II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5016 

To designate the medical center of the Department of Veterans Affairs located 

in Anchorage, Alaska, as the ‘‘Colonel Mary Louise Rasmuson Campus 

of the Alaska VA Healthcare System’’, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 29, 2022 

Ms. MURKOWSKI (for herself and Mr. SULLIVAN) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

To designate the medical center of the Department of Veterans Affairs located in Anchorage, Alaska, as the ‘‘Colonel Mary Louise Rasmuson Campus of the Alaska VA 

Healthcare System’’, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Colonel Mary Louise 

5 Rasmuson Campus of the Alaska VA Healthcare System 

6 Act of 2022’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Mary Louise (Milligan) Rasmuson was born 

2 April 11, 1911, in East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 

3 (2) Mary Louise received a Bachelor of Science 

4 degree from the Carnegie Institute of Technology 

5 and a Master of Education degree from the Univer6 sity of Pittsburgh. 

7 (3) Mary Louise was one of the first two 

8 women to receive an Honorary Doctorate of Laws 

9 degree from the Carnegie Institute of Technology. 

10 (4) In 1942, Mary Louise joined the Women’s 

11 Army Auxiliary Corps as a Private and was in the 

12 first graduating class. 

13 (5) Mary Louise worked up the ranks, and in 

14 1957, President Dwight Eisenhower appointed Mary 

15 Louise as the Fifth Director of the Women’s Army 

16 Corps and she was reappointed to this position by 

17 President John F. Kennedy in 1961. 

18 (6) In 1962, Colonel Rasmuson retired from the 

19 Army. 

20 (7) Colonel Rasmuson was recognized for her 

21 outstanding service in the Women’s Army Corps 

22 with the Legion of Merit award with two Oak Leaf 

23 Clusters for her work in expanding the roles and du24 ties of women in the Army, as well as her role in 


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1 integrating Black women in the Women’s Army 

2 Corps. 

3 (8) Colonel Rasmuson became Director of the 

4 Women’s Army Corps during tumultuous times and 

5 is credited with enhancing the image and recruit6 ment of women into the Women’s Army Corps dur7 ing her years as the Director. 

8 (9) Colonel Rasmuson expanded opportunities 

9 for women to serve in assignments previously re10 served only for men, starting with the assignments 

11 of 12 enlisted women into the First Missile Master 

12 Unit at Fort Meade, Maryland. 

13 (10) Colonel Rasmuson was instrumental in en14 abling women to be promoted above the grade of E– 

15 7 into the highest enlisted ranks of the Army, E–8 

16 and E–9. 

17 (11) During her time in the Women’s Army 

18 Corps, Colonel Rasmuson was the guiding force be19 hind the Army opening up the college enlistment op20 tion to women under the self-enhancement programs 

21 and witnessed the first female enlisted member at22 tend college under those programs. 

23 (12) The career of Colonel Rasmuson also laid 

24 the groundwork for women to be fully integrated 


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1 into the United States Army when the Women’s 

2 Army Corps was disbanded in 1978. 

3 (13) In 1961, Mary Louise married a promi4 nent leader in Alaska, Elmer E. Rasmuson, and she 

5 was the first Director of the Women’s Army Corps 

6 to be married while serving in that position. 

7 (14) After her retirement from military service 

8 in 1962, Mary Louise moved to Alaska where she 

9 continued her leadership as a veteran in her commu10 nity in Alaska. 

11 (15) Mary Louise served as First Lady of An12 chorage after the devastating magnitude 9.2 earth13 quake in 1964, after her husband, Elmer, was elect14 ed as mayor, serving from 1964 to 1967. 

15 (16) Mary Louise was an advocate of social jus16 tice, education, and the arts during her 45 years of 

17 work on the Board of the Rasmuson Foundation. 

18 (17) Mary Louise served as the Honorary Chair 

19 and was a major founder to renovate the Anchorage 

20 Veterans Memorial on the Delaney Parkstrip in 

21 downtown Anchorage. 

22 (18) Mary Louise also contributed to the Army 

23 Women’s Museum, the National Museum of the 

24 American Indian, and the National Museum of the 

25 United States Army. 


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1 (19) Mary Louise was the Chair of the Anchor2 age Museum Foundation and helped establish the 

3 museum in Anchorage, serving as its Chair for 21 

4 years. 

5 (20) On July 30, 2012, Mary Louise died at 

6 her home in Anchorage, at the age of 101, but her 

7 legacy of character and leadership will endure as an 

8 example to all who serve in the United States mili9 tary. 

10 SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF COLONEL MARY LOUISE 

11 RASMUSON CAMPUS OF THE ALASKA VA 

12 HEALTHCARE SYSTEM. 

13 (a) DESIGNATION.—The medical center of the De14 partment of Veterans Affairs in Anchorage, Alaska, shall, 

15 after the date of the enactment of this Act, be known and 

16 designated as the ‘‘Colonel Mary Louise Rasmuson Cam17 pus of the Alaska VA Healthcare System’’. 

18 (b) REFERENCE.—Any reference in any law, regula19 tion, map, document, paper, or other record of the United 

20 States to the medical center referred to in subsection (a) 

21 shall be considered to be a reference to the Colonel Mary 

22 Louise Rasmuson Campus of the Alaska VA Healthcare 

23 System. 


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