Bill Text: TX SCR49 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Designating September 24 as Captain Henry T. Waskow Day for a 10-year period ending in 2033.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (N/A - Dead) 2023-05-04 - Referred to Administration [SCR49 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-SCR49-Introduced.html
| 88R26742 BPG-D | ||
| By: Flores | S.C.R. No. 49 | |
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| WHEREAS, The courageous service of U.S. Army Captain Henry T. | ||
| Waskow of Belton during World War II has inspired his fellow | ||
| Americans for nearly 80 years; and | ||
| WHEREAS, In January 1944, The Washington Daily News ran a | ||
| profoundly moving dispatch by legendary World War II correspondent | ||
| Ernie Pyle on its front page; the story related the tragic death of | ||
| Captain Waskow, who led B Company of the 1st Battalion, 143rd | ||
| Infantry Regiment, and had earned the tremendous respect, loyalty, | ||
| and affection of the men under his command before being killed in | ||
| action; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Captain Waskow first experienced combat during the | ||
| landings in Salerno, Italy, in September 1943; subsequently, his | ||
| company fought in the mountains of southern Italy, enduring | ||
| miserable, freezing conditions; he impressed his men with his | ||
| efficiency and his calm demeanor, even under artillery and machine | ||
| gun fire; on December 14, during the ferocious battle for San | ||
| Pietro, he was leading his men from a tree line to attack a German | ||
| position when he heard an incoming artillery shell; he shoved his | ||
| radio operator, crying "Hit the ground!," but he was cut down | ||
| himself by a piece of shrapnel; and | ||
| WHEREAS, When it was at last possible for the radio operator | ||
| to bring Captain Waskow's body back down the mountain three days | ||
| later, Mr. Pyle witnessed the final farewells of the captain's | ||
| grief-stricken men and wrote, "In this war I have known a lot of | ||
| officers who were loved and respected by the soldiers under them. | ||
| But never have I crossed the trail of any man as beloved as Captain | ||
| Henry T. Waskow of Belton, Texas"; the heartbreaking account, | ||
| syndicated by the Scripps-Howard news service and read over the | ||
| radio, resonated powerfully with the American public as an | ||
| illustration of humble nobility and the strong bonds of camaraderie | ||
| forged in wartime; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Henry T. Waskow was born in DeWitt County on | ||
| September 24, 1918, to Frank and Mary Waskow, first-generation | ||
| Americans of German descent; he grew up on a farm in Bell County | ||
| with seven siblings; quiet, serious, dutiful, and industrious, he | ||
| graduated as president of his class at Belton High School and | ||
| attended Temple Junior College before working his way through | ||
| Trinity University as a campus janitor; he enlisted in the Texas | ||
| National Guard while preparing for a career in teaching, and after | ||
| he was called to active duty, he rose quickly through the ranks; in | ||
| January 1943, he was promoted to captain, and his division was | ||
| deployed to Algeria that April; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Captain Waskow's grave near Nettuno, Italy, has been | ||
| visited by countless people, and he is not forgotten at home; VFW | ||
| Post No. 4008 in Belton and the Belton New Tech High School @Waskow | ||
| are named in his honor; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Exemplifying the highest ideals of the U.S. armed | ||
| forces, Captain Henry T. Waskow has long been revered as a moving | ||
| example of the heroism demonstrated by American service members as | ||
| well as the sacrifices made in defense of our nation, and it is | ||
| indeed fitting to further honor his memory by officially | ||
| commemorating the anniversary of his birth; now, therefore, be it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the 88th Legislature of the State of Texas | ||
| hereby designate September 24 as Captain Henry T. Waskow Day; and, | ||
| be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That, in accordance with the provisions of Section | ||
| 391.004(d), Government Code, this designation remain in effect | ||
| until the 10th anniversary of the date this resolution is finally | ||
| passed by the legislature. | ||
