Maloney Takes to House Floor to Urge Passage of His National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Bill

On Wednesday September 18, 2019, Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18) took to the House floor to urge the passage of his bill, the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act. The bill currently has 306 bipartisan cosponsors and is expected to be considered on the House floor tomorrow afternoon.

Rep. Maloney’s bill will honor the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor – located within his Congressional District in New Windsor, NY - with a commemorative coin provided by the U.S. Mint, and produced at the United States Mint at West Point. Proceeds from the program would be directed to the Purple Heart Hall of Honor, Inc. for projects and programs at the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor that help preserve the memory and sacrifices of our servicemen and women who were wounded or killed in combat.

More information about the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act can be found here.

A video clip of Representative Maloney's speech can be seen here.  and a transcript can be read below:

"Madame Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act which is scheduled for a vote on the House floor tomorrow.

You know - George Washington himself created the Purple Heart, in the closing days of the Revolutionary War.

Since it was revived to honor veterans of World War I, it has been awarded to nearly two million brave service men and women.

Yet there is no comprehensive list of Purple Heart recipients. So the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor located in my district in New Windsor New York was created to collect and preserve the names and stories of the men and women wounded or killed in service of our nation.

The proceeds of this coin, which will be produced nearby at the West Point Mint, will support the hall in their critical mission along with other programs that help veterans and their families.

Today, I am thinking of two men who inspired our work on this bill. One was my dad, who was a Navy veteran who was hurt on the USS Manchester and who taught me the reverence we must have for our servicemen and women. And the other was Republican Senator Bill Larkin, a New York State Senator and dear friend who passed away just days ago. He and I worked closely to advance the mission of the hall.

I also want to thank the Military Order of the Purple Heart and volunteers like Stephanie Keegan who helped round up 300 of our colleagues in support of this important legislation and who will make tomorrow’s vote a reality.

Thank you all. I yield back."

 

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Submitted by Carmel, NY

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