HR1142 LRB094 20149 HSS 57924 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, Sergeant Brian Duffy, a native son of Illinois and
3 resident of Evergreen Park, enlisted in the United States Army
4 in 2003; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Sergeant Duffy attended basic training at Fort
6 Leonard Wood, Missouri, and upon completion, was accepted into
7 the Army's Chemical Warfare School; and
 
8     WHEREAS, Sergeant Duffy volunteered for the Army's elite
9 82nd Airborne Division; the 82nd can trace its inception to WWI
10 and also distinguished itself in combat during WWII,
11 participating in such crucial battles as the Normandy invasion,
12 and the largest air drop of WWII Operation Market Garden; due
13 to their intrepidity in battle, the German Army called them the
14 "Devils in Baggy Pants"; and
 
15     WHEREAS, The 82nd Airborne Division is the U.S. Army's only
16 Airborne Division, can and has been deployed to trouble spots
17 around the globe, most currently conducting combat operations
18 in Afghanistan and Iraq; and
 
19     WHEREAS, Sergeant Duffy and the 1st Brigade of the 504th
20 Parachute Infantry Regiment deployed to Afghanistan in support
21 of Operation Enduring Freedom, serving for over 10 months at
22 Forward Operating Base Salerno on the southeastern border
23 between Afghanistan and Pakistan; and
 
24     WHEREAS, Sergeant Duffy and his cohorts participated in
25 "Operation Neptune", guarding polling places and ensuring
26 secure elections throughout Afghanistan; they were also called
27 upon to serve as the personal security guards for the visiting
28 American Ambassador to Afghanistan; other duties included
29 providing security for the many military convoys moving through
30 the treacherous mountain passes of the Hindu Kush, often coming

 

 

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1 under enemy fire; the 82nd also operated a regional
2 interrogation center for captured suspected Taliban and Al
3 Qaeda prisoners; the facility was formally commended by the
4 Commanding General in Afghanistan as the best run facility in
5 Southwest Asia; and
 
6     WHEREAS, Sergeant Duffy has been awarded the Army
7 Commendation Medal and the Combat Action Badge along with other
8 commendations and Campaign Medals; therefore, be it
 
9     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
10 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
11 we welcome Sergeant Duffy home to the State of Illinois, and we
12 thank him for his honorable military service in Afghanistan;
13 and be it further
 
14     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
15 presented to Sergeant Duffy as an expression of our gratitude.