{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://miller.house.gov/media/press-releases/miller-manchin-lead-bicameral-effort-enclose-veteran-committal-shelters-honor", "Miller, Manchin Lead Bicameral Effort to Enclose Veteran Committal Shelters in Honor of Woody Williams", "2024-12-10", "2024", "2024-12", "Republican", "House", "WV", "Carol D. Miller", "M001205", "miller.house.gov", "miller", "https://miller.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2013 Today, Congresswoman Carol Miller (R-WV) and Senator Joe Manchin (I-WV) introduced the bipartisan, bicameral Hershel \u201cWoody\u201d Williams State Committal Shelter Act. This legislation would require the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to create a pilot program to construct or renovate three committal shelters at state-owned veterans\u2019 cemeteries, with at least one of those three shelters being located in Appalachia, to ensure attendees of burial services at such cemeteries are protected from inclement weather. This effort honors Woody Williams\u2019 final request before he passed away in 2022.\n\n\u201cWhen grieving the loss of a loved one at a funeral, the last thing any person should have to worry about is bad weather. That\u2019s why I joined Senator Manchin in introducing the Hershel \u2018Woody\u2019 Williams State Committal Shelter Act. This bill will honor Woody\u2019s wishes by constructing new or enclosing current shelters in state-owned veterans\u2019 cemeteries to ensure that those mourning are protected from harsh weather conditions that may negatively impact the ceremony. Members of our military sacrifice so much for our nation, the least we can do is ensure that their families can have a proper service for them without any disruptions,\u201d said Congresswoman Miller.\n\n\u201cWoody Williams was a true American hero and a tireless advocate for all Veterans and their family members. Over the years, my staff and I worked with Woody on too many issues to name, and I\u2019m proud to introduce this legislation with Representative Miller to honor his final request of enclosing committal shelters at VA cemeteries. Enclosing these shelters would ensure that the families of our fallen servicemembers have a safe place to lay their loved ones to rest, protected from the weather throughout the year. I will do everything I can to ensure the bill\u2019s passage and the pilot program\u2019s success,\u201d said Senator Manchin.\n\nClick here for bill text.\n\nBackground:\n\nHershel \u201cWoody\u201d Williams signed up for the Marine Corps in Charleston, West Virginia in May 1943 during the height of World War II.\n\nWoody Williams earned the Medal of Honor for his unshakeable courage and commitment beyond the call of duty during the battle of Iwo Jima. Of the 472 recipients of the Medal of Honor from World War II, Woody Williams was the last surviving one. Williams died at the age of 98 on June 29, 2022.\n\nIn January 2021, Congresswoman Miller introduced H. Con. Res. 7, which authorized the last surviving Medal of Honor recipient to lie in state after their passing.\n\nIn recognition of the sacrifices of Woody and all his fellow servicemembers of World War II, his flag-draped casket laid in honor in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda in Washington, DC.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T22:13:55Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://miller.house.gov/media/press-releases/miller-manchin-lead-bicameral-effort-enclose-veteran-committal-shelters-honor"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.1366168037056923, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}