[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 645 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 645
To award a Congressional Gold Medal, collectively, to the individuals
and communities who volunteered or donated items to the North Platte
Canteen in North Platte, Nebraska, during World War II from December
25, 1941, to April 1, 1946.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 20, 2025
Mrs. Fischer (for herself and Mr. Ricketts) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To award a Congressional Gold Medal, collectively, to the individuals
and communities who volunteered or donated items to the North Platte
Canteen in North Platte, Nebraska, during World War II from December
25, 1941, to April 1, 1946.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``North Platte Canteen Congressional
Gold Medal Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) Home-front volunteerism was integral to the victory of
the United States during World War II. Numerous exemplars of
patriotism emerged throughout the Midwest, galvanizing the
rural United States and the rest of the country supporting the
war effort.
(2) The North Platte Canteen in North Platte, Nebraska, was
one of the largest volunteer efforts of World War II.
(3) Canteen services boosted morale in the United States by
providing free, wholesome entertainment to troops traveling
across the country. Approximately 120 community-based canteens
operated in the United States during World War II.
(4) The North Platte Canteen greeted and served food to
approximately 6,000,000 United States troops traveling across
the United States from December 25, 1941, to April 1, 1946.
(5) On December 17, 1941, the residents of North Platte,
Nebraska, received information that a train of Nebraska
National Guardsmen would be traveling through North Platte en
route to the West Coast of the United States. Although the
train carried members of the Kansas National Guard, residents
of the community welcomed the men from Kansas with food and
other items as an appreciation for their service.
(6) On December 18, 1941, Rae Wilson, of North Platte,
proposed to her community the idea of establishing the North
Platte Canteen so that residents could greet United States
troops en route to serving the United States in the European
Theater or the Pacific Theater.
(7) 55,000 individuals, the majority of whom were women,
from 125 communities in Nebraska, Colorado, and Kansas donated
food and volunteered at the North Platte Canteen for
approximately 5 years.
(8) The North Platte Canteen provided hospitality to as
many as 24 troop trains per day. During a 1-month period, the
volunteers at the Canteen served over 40,000 homemade cookies,
30,000 hard-boiled eggs, 6,500 doughnuts, 4,000 loaves of
bread, 3,000 pounds of meat, 450 pounds of cheese, 60 quarts of
peanut butter, 1,350 pounds of coffee, 1,000 quarts of cream,
750 dozen rolls, and 600 birthday cakes.
(9) The North Platte Canteen principally operated at the
Union Pacific Railroad station in North Platte, Nebraska, with
volunteers from local communities, organizations, churches,
schools, and other groups, and without Federal assistance.
(10) $137,000 in cash contributions supported the
operations of the North Platte Canteen for almost 5 years. The
funds were raised through benefit dances, scrap-metal drives,
school victory clubs, donation cans in local businesses, and
from the relatives of troops who traveled through the North
Platte area.
(11) In December 1943, the North Platte Canteen was honored
by the United States Army with the presentation of the
Meritorious Wartime Service Award by the Secretary of War.
(12) In 2004, the 108th Congress passed a resolution
recognizing the heroic efforts of those who made enormous
sacrifices to make the North Platte Canteen a success during
World War II.
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
(a) Presentation Authorized.--The Speaker of the House of
Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall make
appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on behalf of Congress,
of a gold medal of appropriate design to the individuals and
communities who volunteered or donated items to the North Platte
Canteen in North Platte, Nebraska, during World War II.
(b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the presentation
described in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (referred to
in this Act as the ``Secretary'') shall strike a gold medal with
suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the
Secretary.
(c) Lincoln County Historical Museum.--Following the presentation
described in subsection (a), the gold medal shall be given to the
Lincoln County Historical Museum in North Platte, Nebraska, where the
medal shall be available for display as appropriate and made available
for research.
SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold
medal struck under section 3, at a price sufficient to cover the costs
of the medals, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and
overhead expenses.
SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS.
(a) National Medals.--Medals struck under this Act are national
medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
(b) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 of
title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under this Act shall be
considered to be numismatic items.
SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.
(a) Authority To Use Fund Amounts.--There is authorized to be
charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund such
amounts as may be necessary to pay for the costs of the medals struck
under this Act.
(b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of duplicate
bronze medals authorized under section 4 shall be deposited into the
United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
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