,i #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hai ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,january #bh1 #bjbe,ms4 ,strickland 7for herself1 ,mrs4 ,kim1 ,mr4 ,min1 ,mr4 ,gottheimer1 ,mr4 ,jackson of ,illinois1 and ,mr4 ,carson7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,financial ,services1 and in addition to the ,committee on ,house ,administration1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned ,a ,,bill ,to award posthumously a ,congressional ,gold ,medal to ,colonel ,young ,oak ,kim in recognition of his extraordinary heroism1 leadership1 and humanitarianism4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,colonel ,young ,oak ,kim ,congressional ,gold ,medal ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,the ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,young ,oak ,kim was born in ,los ,angeles in #aiai to ,korean ,american immigrants1 where his family faced numerous challenges4 ,after high school1 ,kim enrolled in ,los ,angeles ,city ,college1 but dropped out after a year to find work to help support his family4 7#b7 ,because of racial discrimination1 ,kim struggled to keep employed4 ,with the outbreak of ,world ,war ,,ii 7,,wwii71 ,kim tried to enlist in the ,united ,states ,army1 but that opportunity was closed off to him1 too1 as an ,asian ,american4 ,however1 after ,congress extended conscription to ,asian ,americans1 ,kim was drafted into the ,army1 entering the service on ,january #ca1 #aida4 7#c7 ,from the earliest days of ,kim's service in the ,united ,states ,army1 he distinguished himself as a leader1 being selected for the ,infantry ,officer ,candidate ,school at ,fort ,benning1 ,georgia4 ,upon his commission as a second lieutenant in #aidc1 ,kim was assigned to the all-,japanese ,american #ajjth ,infantry ,battalion_/#ddbnd ,regimental ,combat ,team4 7#d7 ,young ,oak ,kim was assigned as an officer of the #ajjth ,infantry ,battalion that was formed on ,june #e1 #aidb1 comprised of predominantly second-generation ,americans of ,japanese ancestry from the ,hawaiian ,islands4 7#e7 ,when ,kim reported to duty1 his commanding officer gave ,kim the option to transfer due to the historical conflicts between the ,japanese and ,koreans1 but ,kim stated1 ,sir1 they're ,americans and ,i am an ,american4 ,and we're going to fight for ,america44 7#f7 ,the #ajjth ,infantry ,battalion was deployed to the ,mediterranean and entered combat in ,italy on ,september #bf1 #aidc4 ,the #ajjth ,battalion fought at ,cassino1 ,italy1 in ,january #aidd1 and later accompanied the #cdth ,infantry ,division to ,anzio1 ,italy4 7#g7 ,kim's most notable feat occurred at the ,battle of ,anzio4 ,during broad daylight he volunteered to capture ,german soldiers for intelligence information4 ,he and another soldier crawled more than #fjj yards located directly under ,german observation posts with no cover4 ,they captured two prisoners and obtained information that significantly contributed to the fall of ,rome4 ,for his actions1 ,kim received the ,distinguished ,service ,cross from the ,united ,states and the ,military ,valor ,cross1 the highest military decoration in ,italy4 7#h7 ,the #ajjth ,infantry ,battalion was formally made an integral part of the #ddbnd ,regimental ,combat ,team on ,june #ae1 #aidd1 and fought for the last #aa months of the war with distinction in ,italy1 southern ,france1 and ,germany4 ,the #ddbnd ,regimental ,team became the most decorated unit in ,united ,states military history for its size and length of service4 ,the #ajjth ,battalion and the #ddbnd ,regimental ,combat ,team1 received #g ,presidential ,unit ,citations1 #ba ,medals of ,honor1 #bi ,distinguished ,service ,crosses1 #efj ,silver ,stars1 #d1jjj ,bronze ,stars1 #bb ,legion of ,merit ,medals1 #ae ,soldier's ,medals1 and over #d1jjj ,purple ,hearts1 among numerous additional distinctions4 7#i7 ,when the ,korean war broke out in #aiej1 ,kim rejoined the ,united ,states ,army and participated in the ,united ,nations ,forces' last drive into ,korea4 ,as commander of the ,first ,battalion1 #cast ,infantry ,regiment1 he became the first officer of color in ,united ,states history to command an ,army battalion on the battlefield4 7#aj7 ,in ,seoul1 he led his battalion in sponsoring an orphanage of more than #ejj children4 ,the battalion was the only ,united ,nations military unit to sponsor an orphanage during the war4 7#aa7 ,in #aigb1 ,kim retired from the ,army at the rank of ,colonel4 ,by the end of his career1 ,kim had earned the ,distinguished ,service ,cross1 two ,silver ,stars1 two ,bronze ,stars1 three ,purple ,hearts1 two ,legions of ,merit1 and several military commendations from foreign governments--,italy's ,bronze ,medal of ,military ,valor and ,military ,valor ,cross1 ,france's ,la ,legion ,d',honneur1 and the ,republic of ,korea's ,taeguk ,order of ,military ,merit4 7#ab7 ,kim returned to his native ,los ,angeles and became a civic leader4 ,in #aige1 he established the ,koreatown ,youth and ,community ,center in ,los ,angeles to support recently immigrated ,korean youth who were struggling with poverty and language barriers1 which today serves a broad multi-ethnic population of #aa1jjj people in the greater ,los ,angeles area4 7#ac7 ,in #aigh1 ,kim helped establish the ,center for the ,pacific ,asian ,family 7,,cpaf71 an organization providing culturally and linguistically appropriate domestic violence and sexual assault services to the pan-,asian immigrant community4 ,under his leadership as ,,cpaf's chairman1 the organization became the largest women's shelter in ,southern ,california in the #aiijs4 7#ad7 ,in #aihf1 ,kim founded the ,korean ,health1 ,education1 ,information and ,research ,center 7,,kheir71 a nonprofit service agency providing culturally and linguistically sensitive health care and human services to the uninsured and underserved residents of ,los ,angeles4 ,today ,,kheir operates two clinics that can accommodate more than #ge1jjj patient visits annually and is the only federally qualified health center in the ,united ,states that serves a majority ,korean patient base1 with all services available in ,english1 ,korean1 and ,spanish4 7#ae7 ,in #aihe1 ,kim co-founded the ,japanese ,american ,national ,museum 7,,janm71 which promotes understanding and appreciation of ,america's ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the ,japanese ,american experience4 7#af7 ,in #aihi1 ,kim founded and served as the ,chairman of the #ajjth_/#ddbnd_/,,mis ,,wwii ,memorial ,foundation1 which is now known as the ,go for ,broke ,national ,education ,center4 ,kim led a campaign with veterans of the #ajjth ,infantry ,battalion1 #ddbnd ,,rct and ,military ,intelligence ,service to build the ,go for ,broke ,monument1 in downtown ,los ,angeles1 which serves as a tribute to the ,japanese ,american soldiers of ,world ,war ,,ii4 7#ag7 ,kim's contributions in the #aihjs and #aiijs also included founding the ,korean ,american ,museum and the ,korean ,american ,coalition1 both entities dedicated to understanding the ,korean ,american experience and addressing its issues and needs4 #c4 ,congressional gold medal 7a7 ,presentation authorized ,the ,speaker of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,president pro tempore of the ,senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the posthumous presentation1 on behalf of the ,congress1 of a gold medal of appropriate design1 in commemoration of ,colonel ,young ,oak ,kim1 in recognition of his achievements and contributions to heroism1 leadership1 and humanitarianism4 7b7 ,design and striking ,for the purposes of the presentation referred to in subsection 7a71 the ,secretary of the ,treasury 7referred to in this ,act as the ,secretary7 shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems1 devices1 and inscriptions to be determined by the ,secretary4 7c7 ,smithsonian ,institution 7#a7 ,in general ,following the award of the gold medal under subsection 7a71 the gold medal shall be given to the ,smithsonian ,institution1 where it shall be available for display as appropriate and made available for research4 7#b7 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that the ,smithsonian ,institution should make the gold medal received under paragraph 7#a7 available for-- 7,a7 display1 particularly at the ,national ,portrait ,gallery2 or 7,b7 loan1 as appropriate1 so that the medal may be displayed elsewhere4 #d4 ,duplicate medals ,the ,secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section #c under such regulations as the ,secretary may prescribe1 at a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof1 including labor1 materials1 dies1 use of machinery1 and overhead expenses4 #e4 ,status of medals 7a7 ,national medals ,the medals struck pursuant this ,act are national medals for purposes of chapter #ea of title #ca1 ,united ,states ,code4 7b7 ,numismatic items ,for purposes of sections #eacd and #eacf of title #ca1 ,united ,states ,code1 all medals struck under this ,act shall be considered to be numismatic items4