HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 733 Offered January 10, 2007 Prefiled January 10, 2007 Celebrating the life of Sergeant Brandon Scott Asbury. ---------- Patrons-- Bowling, Crockett-Stark, Johnson and Scott, J.M. ----------

WHEREAS, United States Army Sergeant Brandon Scott Asbury of Tazewell died in the line of duty in Baghdad, Iraq, on October 7, 2006; and

WHEREAS, a 2004 graduate of Tazewell High School, Brandon Asbury sang in the choir, played drums in the marching band, was elected grand marshal for homecoming his senior year, and went straight to basic training after graduation; and

WHEREAS, in deciding to join the military, Brandon Asbury followed in the footsteps of his father, Walter Asbury, a sergeant with 20 years' service in the Virginia National Guard who completed a yearlong tour of duty in Iraq in February 2005; and

WHEREAS, Sergeant Asbury served as a medic and gunner with the 4th Support Battalion, 1st Brigade, 4th Infantry Division based at Fort Hood, Texas; and

WHEREAS, on October 7, 2006, one day after being promoted to sergeant, Sergeant Asbury's unit was engaged in setting up a roadside checkpoint when it came under small-arms fire; and

WHEREAS, Sergeant Asbury was devoted to his wife, Sherri, and his three stepdaughters, as well as to his parents and his sister and brother; and

WHEREAS, Sergeant Asbury will be fondly remembered for his love of camping, hunting, and fishing and for his great sense of humor and desire to make others laugh; and

WHEREAS, Sergeant Asbury's death is a reminder of the hazards faced daily by the thousands of young Americans who serve in our armed forces overseas and whose devotion to duty places them in harm's way; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of a courageous and patriotic Virginian, Sergeant Brandon Scott Asbury; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Sergeant Brandon Scott Asbury as an expression of the high regard in which his memory is held by the members of the General Assembly and the citizens of Virginia.