Bill Text: TX HR1124 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Honoring the service of Medal of Honor recipients Marvin Rex Young and Alfred Mac Wilson of Odessa.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2019-04-23 - Reported enrolled [HR1124 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-HR1124-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Honoring the service of Medal of Honor recipients Marvin Rex Young and Alfred Mac Wilson of Odessa.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2019-04-23 - Reported enrolled [HR1124 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-HR1124-Introduced.html
86R20381 SME-D | ||
By: Landgraf | H.R. No. 1124 |
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WHEREAS, Staff Sergeant Marvin Rex Young and Private First | ||
Class Alfred Mac Wilson, natives of Odessa, posthumously received | ||
the Medal of Honor in recognition of their valiant actions in | ||
defense of their country during the Vietnam War; and | ||
WHEREAS, While serving in the U.S. Army, Rex Young's company | ||
was engaged by a North Vietnamese force of overwhelming number on | ||
August 21, 1968; Sergeant Young assumed command of Company C when | ||
his platoon leader was killed, and he organized his men in a | ||
defensive position against the enemy; upon receiving orders to | ||
retreat, he remained to provide covering fire for his comrades; | ||
observing that members of a section of the point squad were unable | ||
to escape from their position, he immediately moved to their aid and | ||
sustained a number of severe wounds, including a critical head | ||
injury and shattered leg; he refused medical assistance and | ||
continued to provide cover for his fellow soldiers as they | ||
withdrew, until the enemy engulfed his position; and | ||
WHEREAS, On March 3, 1969, Mac Wilson made the ultimate | ||
sacrifice in the defense of his fellow marines when his platoon came | ||
under fire by North Vietnamese forces; his squad's machine gunner | ||
and assistant machine gunner were rendered incapacitated in the | ||
ensuing firefight and unable to operate their weapon, and Private | ||
Wilson and another marine moved through enemy fire to man the gun, | ||
when an enemy soldier threw a grenade at them; Private Wilson killed | ||
the combatant and, without hesitation, threw himself on the grenade | ||
in order to protect his comrade; his body absorbed the full force of | ||
the lethal blast, and his platoon members went on to attack and | ||
defeat the opposing troops; and | ||
WHEREAS, Known as the "City of Honor," Odessa has paid | ||
tribute to these two fallen heroes with the dedication of Wilson & | ||
Young Medal of Honor Middle School in 2015; both were alumni of the | ||
Odessa school system, with Mr. Young earning his diploma from | ||
Permian High in 1965 and Mr. Wilson graduating from Odessa High in | ||
1967; and | ||
WHEREAS, These Texans' inspiring actions on the battlefield | ||
mark them as soldiers of extraordinary selflessness and valor, and | ||
they are indeed deserving recipients of our nation's highest | ||
military award; now, therefore, be it | ||
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 86th Texas | ||
Legislature hereby honor the service of Medal of Honor recipients | ||
Marvin Rex Young and Alfred Mac Wilson and pay tribute to their | ||
enduring legacy in the city of Odessa. |