HR 2170
To name the Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic in Toms River, New Jersey, the Leonard G. 'Bud' Lomell, VA Clinic, and for other purposes.
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Bill overview
This bill officially names the Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic in Toms River, New Jersey, the Leonard G. ‘Bud’ Lomell, VA Clinic. The bill recognizes the service and heroism of Second Lieutenant Leonard G. Lomell, a World War II veteran from Toms River, who received numerous awards for his actions at Pointe du Hoc. This naming honors his contributions to the Allied victory and his dedication to the community.
Key provisions
- Designates the Toms River VA clinic as the Leonard G. ‘Bud’ Lomell VA Clinic.
- Specifies that all references to the clinic should be updated to reflect the new name.
- Recognizes Second Lieutenant Leonard G. Lomell’s service during World War II.
- Highlights Lomell’s actions at Pointe du Hoc, including destroying enemy artillery.
- Details Lomell’s post-war contributions to the community, including service in the Veteran’s Service Bureau and various civic organizations.
- Mentions Lomell’s recognition in historical accounts and publications.
- Acknowledges Lomell’s receipt of the Distinguished Service Cross, Purple Heart, and Silver Star.
- Notes Lomell’s role as National Commander of the Legion of Valor.
Who is affected
- Veterans
- Department of Veterans Affairs
- Residents of Toms River, New Jersey
- Ocean County, New Jersey
- Families of Second Lieutenant Leonard G. Lomell
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119th CONGRESS — 1st Session
H. R. 2170
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
A BILL
To name the Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic in Toms River, New Jersey, the Leonard G. 'Bud' Lomell, VA Clinic, and for other purposes.
Congress finds the following:
The Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic, a state-of-the-art facility serving the region’s largest veteran population, located at 1055 Hooper Avenue, recently opened in the Township of Toms River, Ocean County, New Jersey, in the Fourth Congressional District.
The local community, including veterans, believe that this facility deserves to be named in honor of Second Lieutenant Leonard G. Bud
Lomell, a long time Toms River and Ocean County resident, who served courageously and heroically during World War II.
Second Lieutenant Lomell was born in 1920, the adopted son of Scandinavian immigrant parents living in Brooklyn, New York, and his family eventually moved to Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey.
After graduating from Tennessee Wesleyan College, Second Lieutenant Lomell was drafted into the Army, serving first with the 76th (Liberty Bell) Infantry Division. When the 2nd Ranger Battalion was formed in April 1943, Leonard Lomell was invited to be the First Sergeant of D Company.
On D-Day, June 6, 1944, First Sergeant Lomell’s platoon landed at Pointe du Hoc, Normandy, France, successfully scaling the cliffs, despite a withering German defensive barrage.
Pointe du Hoc, a rugged 100-foot-high coastal promenade along the English Channel was located between the American landing beaches, Omaha and Utah. It was heavily defended by the Germans and the mission of Colonel James Earl Rudder’s 225 Rangers was to disable five 155-millimeter artillery guns, which could have rained artillery fire on the American forces landing on either beach, jeopardizing the invasion.
First Sergeant Lomell and another Ranger, Sergeant Jack Kuhn, found the guns undefended, and, with Kuhn providing cover, Lomell destroyed the weapons with thermite grenades and used his rifle butt to smash the sights of the guns.
First Sergeant Lomell subsequently received a battlefield promotion to Second Lieutenant, and was awarded some of the Army’s highest honors, including the Distinguished Service Cross, Purple Heart, and Silver Star.
Renowned historian Steven Ambrose regarded First Sergeant Lomell’s valiant acts along with General Eisenhower’s decision to invade on June 6, 1944, as the most significant actions ensuring the Allied victory on D-Day.
Following World War II, Second Lieutenant Lomell was appointed as the First Director of the newly organized Ocean County Veteran’s Service Bureau, serving from 1946 until 1948, before he attended law school on the G.I. Bill.
Second Lieutenant Lomell is profiled in The Greatest Generation
, former NBC news Anchor Tom Brokaw’s testament to the heroes of World War II, and Len Lomell: D-Day Hero
, Steven M. Gillon’s entry in the American War Heroes Series.
As a decorated war hero, model citizen, and dedicated husband and father, Second Lieutenant Lomell is exceedingly deserving of the posthumous honor of having a new and long-awaited Toms River-based Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic named in his honor.
The community-based outpatient clinic of the Department of Veterans Affairs in Toms River, New Jersey, shall, after the date of the enactment of this Act, be known and designated as the Leonard G.
. Any reference to such clinic in any law, regulation, map, document, record, or other paper of the United States shall be considered to be a reference to the Leonard G. Bud
Lomell VA ClinicBud
Lomell VA Clinic.