WASHINGTON -- Before heading home for Memorial Day weekend, the U.S. Senate on Thursday approved legislation naming the Perryville post office after a Perry County native who was killed by his captors in Vietnam.
The U.S. House of Representatives had already voted to name the post office at 201 B St. in Perryville after Army Staff Sgt. Harold George Bennett.
The bill will become law if it is signed by President Barack Obama.
Bennett, a native of Thornburg, was executed June 25, 1965, after repeatedly trying to escape from a prisoner of war camp.
He was the first member of the U.S. armed forces to be killed in captivity by the Viet Cong. The U.S. government called the slaying a "wanton act of murder" and a violation of the Geneva Conventions.
Just 24 years old, his remains were never returned. He is one of 1,620 U.S. servicemen from the war, including 15 Arkansans, who remain unaccounted for, according to the Department of Defense.
An Army Ranger, Bennett had volunteered to serve. As a military adviser, he worked with members of the South Vietnamese military. On Dec. 29, 1964, he and the others came under heavy fire southeast of Saigon.
With enemy forces closing in, he radioed his comrades and told them not to attempt a helicopter rescue, warning that it was too dangerous.
He was one of three Americans captured that day. Survivors praised Bennett's bravery on the battlefield and the courage he displayed in the months that followed.
In 2004, Bennett was inducted into the U.S. Army Ranger Hall of Fame at Fort Benning, Ga. Six years later, he was posthumously awarded the Silver Star, the nation's third-highest combat decoration.
Former U.S. Rep. Tim Griffin, R-Ark., introduced legislation in 2014 to rename the post office in Bennett's honor, but it died in the Senate after passing the House.
Griffin's successor, French Hill, reintroduced the measure last year. The other three congressmen from Arkansas co-sponsored it.
On April 18, the House approved House Resolution 2928.
U.S. Sen. John Boozman, who had introduced identical legislation, helped guide HR2928 through the Senate.
The Rogers Republican said the soldier deserves to be remembered.
"Sergeant Bennett's story of courage, patriotism and sacrifice should be preserved for future generations. This recognition is important to the community he called home and a tribute to our nation's appreciation for his selfless service," Boozman said in a written statement.
Hill said he's pleased passage came when it did.
"I can think of no better time to honor the life of one of Arkansas's great war heroes than Memorial Day Weekend," the Little Rock Republican said in a written statement. "I want to thank Senator Boozman for moving this bill swiftly through the Senate, and I look forward to the President signing it into law so that Sergeant Harold George Bennett can receive the lasting tribute he deserves for his brave service to our great Nation."
The Perryville post office legislation was approved three days after the House voted to rename the post office in Hot Springs National Park after Chief Petty Officer Adam Brown.
A member of the Navy's SEAL Team Six, Brown died during battle March 17, 2010, in the mountains of Afghanistan. The bill honoring Brown is awaiting action in the Senate.
Metro on 05/30/2016