II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1468 

To designate the arboretum at the Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical 

Center in Richmond, Virginia, as the ‘‘Phyllis E. Galanti Arboretum’’. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 22, 2015 

Mr. WARNER (for himself, Mr. MCCAIN, and Mr. KAINE) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

To designate the arboretum at the Hunter Holmes McGuire 

VA Medical Center in Richmond, Virginia, as the ‘‘Phyllis E. Galanti Arboretum’’. 

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

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 

4 Congress makes the following findings: 

5 (1) Phyllis Eason Galanti, a tireless advocate 

6 for the rights of prisoners of war from the United 

7 States during the Vietnam War and a beloved mem8 ber of the Richmond, Virginia, community, died on 

9 April 23, 2014. 


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1 (2) Ms. Eason graduated from the College of 

2 William and Mary in 1963 and shortly afterward 

3 was married to Paul Edward Galanti, a pilot with 

4 the United States Navy, at the Chapel of the Centu5 rion in Fort Monroe, Virginia. 

6 (3) In June 1966, when Mr. Galanti was shot 

7 down over North Vietnam, captured, and held pris8 oner, Phyllis E. Galanti became active in the Na9 tional League of Families of American Prisoners 

10 and Missing in Southeast Asia, soon becoming chair 

11 of the organization. 

12 (4) Mrs. Galanti spearheaded the Let’s Bring 

13 Paul Galanti Home project as part of the national 

14 Write Hanoi campaign— 

15 (A) to raise awareness; 

16 (B) to secure the return of more than 600 

17 soldiers from the United States who were miss18 ing in action or held as prisoners of war in 

19 Vietnam; and 

20 (C) to ensure that prisoners of war were 

21 treated in accordance with the Geneva Conven22 tions. 

23 (5) The efforts of Mrs. Galanti under the Let’s 

24 Bring Paul Galanti Home project, the most success25 ful of many such campaigns, resulted in more than 


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1 1,000,000 letters that were personally delivered to 

2 the North Vietnamese embassy in Stockholm, Swe3 den, in 1971. 

4 (6) Mrs. Galanti became known as ‘‘Fearless 

5 Phyllis’’, traveling to Versailles, France, seeking an 

6 audience with North Vietnamese leaders, and giving 

7 hundreds of presentations to policy leaders in the 

8 United States, including President Richard Nixon, 

9 National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger, and Vir10 ginia Governor Mills E. Godwin, Jr., who said of her 

11 in 1975, ‘‘One dedicated woman and a handful of 

12 others had more influence on the communist world 

13 than legions of armies and diplomats.’’. 

14 (7) After more than seven years apart, Mrs. 

15 Galanti was reunited with her husband Paul Galanti 

16 at the Naval Air Station in Norfolk, Virginia, on 

17 February 15, 1973. 

18 (8) Mrs. Galanti spent decades confronting the 

19 issue of prisoners and hostages from the United 

20 States, not only in Vietnam but also in the Soviet 

21 Union and Iran. 

22 (9) Mrs. Galanti actively supported the Virginia 

23 Home, Theatre IV, and the Virginia Repertory The24 atre, visited schools, and continued to meet with lawVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 May 30, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1468.IS S1468

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1 makers until she died on April 23, 2014, at age 73, 

2 from complications with leukemia. 

3 (10) The work of Mrs. Galanti earned her the 

4 American Legion Service Medal, and the Paul and 

5 Phyllis Galanti Education Center at the Virginia 

6 War Memorial was named in honor of her and her 

7 husband. 

8 (11) The leadership at the Hunter Holmes 

9 McGuire VA Medical Center in Richmond Virginia, 

10 including Director John Brandecker, seeks to recog11 nize Mrs. Galanti by naming the arboretum at Hun12 ter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center in her 

13 honor. 

14 (12) It is a fitting tribute that Congress name 

15 the arboretum after such an outstanding advocate 

16 for members of the Armed Forces of the United 

17 States and veterans. 

18 SEC. 2. PHYLLIS E. GALANTI ARBORETUM AT HUNTER 

19 HOLMES MCGUIRE VA MEDICAL CENTER IN 

20 RICHMOND, VIRGINIA. 

21 (a) DESIGNATION.—The arboretum at the Hunter 

22 Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center in Richmond, Vir23 ginia, shall after the date of the enactment of this Act 

24 be known and designated as the ‘‘Phyllis E. Galanti Arbo25 retum’’. 


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1 (b) REFERENCES.—Any reference in any law, regula2 tion, map, document, paper, or other record of the United 

3 States to the arboretum referred to in subsection (a) shall 

4 be considered to be a reference to the Phyllis E. Galanti 

5 Arboretum. 

Æ 


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