HR0353 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0353 LRB095 11986 GRL 35495 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Kenneth Kays grew up in the southern Illinois community of Fairfield; and

WHEREAS, Ken Kays was drafted and joined the Army in the fall of 1969 as a medic in the 101st Airborne Division; and

WHEREAS, On May 6, 1970, medic Ken Kays joined up with the 2nd Platoon, Delta Company who had only the day before arrived in Maureen to fighting which resulted in the loss of the Platoon's medic, thus requiring medic Ken Kays to replace him; and

WHEREAS, On May 6th, the 2nd Platoon spent the day searching through enemy bunkers further down the hill from Fire Support Base Maureen; and

WHEREAS, The fateful decision was made to have the 2nd Platoon venture back up the hill to make camp for the night in what was thought to have been a "safer" position; this decision to make camp up near FSB Maureen resulted in the 2nd Platoon being separated from the rest of Delta Company; and

WHEREAS, The 2nd Platoon, consisting of 21 men, including medic Ken Kays, was now stretched over a large area, leaving dangerous gaps, prepared to get some much needed rest; and

WHEREAS, In the early morning hours of May 7th, the North Vietnamese Army infiltrated the camp and set satchel charges around the camp prior to opening fire with their AK-47s; and

WHEREAS, The rest of Delta Company heard the explosions and gunfire and began to make their way back up the ridge, but was ambushed and pushed back to their original position thus leaving the 2nd Platoon to fight alone; and

WHEREAS, Upon hearing his fellow soldiers screaming in pain, medic Ken Kays bolted into action; and while running across the perimeter to help a wounded soldier, a satchel charge was activated at medic Ken Kays' feet, propelling him several feet in the air; and

WHEREAS, Undeterred from his mission, medic Ken Kays rose and started to run again only to discover he had lost the lower portion of his left leg. He then applied a tourniquet to his injured leg and continued to hop and crawl his way around the perimeter to give aid to wounded soldiers; and

WHEREAS, Medic Ken Kays, despite his own injury, continued to seek out and move wounded soldiers to safety; and partially due to his actions only 7 of the 21 men died at FSB Maureen; and

WHEREAS, In a platoon of only 21 men, the four highest awards for heroism would be given for their actions on that day thus suggesting the intensity of the struggle that early morning at Maureen; and

WHEREAS, These awards were: the Congressional Medal of Honor to Kenneth Kays, the Distinguished Service Cross to Kenneth David, the Silver Star to Greg Phillips, and the Bronze Star with "V" device to Steve "Greek" Avgerinos; and there were more than a dozen Purple Hearts awarded for wounds received in the battle; and

WHEREAS, Upon daybreak, Delta Company ventured back up the ridge to re-join the 2nd Platoon, a soldier from the company found a half-conscious medic Ken Kays laying on top of two wounded soldiers in an attempt to offer protection; and

WHEREAS, Although hovering near death from loss of blood, medic Ken Kays refused to be placed on a helicopter until the two other severely wounded men were placed there too; and

WHEREAS, Although medic Ken Kays actions that day were rewarded with a military honor, he had an antiwar stance that often led to public scrutiny right up until his death in 1991; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize the heroic actions of medic Ken Kays during his service in the Vietnam War; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the City of Fairfield to be displayed in the local museum.