2010
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 10-048
       
       
       BY SENATOR(S) Shaffer B., Bacon, Boyd, Brophy, Cadman, Carroll
       M., Foster, Gibbs, Harvey, Heath, Hodge, Hudak, Johnston, Keller,
       Kester, King K., Kopp, Lundberg, Mitchell, Morse, Newell, Penry,
       Renfroe, Romer, Sandoval, Scheffel, Schultheis, Schwartz, Spence,
       Steadman, Tapia, Tochtrop, White, Whitehead, Williams;
       also REPRESENTATIVE(S) Primavera, Acree, Apuan, Balmer,
       Baumgardner, Benefield, Bradford, Casso, Court, Curry, DelGrosso,
       Ferrandino, Fischer, Frangas, Gagliardi, Gardner B., Gardner C., Gerou,
       Hullinghorst, Judd, Kagan, Kefalas, Kerr A., Kerr J., King S., Labuda,
       Lambert, Levy, Liston, Looper, Massey, May, McCann, McFadyen,
       McNulty, Merrifield, Middleton, Miklosi, Murray, Nikkel, Pace,
       Peniston, Pommer, Priola, Rice, Riesberg, Roberts, Ryden, Scanlan,
       Schafer S., Solano, Sonnenberg, Soper, Stephens, Summers, Swalm,
       Tipton, Tyler, Vaad, Vigil, Waller, Weissmann, Carroll T.
       
       
          CONCERNING RECOGNITION OF MILITARY PERSONNEL
       FROM COLORADO WHO SERVED IN THE VIETNAM WAR AND
       HONORING THOSE WHO WERE INJURED OR WHO DIED WHILE
       SERVING THEIR COUNTRY. 
       
       
          WHEREAS, The Vietnam war was fought in the Republic of South
       Vietnam from 1961 to 1975, and involved North Vietnamese regular
       forces and Viet Cong guerrilla forces in armed conflict with United States
       Armed Forces and the Army of the Republic of Vietnam; and
       
          WHEREAS, The United States Armed Forces became involved in
       Vietnam in order to provide direct military support to the government of
       South Vietnam in defending itself against the growing Communist threat
       from North Vietnam; and
       
          WHEREAS, As a result of the Gulf of Tonkin incidents on August 2
       and 4, 1964, Congress overwhelmingly passed the Gulf of Tonkin
       Resolution on August 7, 1964, which gave authority to the President of
       the United States to prosecute the war against North Vietnam; and
       
          WHEREAS, In 1965, United States Armed Forces ground combat
       units arrived in Vietnam; and
       
          WHEREAS, By the end of 1965, 80,000 United States troops were in
       Vietnam, and by 1968, the number peaked at approximately 543,000
       troops; and
       
          WHEREAS, On January 27, 1973, the Paris Peace Accord was signed,
       which required the release of all United States prisoners of war held in
       North Vietnam and the withdrawal of all United States Armed Forces
       from South Vietnam; and
       
          WHEREAS, The United States Armed Forces completed the
       withdrawal of combat units and combat support units from South
       Vietnam by March 30, 1973; and
       
          WHEREAS, On April 30, 1975, North Vietnamese regular forces
       captured Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, marking the official end
       of the Vietnam war; and
       
          WHEREAS, More than 58,000 members of the United States Armed
       Forces, including 611 Coloradans, lost their lives in Vietnam, and more
       than 300,000 members of the Armed Forces were wounded; and
       
          WHEREAS, In addition, over 2,500 members of the United States
       Armed Forces were listed as Prisoners of War or Missing In Action,
       including 41 Coloradans, 27 of whom remain unaccounted for; and
       
          WHEREAS, In 1982, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was dedicated
       in the District of Columbia to commemorate those members of the United
       States Armed Forces who died or were declared Missing In Action in
       Vietnam; and
       
          WHEREAS, More than 7 million members of the United States
       Armed Forces still alive today, including 138,667 Coloradans, served
       their country during the Vietnam era, according to the Denver Regional
       Office of the federal Department of Veterans Affairs; and
       
          WHEREAS, Because the Vietnam war was such an extremely divisive
       issue in the United States, a generation of veterans has waited much too
       long for the people of this nation to acknowledge and honor the service
       and sacrifices of those veterans; and
       
          WHEREAS, Ninety-seven percent of Vietnam veterans were
       honorably discharged, 91% say they are proud to have served their
       country, and 87% of the public now holds Vietnam veterans in high
       esteem; and
       
          WHEREAS, The State of Colorado has yet to set aside a time
       specifically to "welcome home" and honor those Coloradans who served
       in South Vietnam and throughout Southeast Asia during the Vietnam era
       and who, to this day, are such assets to their communities; and
       
          WHEREAS, The need for a formal recognition of the return of
       veterans from the Vietnam war is as important now as ever, not only for
       those veterans who served but for all citizens; and
       
          WHEREAS, April 30, 2010, marks the 35th anniversary of the end of
       the Vietnam war; now, therefore,
       
          Be It Resolved by the Senate of the Sixty-seventh General Assembly of
       the State of Colorado, the House of Representatives concurring herein:
       
          That we, the members of the Sixty-seventh General Assembly of the
       State of Colorado, hereby:
       
          (1)  Recognize, honor, and express our appreciation to all those
       individuals from Colorado who served in the Vietnam war, including
       those who were wounded and those who died in service; and
       
          (2)  Designate April 30, 2010, as "Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans
       Day" in Colorado.
       
                    Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this Joint Resolution be sent to
       the Colorado Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, the United
       Veterans' Committee of Colorado, Project Sanctuary, and the Colorado
       Congressional delegation.
       
       
       
       
       
       ____________________________  ____________________________
       Brandon C. Shaffer               Terrance D. Carroll
       PRESIDENT OF                    SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE
       THE SENATE                        OF REPRESENTATIVES
       
       
       
       
       
       
       ____________________________  ____________________________
       Karen Goldman                         Marilyn Eddins
       SECRETARY OF                CHIEF CLERK OF THE HOUSE
       THE SENATE                        OF REPRESENTATIVES