Full Text of HJR0006 98th General Assembly
HJ0006 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, It is highly fitting that the Illinois General | 3 | | Assembly pays honor and respect to the truly great individuals | 4 | | who have served our country and, in doing so, have gone above | 5 | | and beyond the call of duty to take part in truly heroic tasks; | 6 | | and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Of the millions of men and women who have served | 8 | | this country with the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, or Coast | 9 | | Guard, only 3,468 have ever been awarded the highest military | 10 | | decoration awarded by the United States government, the Medal | 11 | | of Honor; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, The Medal of Honor is awarded for conspicuous | 13 | | gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of one's life above and | 14 | | beyond the call of duty while engaged in an action against any | 15 | | enemy of the United States, while engaged in military | 16 | | operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force, | 17 | | or while serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in an | 18 | | armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the | 19 | | United States is not a belligerent party; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, It is a true honor for an individual to be awarded | 21 | | the Medal of Honor and serves to distinguish those individuals | 22 | | as true American heroes; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Allen J. Lynch was born on October 28, 1945, in | 2 | | Chicago; he grew up in the Lake Eliza area of Indiana, where he | 3 | | attended Union Center Elementary School and Wheeler Junior High | 4 | | School; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, After graduating from high school, Allen Lynch | 6 | | joined the United States Army in 1964; he was later sent to | 7 | | Vietnam in the fall of 1966 and was assigned to the 12th | 8 | | Cavalry; he served as a rifleman for several months before | 9 | | becoming his platoon's radiotelephone operator; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, On December 15, 1967, Allen Lynch was serving as a | 11 | | specialist four in Company D, 1st Battalion (Airmobile), 12th | 12 | | Cavalry Regiment of the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile); | 13 | | during a firefight near the Binh Dinh Province of Vietnam, he | 14 | | saw 3 wounded soldiers out in the open who were under intense | 15 | | enemy fire; he quickly dropped his radio and went to help the | 16 | | soldiers; under intense fire, he carried the wounded soldiers | 17 | | to safety and single-handedly defended them against the | 18 | | advancing enemy force for several hours; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, Following this courageous action, Allen Lynch was | 20 | | subsequently promoted to the rank of sergeant and awarded the | 21 | | Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in | 22 | | action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of |
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| 1 | | duty; and | 2 | | WHEREAS, Allen Lynch's quick thinking and disregard for his | 3 | | own safety were vital in saving those lives, but his fight on | 4 | | behalf of his fellow soldiers did not end on the battlefield; | 5 | | after the war, he settled in Gurnee and worked for the | 6 | | Department of Veterans Affairs, where he advocated for | 7 | | increased benefits for disabled veterans; he later served as | 8 | | chief of the Illinois Attorney General's Veterans Rights Bureau | 9 | | until his retirement in 2005; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, Allen Lynch continues his dedication to our nation | 11 | | as a volunteer with the Vietnam Veterans of America | 12 | | organization; he serves as the liaison for the Congressional | 13 | | Medal of Honor Society and frequently gives speeches at | 14 | | military-related events; he also performs ministry work with | 15 | | the Lake County Jail; therefore, be it
| 16 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 17 | | NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE | 18 | | SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we designate the Grand Avenue | 19 | | Overpass over Interstate 94 in Gurnee as the "Allen J. Lynch | 20 | | Congressional Medal of Honor Overpass"; and be it further
| 21 | | RESOLVED, That upon completion of any unfinished sections | 22 | | of highway, the Illinois Department of Transportation is |
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| 1 | | requested to erect at suitable locations, consistent with State | 2 | | and federal regulations, appropriate plaques or signs giving | 3 | | notice of the name; and be it further | 4 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 5 | | presented to Allen J. Lynch, his family, the Village of Gurnee, | 6 | | the Lake County Board, the Lake County Veterans Assistance | 7 | | Commission, the Secretary of the Illinois Department of | 8 | | Transportation, and the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority.
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