[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 112 (Friday, July 25, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S9987]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 NATIONAL PURPLE HEART RECOGNITION DAY

  A concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 40) designating August 7, 2003, 
as ``National Purple Heart Recognition Day'' was considered and agreed 
to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:
       Whereas the Order of the Purple Heart for Military Merit, 
     commonly known as the Purple Heart, is the oldest military 
     decoration in the world in present use;
       Whereas the Purple Heart is awarded in the name of the 
     President of the United States to members of the Armed Forces 
     who are wounded in conflict with an enemy force, or while 
     held by an enemy force as a prisoner of war, and posthumously 
     to the next of kin of members of the Armed Forces who are 
     killed in conflict with an enemy force, or who die of a wound 
     received in conflict with an enemy force;
       Whereas the Purple Heart was established on August 7, 1782, 
     during the Revolutionary War, when General George Washington 
     issued an order establishing the Honorary Badge of 
     Distinction, otherwise known as the Badge of Military Merit, 
     or the Decoration of the Purple Heart;
       Whereas the award of the Purple Heart ceased with the end 
     of the Revolutionary War, but was revived out of respect for 
     the memory and military achievements of George Washington in 
     1932, the 200th anniversary of his birth; and
       Whereas the designation of August 7, 2003, as ``National 
     Purple Heart Recognition Day'' is a fitting tribute to 
     General Washington, and to the over 1,535,000 recipients of 
     the Purple Heart Medal, approximately 550,000 of whom are 
     still living: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) designates August 7, 2003, as ``National Purple Heart 
     Recognition Day'';
       (2) encourages all Americans to learn about the history of 
     the Order of the Purple Heart for Military Merit and to honor 
     its recipients; and
       (3) requests that the President issue a proclamation 
     calling on the people of the United States to conduct 
     appropriate ceremonies, activities, and programs to 
     demonstrate support for the Order of the Purple Heart for 
     Military Merit.




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