S.C.R. No. 50         SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION   WHEREAS, The Texas Legislative Medal of Honor was established   to recognize gallant and intrepid service by a member of the state   or federal military forces, and U.S. Army Private Marcelino Serna   and U.S. Coast Guard Seaman Apprentice William Ray Flores proved   themselves deserving recipients of this prestigious honor with   their heroic actions in the service of their nation; and          WHEREAS, Born in Mexico, Mr. Serna came to the United States   as a young man; when the United States entered World War I in 1917,   he enlisted in the U.S. Army at the age of 20, and after only three   weeks of training, he was shipped overseas with the 355th Infantry,   89th Division; when his officers in France learned that he was not a   U.S. citizen, they gave him the opportunity to return home, but   Private Serna chose to stay and fight; and          WHEREAS, A remarkable soldier, Private Serna demonstrated   exceptional resourcefulness and courage during an engagement near   the French town of St. Mihiel; when 12 members of his unit were   gunned down by the enemy, he volunteered to scout the machine gun   emplacement on his own; moving through heavy fire and surviving two   rounds that were deflected by his helmet, he tossed four hand   grenades into the machine gun nest, killing six of the enemy   combatants; he then took the eight survivors captive; and          WHEREAS, Shortly thereafter, during the Meuse-Argonne   campaign, Private Serna volunteered again for a lone scouting   mission, wounding a German sniper with a shot from 200 yards and   then following the injured man into a trench; firing and hurling   grenades in all directions to make it seem as if he were part of a   larger force, he shot three German soldiers immediately, then   attacked an enemy dugout, felling 26 more and capturing 24; he   single-handedly held the prisoners at gunpoint until other members   of his unit arrived; and          WHEREAS, Private Serna served in combat until the end of the   war and was wounded in each leg, and while recovering in a French   hospital, he received the Distinguished Service Cross from General   John J. Pershing; he also earned the World War I Victory Medal with   five stars, the Victory Medal with three campaign bars, the   St. Mihiel Medal, the Verdun Medal, and two Purple Hearts, as well   as decorations from the governments of France, Italy, and the   United Kingdom; he became a U.S. citizen in 1924 and settled in El   Paso, where he resided until his death in 1992; the most decorated   Texas veteran of World War I, he won every major military award   short of the Congressional Medal of Honor, and petitions have been   put forth to grant him that commendation as well; and          WHEREAS, William Ray Flores was born in Carlsbad, New Mexico,   in 1961; he attended Western Hills High School in Benbrook, Texas,   and he left school early in order to enlist in the U.S. Coast Guard   at the age of 17; he served aboard the buoy tender Blackthorn, and   on the night of January 28, 1980, the ship was leaving Tampa,   Florida, on route to its home port of Galveston when it collided   with a 600-foot tanker, the SS Capricorn; the Blackthorn's hull was   ripped open along the port side by the Capricorn's anchor, and the   vessel began to take on water and roll onto its side; and          WHEREAS, In the chaos and darkness, Seaman Apprentice Flores   and a shipmate found the locker that held the ship's life jackets,   and they began throwing jackets to their crewmates already in the   water; Seaman Apprentice Flores used his trouser belt to strap the   locker open so that more jackets could float free as the Blackthorn   sank, and after nearly everyone else had abandoned ship, he stayed   aboard and attempted to save those who were still trapped below   deck; he lost his life in that effort, along with 22 of his   shipmates; and          WHEREAS, Through his selfless actions, Seaman Apprentice   Flores helped save 27 of his shipmates, and in September 2000, he   was posthumously awarded the Coast Guard Medal, the service's   highest commendation for noncombat heroism; in 2012, the Coast   Guard fast response cutter William Flores was named in his honor,   and on the 40th anniversary of the Blackthorn's accident in January   2020, a life-size statue of Seaman Apprentice Flores was unveiled   at a ceremony in St. Petersburg, Florida; and          WHEREAS, Marcelino Serna and William Flores each   demonstrated uncommon courage, initiative, and devotion to their   comrades during desperate situations, and it is indeed appropriate   that they be honored with the highest military award granted by the   state that is proud to call them Texans; now, therefore, be it          RESOLVED, That the 87th Legislature of the State of Texas   hereby direct the governor of the State of Texas to posthumously   award the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor to Marcelino Serna in   recognition of his valiant efforts during World War I and to William   Ray Flores in recognition of his heroism during the sinking of the   USCGC Blackthorn.       ______________________________ ______________________________      President of the Senate Speaker of the House              ______________________________ ______________________________      President of the Senate Speaker of the House                 I hereby certify that S.C.R. No. 50 was adopted by the Senate   on May 21, 2021, by the following vote:  Yeas 31, Nays 0.   ______________________________                                               Secretary of the Senate          I hereby certify that S.C.R. No. 50 was adopted by the House   on May 29, 2021, by the following vote:  Yeas 140, Nays 0,   one present not voting.   ______________________________                                               Chief Clerk of the House       Approved:     ______________________________                Date       ______________________________              Governor