightfall, his unit had taken the ridge;
	Lieutenant Lummus died on the operating table in a field hospital
	and was buried in the Fifth Marine Division cemetery on the island;
	and
	WHEREAS, On May 30, 1946, First Lieutenant Jack Lummus was
	posthumously honored with the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest
	commendation for valor in combat, by President Harry S. Truman, and
	two years later, he was reinterred in his hometown cemetery; in the
	decades since, his heroism has been recognized many times; in 1986,
	the U.S. Navy named a ship after him, and that same year, Jack
	Lummus Memorial Park was dedicated in Ennis, where there is also an
	intermediate school that bears his name; his Medal of Honor
	citation is on display at Baylor University, and on October 11,
	2015, the New York Giants inducted him into the Ring of Honor at
	MetLife Stadium; and
	WHEREAS, During one of the most savage battles of World War
	II, First Lieutenant Jack Lummus demonstrated extraordinary
	bravery and leadership and made the ultimate sacrifice while
	defending our nation, and he is indeed deserving of this state's
	supreme military commendation; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the 87th Legislature of the State of Texas
	hereby direct the governor of the State of Texas to posthumously
	award the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor to Andrew Jackson Lummus
	Jr. in recognition of his valiant service during World War II.