House Bill 9513

    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HR 9513

        By Representative Westbrook






  1                         House Resolution

  2         A resolution paying tribute to the memory of

  3         John Edward "Zeke" Bagley.

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  5         WHEREAS, John Edward "Zeke" Bagley, born in Cottondale

  6  on September 25, 1923, the son of George E. and Margaret

  7  Jarvis Bagley, demonstrated leadership ability and a winning

  8  spirit early in life, and

  9         WHEREAS, an excellent student, John Bagley was

10  salutatorian of his graduating high school class, where he was

11  president of the student body and a member of the Beta Club

12  and the 4-H Club, and

13         WHEREAS, entering the University of Florida on a full

14  academic scholarship, John Bagley left the university shortly

15  after the bombing of Pearl Harbor to volunteer as an aviation

16  cadet in what was then the United States Army Air Corps,

17  completing preflight training at Maxwell Training Center in

18  Montgomery, Alabama, and finishing flight training as a

19  navigator at the top of his class at Selman Field in Monroe,

20  Louisiana, and

21         WHEREAS, after serving a short stint in the

22  Mediterranean Theater, John Bagley was transferred to England

23  on special assignment for missions support to the Normandy

24  invasion, from where, on June 7, 1944, he embarked on an

25  exceedingly dangerous mission to deliver vital ammunition to

26  allied troops who had advanced from the beach and were engaged

27  in heavy combat, and

28         WHEREAS, before the crew could complete its mission,

29  the C-47 aircraft was hit by enemy fire, and John Edward

30  Bagley lost his life that day in the service of his country,

31  and

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HR 9513

    588-116-98






  1         WHEREAS, although over 50 years have passed, those who

  2  knew "Zeke" Bagley still remember him as a bright, gifted,

  3  well-liked young man with a promising future before him, who

  4  gave his all for the nation he served so willingly and so

  5  well, NOW, THEREFORE,

  6

  7  Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of

  8  Florida:

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10         That the House of Representatives pauses in its

11  deliberations to pay tribute to the memory of a remarkable

12  young man and to express its gratitude for the ultimate

13  sacrifice made by John Edward "Zeke" Bagley on behalf of his

14  country.

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