First Regular Session

Sixty-first General Assembly

LLS NO. R97@0811.01 DHG

STATE OF COLORADO

BY SENATORS Thiebaut and Dennis;

also REPRESENTATIVE Lawrence.

SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 97-28

HONORING THE PUEBLO B­24 MUSEUM.

WHEREAS, The Fred E. Weisbrod/International B­24 Memorial Museum originated in 1971 when Fred E. Weisbrod, former City Manager of the City of Pueblo, arranged for the federal government to loan a number of vintage World War II aircraft to the city of Pueblo for public display in what was then known simply as the Fred E. Weisbrod Aircraft Museum; and

WHEREAS, The city of Pueblo was an appropriate location for the display of these aircraft, having been the site of the Pueblo Army Air Base, an advanced training center for B­24 flight crews during the war; and

WHEREAS, the B­24 "Liberator", a four­engined heavy bomber, served alongside its older counterpart, the B­17 "Flying Fortress", to help quell the Nazi threat in Europe; and

WHEREAS, The B­24 had the added distinction of being the only American combat aircraft used by every Allied air force involved in World War II; and

WHEREAS, The task of preserving and restoring these historic aircraft was taken up during the 1980's by Mr. Bill Feder, founder of the Pueblo Historical Aircraft Society; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Feder and a handful of unpaid volunteers devoted incalculable time, effort, and their own money to this task without any public support until 1988; and

WHEREAS, The Fred E. Weisbrod Aircraft Museum was chosen as the site of the B­24 Reunion in 1989, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the first flight of the B­24 and welcoming B­24 production workers, ground crews, and air crews from around the world; and

WHEREAS, The city of Pueblo graciously donated a portion of a city­owned building adjacent to the Weisbrod Museum for use in the B­24 Reunion and has continued to make this space available, enabling not only the continued existence of the B­24 Museum but also its consolidation with the Weisbrod Museum into what is now one of the largest aircraft museums in the country, with over 20 vintage aircraft having a combined value of over $15 million, the only museum in Colorado displaying a B­29 "Superfortress", and the only one in the United States dedicated to commemorating the outstanding B­24 "Liberator"; and

WHEREAS, The Fred E. Weisbrod/International B­24 Memorial Museum continues to exist through private donations, volunteer efforts, and the support of the city of Pueblo, the Pueblo Chieftain, Pueblo Ledger, Senior Beacon, and other Colorado newspapers, local radio and television stations, and national aviation magazines and publications; and

WHEREAS, Such support has enabled the Museum to contribute to the rich heritage of Pueblo, Pueblo county, and the state of Colorado by attracting, entertaining, and educating visitors from around the world; now, therefore,

Be It Resolved by the Senate of the Sixty­first General Assembly of the State of Colorado, the House of Representatives concurring herein:

That the General Assembly recognizes the Fred E. Weisbrod/International B­24 Memorial Museum as the home of the B­24 "Liberator" Museum in Colorado and hereby acknowledges Fred E. Weisbrod, Bill Feder, the current and former members of the Pueblo Historical Aircraft Society, and the many volunteers and well­wishers in the Pueblo community and across Colorado whose efforts have contributed to the establishment and continued operation of the Museum.

Be it further resolved, That copies of this resolution be sent to the Fred E. Weisbrod/International B­24 Memorial Museum as well as to the Pueblo Historical Aircraft Society and its current President, Robert L. Boyce.