HR0763 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0763 LRB103 40136 MST 71826 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, On the night of June 5-6, 1944, more than 6,500 elite paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division, the first of the first, spearheaded the American airborne assault on the Cotentin Peninsula in Normandy, France with the critical missions of securing four causeways leading inland from the beach codenamed 'Utah' and neutralizing enemy resistance in advance of the amphibious landings at dawn on D-Day morning by the 4th Infantry Division; and

WHEREAS, Many of the paratroopers were mis-dropped from their designated drop zones; before dawn, a small group led by Major John P. Stopka, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, attacked and captured a strategically sited and important German garrison headquarters and strongpoint at Marmion Farm on the outskirts of Ravenoville village; and

WHEREAS, Major Stopka made the decision to hold the farm until relief arrived from Utah Beach, thereby denying enemy movement against the northern shoulder of the 101st assault area and the critical exits; and

WHEREAS, Throughout D-Day, other mis-dropped paratroopers from mixed elements of the 101st, even some from the 82nd Airborne, arrived at the farm, thereby strengthening the American defense against repeated enemy counter-attacks; the paratroopers held firm until relieved on the early morning of June 7, 1944 by lead elements of 4th Infantry Division; and

WHEREAS, On June 6, 2012, the Eternal Heroes Memorial was inaugurated in Ravenoville to honor the Raveno Boys, whose heroic stand made a significant contribution to the success of the amphibious landings on Utah Beach and ultimately the Allied invasion of Normandy on D-Day; and

WHEREAS, Among their number were five gallant sons of Illinois, Thomas F. Cahill Jr. of Cook County, Clifford S. Emerick of Washington County, John A. Powers of Peoria County, Joseph P. Powers of Peoria County, and Louis J. Venditti of Cook County; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare June 6-7, 2024 as Eternal Heroes Memorial Days in memory of the Illinois Raveno Boys; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the Eternal Heroes Memorial as a token of our esteem and respect.