senators and representatives.
American Cold War Veterans, Inc. www.americancoldwarvets.org
307 Preble St
South Portland, ME 04106 207-799-5491 email: jerterw@hotmail.com
WHEREAS, millions of unrecognized American troops served overseas around the globe in waging and winning a clear-cut victory in the Cold War (1945-1991); and
WHEREAS, Cold War Veterans were in the forefront of the worldwide struggle to defeat international communism since its inception; and
WHEREAS, There were Cold War flashpoints recognized by the Army of Occupation Medal, China and offshore waters under the China Service Medal (1945-1957), as well as 17 distinct military actions (1958-1983) covered by the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal; and
WHEREAS, Many Americans lost their lives in hostile incidents with Soviets and their surrogates, Chinese, North Koreans and Cuban-supported insurgents along the Iron, Bamboo and Cactus Curtains (over and above the full-fledged wars in Korea and Vietnam) and other combat endeavors; and
WHEREAS, uncounted numbers of the United States military enforced the containment policy in inhospitable environments ranging from the shores of Greenland, the barren Aleutian islands, North Pacific skies, depths of the Arctic Ocean, Latin American jungles, as well as those countless numbers of members who served in CONUS, often in remote and isolated locations, to remote outposts stretching from Ethiopia to Pakistan, without official or public recognition; and
WHEREAS, The end of the Cold War brought freedom to many millions of people, and save countless lives with the end of the harsh and brutal
rule of the totalitarian communist regime, thus bringing a peace dividend that cannot be calculated; and
WHEREAS, an all-encompassing precedent (Public Law 104-3) as has been set with the universal opening of membership to all veterans of Korea war service regardless of direct exposure to enemy attack; and
WHEREAS, as a matter of fairness and a means of rectifying a continuing injustice to Americans who performed arduous duty during the Cold War in most cases equal to that of combat, closing this gap in Cold War recognition, is the right thing to do for our veterans; and,
WHEREAS, Congress has currently proposed two pieces of legislation S.402 and H.R. 1968 that provide for the award of a military service medal to members of the armed forces who served honorably during the Cold War and assisted in its final successful outcome; now therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Cold War Veterans, that we support the federal legislation to award a Cold War Service Medal to veterans who were involved in that historical endeavor.
Jerald Terwilliger
National Chairman
American Cold War Veterans
"We Remember"
---------------- "And so the greatest of American triumphs... became a peculiarly joyless victory. We had won the Cold War, but there would be no parades." -- Robert M. Gates, 1996
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