Full Text of HJR0084 100th General Assembly
HJ0084 100TH 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 made the
| 5 | | ultimate sacrifice for our nation; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, United States Army Ranger Sergeant Joshua P. | 7 | | Rodgers of Bloomington was killed in action at
the age of 22 on | 8 | | April 27, 2017 in Nangarhar Province during a joint operation | 9 | | with Afghan forces; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Sgt. Rodgers was assigned to Company C, 3rd | 11 | | Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, and stationed
at Fort Benning, | 12 | | Georgia; he was on his third deployment to Afghanistan; and | 13 | | WHEREAS, Sgt. Rodgers was born in Bloomington to Kevin and | 14 | | Vonda Coulter Rodgers on August 22,
1994; he attended | 15 | | Northpoint Elementary School, Kingsley Junior High School, and | 16 | | Normal Community
High School; and | 17 | | WHEREAS, After graduating from high school in May of 2013, | 18 | | Sgt. Rodgers enlisted in the United States
Army in order to | 19 | | serve his country; he completed One Station Unit Training at | 20 | | Fort Benning as an
infantryman and following completion of the | 21 | | Basic Airborne Course, he was assigned to the Ranger
Assessment |
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| 1 | | and Selection Program 1 (RASP 1), also at Fort Benning; he | 2 | | graduated from RASP 1 and was
then assigned to 2nd Platoon, C | 3 | | Company, 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, where he served | 4 | | as a
machine gunner, light machine gunner, gun team leader, and | 5 | | ranger fire team leader; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, Sgt. Rodgers was deployed three times to | 7 | | Afghanistan; he earned the coveted Ranger Tab,
the Parachutist | 8 | | Badge, and the Marksmanship Qualification Badge Expert-Rifle; | 9 | | he was awarded the
Army Achievement Medal, the Army Good | 10 | | Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the
| 11 | | Afghanistan Campaign Medal with two Campaign Stars, the Global | 12 | | War on Terrorism Service Medal, the
Non-Commissioned Officer | 13 | | Professional Development Ribbon, the Army Service Ribbon, and | 14 | | the NATO
Medal; posthumously, he was awarded the Purple Heart | 15 | | and the Bronze Star Medal with Valor; and | 16 | | WHEREAS, Sgt. Rodgers loved his country, his family and | 17 | | friends, the military, and especially his fellow
Rangers and | 18 | | regiment; he knew his purpose in life and was living out his | 19 | | dream; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Sgt. Rodgers was an amazing friend with a big | 21 | | heart; through hard work and determination
he continually led | 22 | | by example and made everyone around him proud; his generosity | 23 | | was unwavering
and if you needed anything from him he was |
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| 1 | | always there; and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Sgt. Rodgers was preceded in death by his | 3 | | grandfather, Mike Rodgers; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Sgt. Rodgers is survived by his parents, Kevin and | 5 | | Vonda Rodgers; his sisters, Emily Rodgers
and Hannah Rodgers | 6 | | (Nathan Lloilo); his brother, Ashton Rodgers; his niece, | 7 | | Victoria Rodgers; his
grandparents, Russ and Diana Coulter and | 8 | | Christine Rodgers; and his aunts, uncles, and cousins, Duane,
| 9 | | Trish, Makayla, and Delanie Fisher, Joe and Carrie, Tyler, | 10 | | Cecil, and Charlie Rodgers, and Dan, Marcie,
and Charlotte | 11 | | Rodgers; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, Every person who honorably serves in the military | 13 | | knows and
accepts great personal risk, and chooses to serve | 14 | | anyway; Sgt. Rodgers was, and forever will be, a
warrior: | 15 | | tenacious, humble, determined, and supportive; he was a true | 16 | | inspiration to everyone who
knew him; therefore, be it
| 17 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 18 | | HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE | 19 | | CONCURRING HEREIN, that we designate Veterans Parkway in the | 20 | | Cities of Bloomington and Normal from the
intersection of | 21 | | Interstate 74 to intersection of Interstate 55 as
the "Army | 22 | | Ranger Sergeant Joshua P. Rodgers Memorial Highway"; and be it |
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| 1 | | further
| 2 | | RESOLVED, That the Illinois Department of Transportation | 3 | | is requested to erect at suitable locations,
consistent with | 4 | | State and federal regulations, appropriate plaques or signs | 5 | | giving notice of the name
"Army Ranger Sergeant Joshua P. | 6 | | Rodgers Memorial Highway"; and be it further | 7 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 8 | | presented to the family of Sgt. Rodgers, the Mayor of
| 9 | | Bloomington, the Mayor of Normal, and the Secretary of | 10 | | Transportation.
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