A RESOLUTION
Commending the volunteers of
the Civil Air Patrol and recognizing March 16, 2006,
as Civil Air Patrol Day at the Capitol; and for
other purposes.
WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol
was founded on December 1, 1941, as an organization
of volunteers dedicated to assisting the United
States military in national defense by performing
aerial coastal patrols and emergency services within
the continental United States; and
WHEREAS, in 1943, this
organization was recognized as vital to national
defense, and by a Presidential Executive Order, the
Civil Air Patrol was assigned to the War Department;
and
WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol
was subsequently chartered by Congress in May, 1948,
as the official auxiliary of the United States Air
Force to perform three distinct missions: emergency
services, aerospace education, and cadet programs;
and
WHEREAS, today, the Civil Air
Patrol remains an intricate component of our
national defense by conducting missions in homeland
security, counterdrug, disaster relief, and search
and rescue; and
WHEREAS, its air and ground
teams perform approximately 95 percent of inland
search and rescue missions tasked by the Air Force
Rescue Coordination Center; and
WHEREAS, the Civil Air Patrol
conducts a challenging and successful cadet program
that enables young people between the ages of 12 and
21 to develop leadership skills through a multistep
program that encompasses aerospace education,
leadership training, physical fitness, and moral
leadership; and
WHEREAS, the Georgia Wing of
the Civil Air Patrol is comprised of over 1,600
members in 36 squadrons located throughout the
state; and
WHEREAS, these "flying
minutemen" of the Civil Air Patrol provide this
state with emergency services, aerospace education,
and cadet programs, among many other contributions
to Georgia.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED
BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that the members of
this body commend the unselfish and valiant service
of the volunteers of the Civil Air Patrol and
recognize March 16, 2006, as Civil Air Patrol Day at
the Capitol.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the
Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized
and directed to transmit an appropriate copy of this
resolution to the Georgia Wing of the Civil Air
Patrol.