Communications Division
State Capitol
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73105

For Immediate Release: June 17, 2003

Audio Clip

Senator Jim Reynolds

Ceremonies Planned for Dedication of “Pearl Harbor/U.S.S. Oklahoma” Memorial Highway

A special ceremony is being planned just before Independence Day to honor Americans who served at Pearl Harbor during the infamous December 7th, 1941 attack. Senator Jim Reynolds announced the event will be held July 3rd to celebrate the dedication of the “Pearl Harbor/U.S.S. Oklahoma Memorial Highway.”

“It is an honor to help bring attention to the more than 500 Americans who were serving on the U.S.S. Oklahoma when Pearl Harbor was attacked. 429 men died that day. A few dozen were able to jump into the water when the ship capsized and get rescued. Another 32 trapped inside the ship were rescued just as the water was rushing in, nearly drowning them. Yet many Oklahomans are not familiar with their story,” said Reynolds, R-OKC.

Senator Reynolds was the author of Senate Bill 280 aimed at honoring those veterans by renaming a section of State Highway 77H as the “Pearl Harbor/USS Oklahoma Memorial Highway.” The designated section runs from the intersection of State Highway 77H from the intersection with State Highway 9 in Cleveland County north to the I-240 intersection in Oklahoma County.

The dedication ceremony will be held at 10 a.m., July 3rd at I-240 and Sooner Road. Senator Reynolds said several World War II veterans plan on attending the event, including survivors from Pearl Harbor and the U.S.S. Oklahoma.

A reception will be held after the ceremony at the South Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, 701 S.W. 74th. The reception will take place from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and is being co-hosted by the South Oklahoma City Chamber and Southwest Airlines. World War II artifacts from Pearl Harbor and the U.S.S. Oklahoma will be on display. Senator Reynolds said the public is invited to attend both events.

“George Washington once said ‘The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive the Veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their nation.’

“Those words were spoken over 200 years ago, but they ring just as true today. It may seem like a small thing to some, but renaming this highway is a very visible tribute to those brave Americans who served on the U.S.S. Oklahoma,” said Senator Reynolds.



For more information, contact:
Senate Communications Division - (405) 521-5774