2009 -- H 6450

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LC03027

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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2009

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H O U S E R E S O L U T I O N

EXPRESSING CONDOLENCES ON THE PASSING OF HENRY J. WALLACE

     Introduced By: Representatives Kilmartin, E Coderre, San Bento, JP O`Neill, and Silva

     Date Introduced: October 28, 2009

     Referred To: House read and passed

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     WHEREAS, It is with utmost sadness that this House has learned of the passing of Henry

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J. Wallace, a loving family man, a highly respected and widely admired veteran of World War II,

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and a Bataan Death March survivor; and  

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     WHEREAS, Born in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Mr. Wallace was the son of the late

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William and Delia Wallace. A beloved husband and the father of Richard, Lorraine, Donna,

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Elizabeth, and the late Henry Wallace, he was also the loving grandfather of Patrick, Matthew,

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and Emma; and  

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     WHEREAS, In December of 1940, at the age of twenty-eight, Mr. Wallace enlisted in the

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Army Air Corps. After basic training, he was sent to the Philippines, where he was wounded

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while flying a mission; and  

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     WHEREAS, Shortly after the infamous bombing of Pearl Harbor, the Japanese invaded

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the Philippines. Mr. Wallace and thousands of Filipinos and American troops were forced back

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into the Bataan Peninsula, where they bravely stood their ground until April of 1942; and  

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     WHEREAS, In an act of horrendous cruelty, the Japanese forced the 70,000 captives into

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a 60-mile march without supplies. Fourteen thousand men died; and  

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     WHEREAS, Existing on meager rations of water and rice gruel, the surviving captives

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were transported to Japan, where they were forced to work in the shipyards and copper mines for

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the next three and a half years. Mr. Wallace was awarded the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star, and

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the Rhode Island Cross for his valorous actions; and  

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     WHEREAS, Rhode Islanders and Americans were proud and grateful for the exceptional

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courage and commitment Bombardier Sergeant Wallace exhibited while serving in the United

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States Army Air Corps during World War II, and it is important to recognize and acknowledge

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that our freedom and human rights were safeguarded by his heroic service and the actions of all

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our valiant and dauntless members of the Armed Forces; now, therefore be it

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     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island and

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Providence Plantations hereby expresses our deepest sympathies to the entire Wallace Family on

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the passing of Henry J. Wallace; and be it further 

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     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and he is hereby authorized and directed to

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transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Richard C. Wallace, Lorraine M. Wallace,

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Donna M. Wallace, and Elizabeth A. Hall.

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LC03027

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