1Designating Wednesday, April 9, 2014, as "National Guard Day" in 
2Pennsylvania.

3WHEREAS, In 1747, Benjamin Franklin organized the
4"Associators" in Philadelphia; and

5WHEREAS, Units of today's Pennsylvania National Guard trace
6their lineage to the first Associators; and

7WHEREAS, In 1755, the General Assembly of the Province of
8Pennsylvania received a great number of petitions from the
9several counties of the province "setting forth that the
10petitioners were very willing to defend themselves and their
11country and desirous of being formed into regular bodies for
12that purpose, instructed and disciplined under proper officers

1with suitable and legal authority"; and

2WHEREAS, Responding to these petitions, the representatives
3of the Province of Pennsylvania, meeting in General Assembly,
4passed this Commonwealth's first militia law on November 25,
51755; and

6WHEREAS, The militia law, passed "for the better ordering and
7regulating such as are willing and desirous to be united for
8military purposes within this province" created the volunteer
9militia and laid the legal foundation for the militia and the
10Pennsylvania National Guard; and

11WHEREAS, Enactment of the act of November 25, 1755, marked
12the beginning of more than 250 years of cooperation and support
13from the General Assembly for the Pennsylvania militia, the
14Pennsylvania National Guard and the soldiers and airmen who
15proudly serve this Commonwealth and this nation; and

16WHEREAS, For more than 250 years, in war and in peace,
17Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers and airmen have served at
18home and abroad in every war and have responded to floods,
19blizzards and other emergencies at home; and

20WHEREAS, Pennsylvania's National Guard force reaches from the
21Joint Force Headquarters located at Fort Indiantown Gap, Lebanon
22County, to almost 90 communities across this Commonwealth; and

23WHEREAS, Today the Pennsylvania National Guard is one of the
24top ten employers in this Commonwealth with approximately 3,500
25of its members serving in a full-time capacity and the remaining
2615,500 members serving as "traditional" members who train on a
27part-time basis while pursuing civilian education or careers;
28and

29WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania National Guard is one of the
30largest National Guard forces in the nation; and

1WHEREAS, The 28th Infantry Division is the oldest
2continuously serving division in the United States Army; and

3WHEREAS, The 213th Regional Support Group is the Pennsylvania
4National Guard's second major army unit that handles combat
5support missions, including transportation, finance and
6personnel services; and

7WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania Air National Guard is made up of
8the 111th Fighter Wing for air support missions and for a
9ground-control station for the MQ-9 Reaper, the 171st Air
10Refueling Wing for worldwide aerial refueling capabilities and
11the 193rd Special Operations Wing for providing the only aerial
12broadcasting capability in the world; and

13WHEREAS, In time of war, national or State emergency, or in
14support of any military operation worldwide, the President may
15mobilize units of the National Guard into active Federal
16service; and

17WHEREAS, The active Federal service of the Pennsylvania
18National Guard has included service in every conflict America
19has faced, from the Revolutionary War through Operation
20Enduring Freedom, as well as peacekeeping missions around the
21globe; and

22WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania National Guard in peacetime offers
23broad support to the civilian community through the Counterdrug
24Task Force, which provides trained personnel and specialized
25equipment to assist State and local law enforcement agencies in
26the fight against the use of illegal drugs; and

27WHEREAS, Pennsylvania National Guard members serve as role
28models, as well as community volunteers and civic leaders,
29throughout this Commonwealth; and

30WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania National Guard's outstanding

1performance was on display in 2011 when more than 3,000 soldiers
2and airmen responded to the call of duty to assist in recovery
3efforts and rescue missions when called up for duty under three
4separate disaster emergencies; and

5WHEREAS, In September 2005, in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina
6and Rita, 2,500 of our soldiers and airmen were deployed to the
7Gulf Coast within a few days of the storm to provide
8communications, humanitarian assistance and force protection;
9and

10WHEREAS, In the last five years, the Pennsylvania National
11Guard activated just under 10,000 troops who spent more than
1237,000 duty days on State active duty missions, including
13several winter storms, hurricanes and other domestic support
14missions; and

15WHEREAS, In November 2012, more than 400 Pennsylvania
16National Guard members traveled to New York and New Jersey on a
17moment's notice to provide much-needed support. Their admirable
18performance garnered well-deserved recognition from both
19government officials and citizens of our neighbor states; and

20WHEREAS, After more than a decade of sustained high-tempo
21combat operations, the Pennsylvania National Guard continues to
22fight overseas and support regional domestic missions here at
23home; and

24WHEREAS, More than 500 Pennsylvania National Guard aviators
25are using their unrivaled technical expertise and experience to
26perform a spectrum of aviation operations throughout
27Afghanistan. Having flown in the skies of Iraq, Afghanistan and
28Kosovo continuously over the past decade, it is fitting that
29they have returned to Afghanistan during this pivotal moment in
30the transition of our military's presence there; and

1WHEREAS, In 2013, more than 1,500 Pennsylvania National Guard
2members performed base security missions in Kuwait, keeping
3United States troops, contractors and assets safe while the
4nation consolidates its footprint in the Middle East; and

5WHEREAS, In January 2013, more than 1,200 Pennsylvania
6soldiers and airmen participated in the time-honored tradition
7of supporting the inauguration of our President, assisting with
8crowd management, traffic control and logistical support; and

9WHEREAS, In 2013, members of the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat
10Team of the 28th Infantry Division carried on with the FEMA
11Region III Homeland Response Force mission, with the primary
12task of maintaining the capability to quickly respond to
13chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear events in the
14northeast United States, while maintaining the capability to
15respond to a broad range of disasters throughout our nation; and

16WHEREAS, In February 2013, 90 members of the 201st RED HORSE
17Squadron of the 193rd Special Operations Wing and the 252nd
18Engineer Company of the 213th Regional Support Group assisted
19with recovery efforts in Connecticut after Winter Storm Nemo,
20helping with closed roadways, stranded motorists, transportation
21of health care professionals to hospitals and checking on the
22welfare of area residents who were cut off from power, food or
23medical care; and

24WHEREAS, On March 23, 2014, 34 members of the 201st RED HORSE
25Squadron deployed as part of a 250-member deployment for an
26eight-month mission in Afghanistan and southwest Asia, focusing
27on construction and maintaining infrastructure throughout the
28country; and

29WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania National Guard has supported nearly
3035,000 individual deployments since September 11, 2001, making

1it one of the busiest and most heavily deployed National Guards
2in the United States; and

3WHEREAS, The continued support of the General Assembly has
4been and is critical to the success of the Pennsylvania National
5Guard; therefore be it

6RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives designate
7Wednesday, April 9, 2014, as "National Guard Day" in
8Pennsylvania; and be it further

9RESOLVED, That it is the intent of the House of
10Representatives to recognize the men and women of our armed
11forces for their dedicated service to this Commonwealth and this
12nation and commend them especially for the outstanding
13performance of their duties around the world, in the Global War
14on Terror and in response to natural disasters; and be it
15further

16RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives give thanks for
17the Pennsylvania National Guard and the service of generations
18of soldiers and airmen from across Pennsylvania from our days as
19a royal colony to the great Commonwealth we are today; and be it
20further

21RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be transmitted to
22the Governor and to The Adjutant General of Pennsylvania.