SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 53

(By Senators Prezioso, Stollings, Palumbo, Williams, Leonhardt and Yost)

Recognizing Major General James A. Hoyer for winning the 2015 Spirit of the Mountains - Lewis N. McManus Youth Leadership Association Service Award.

            Whereas, The Youth Leadership Association's Youth in Government program, created in 1958 by the late Governor Cecil Underwood, will celebrate its 58th Anniversary with the Youth in Government Student Legislature and Supreme Court at the Capitol in these chambers on April 24 - 26, 2015; and

            Whereas, The student officers of the Youth Leadership Association's Youth in Government program represents hundreds of young West Virginians preparing for lifelong citizenship and taking volunteer actions today to build better futures all across the Mountain State; and

            Whereas, The Youth Leadership Association's Youth in Government program has established the Spirit of the Mountains - Lewis N. McManus Youth Leadership Association Service Award to annually recognize a person whose life reflects the values of the Youth Leadership Association and the life of former House Speaker McManus; and

            Whereas, The winner of the Spirit of the Mountains - Lewis N. McManus Youth Leadership Association Service Award demonstrates a lifelong commitment to helping others, hard work, education, responsible citizenship and building futures for all, especially youth; and

            Whereas, Former winners of the Spirit of the Mountains - Lewis N. McManus Youth Leadership Association Service Award include: Jessica Lynch (2004), Cecil Underwood (2005), Ed Maier (2006), David and Susan Hardesty (2007), John D. Rockefeller, IV (2008), Bill Raney (2009), Gayle Manchin (2010), James "Buck" Harless (2011), David King (2012), Gaston Caperton (2013) and Sylvia Mathews Burwell (2014); and

            Whereas, The winner of the 2015 Spirit of the Mountains - Lewis N. McManus Youth Leadership Association Service Award is Major General James A. Hoyer, Adjutant General of the West Virginia Joint Forces Headquarters; and

            Whereas, Major General Hoyer is a former senior staff member to the Speaker of the House of Delegates; and

            Whereas, Major General Hoyer received his undergraduate degree from the University of Charleston and was commissioned through a joint Reserve Officer Training Corps program with West Virginia State University; and

            Whereas, Major General Hoyer began his military career in the West Virginia National Guard as a Calvary Officer, attended the Special Forces Officer Qualification course, and spent more than 14 years with the 2nd Battalion, 19th Special Forces group; and

            Whereas, Major General Hoyer led the development of the West Virginia National Guard Counterdrug Task Force and the Joint Interagency Training and Education Center and its Center for National Response; and

            Whereas, Major General Hoyer is an extraordinary leader of his agency's Mountaineer Challenge Academy, which focuses on training and mentoring at-risk youth in a tough environment, and has given 3,000 cadets the opportunity to become contributing members of society through a 22-week residential and one-year post-residential follow-up quasi military program of lifestyle changes, respect, teamwork, peer counseling, education and just plain hard work; and

            Whereas, Major General Hoyer currently provides command guidance and vision to the West Virginia Army and Air National Guard of more than 6,000 Citizen Soldiers and Airmen, and supervises the day-to-day operation and management of the readiness, fiscal, personnel, equipment and real property resources; and

            Whereas, The Senate appreciates the outstanding contributions of Major General Hoyer to the State of West Virginia as an advocate for helping others, hard work, education, responsible citizenship and building futures for all, especially youth; therefore, be it

            Resolved by the Senate:

            That the Senate hereby recognizes Major General James A. Hoyer for winning the 2015 Spirit of the Mountains - Lewis N. McManus Youth Leadership Association Service Award; and, be it

            Further Resolved, That the Clerk is hereby directed to forward a copy of this resolution to the appropriate officials of the Youth Leadership Association and to Major General James A. Hoyer.