S. 3285 

One Hundred Eighteenth Congress 

of the 

United States of America 

AT THE SECOND SESSION 

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday, 

the third day of January, two thousand and twenty four 

An Act 

To rename the community-based outpatient clinic of the Department of Veterans 

Affairs in Butte, Montana, as the ‘‘Charlie Dowd VA Clinic’’. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 

the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 

Congress finds the following: 

(1) Charles ‘‘Charlie’’ Arthur Dowd was born on December 

23, 1923, in Rochester, New York. 

(2) In January 1941, during his senior year of high school, 

Charlie enlisted for service at sea in the Navy, where he was 

trained as a radioman and later stationed at Pearl Harbor, 

Hawaii. 

(3) On December 7, 1941, just after completing a night 

shift, Charlie and United States Naval forces positioned at 

Pearl Harbor came under attack by more than 300 enemy 

aircraft belonging to the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service. 

(4) During the attack on the heart of the United States 

Pacific Fleet, which would severely damage 21 ships and claim 

the lives of 2,400 Americans, Charlie emerged in only his 

t-shirt and trousers and sprinted from the barracks to the 

armory, where he climbed to the roof with a .30–06 Springfield 

rifle to fire at the Japanese pilots of low-flying torpedo bombers. 

(5) Following his bravery at Pearl Harbor, Charlie would 

go on to continue serving the Navy in both the Solomon Islands 

and New Guinea, where his fellow shipmates would give him 

the nickname of ‘‘Devil Dog Dowd’’, for his unwavering willingness to volunteer for the most dangerous mission assignments. 

(6) During the course of his service in the Navy, Charlie 

was awarded seven Bronze Star Medals. 

(7) After Charlie received an honorable discharge from 

the Navy, he returned to the United States, where he worked 

in masonry and carpentry construction, before completing his 

degree at the University of Florida. Upon graduation, he spent 

the next 18 years passing on his knowledge of industrial arts 

and drafting to high school students. 

(8) In 1984, as an avid sportsman with a passion for 

the outdoors, Charlie later relocated to Anaconda, Montana. 

(9) Charlie was a vibrant and cherished member of the 

local community in Anaconda, where he became the Secretary 

of the Anaconda Sportsmen’s Club and the Outdoor Writer 

for the Anaconda Leader newspaper. 

(10) Charlie was forever an advocate for his fellow veterans 

and dedicated to preserving the memory of the events of World 
S. 3285—2 

War II and those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for their 

country. Until his dying days, Charlie was an active member 

of the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association and loved speaking 

for civic groups and museums across Montana. 

SEC. 2. DESIGNATION OF CHARLIE DOWD VA CLINIC. 

(a) DESIGNATION.—The community-based outpatient clinic of 

the Department of Veterans Affairs in Butte, Montana, shall after 

the date of the enactment of this Act be known and designated 

as the ‘‘Charlie Dowd Department of Veterans Affairs Clinic’’ or 

the ‘‘Charlie Dowd VA Clinic’’. 

(b) REFERENCE.—Any reference in any law, regulation, map, 

document, paper, or other record of the United States to the community-based outpatient clinic referred to in subsection (a) shall be 

considered to be a reference to the Charlie Dowd VA Clinic. 

Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

Vice President of the United States and

President of the Senate.