--- title: SR 328. Heyward, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva; recognize collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sr328 cite_as: SR 328, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr328 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr328.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr328/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71092 date: 2025-03-04 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-09-12 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr327.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr329.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 94 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr328.md?full=1 bill_number: SR 328 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-03-04 last_action: Senate Read and Adopted sponsors: - Kenya Wicks - Tonya Anderson - Randal Mangham - Donzella James - Michael Rhett - Jason Esteves text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR328/2025 upstream_id: 1990388 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - veterans recognition - military service - Georgia Senate resolution - community service honors --- # SR 328. Heyward, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva; recognize ## Text Senate Resolution 328 By: Senators Wicks of the 34th, Anderson of the 43rd, Mangham of the 55th, James of the 28th, Rhett of the 33rd and others A RESOLUTION Recognizing and commending Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva Heyward; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva Heyward served as a guardian of this nation's freedom and liberty with the United States Army, valiantly and courageously protecting her fellow Americans for 27 years as a Communications Electronic Officer in the Signal Corps across both active duty and the Army Reserve; and WHEREAS, a native of Beaufort, South Carolina, she earned her commission as a Second Lieutenant upon graduation from Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio, beginning her distinguished military career in 1981; and WHEREAS, she completed the Signal Corps Officer Basic Course at Fort Gordon, Georgia, and was assigned to the United States Army Airborne Command Forces as a Communications Electronic Officer, where she was responsible for providing communications support and services both stateside and abroad; and WHEREAS, she was promoted to First Lieutenant in 1982 and was stationed in Germany in 1983 with the 52nd Signal Battalion, where she played a pivotal role in the successful European Telephone Exchange Cutover; and WHEREAS, after being promoted to Captain in 1985, she returned to Atlanta, Georgia, in 1986 and transitioned to the United States Army Reserve, joining the 335th Signal Theater Command as a Communications Officer and Equal Opportunity Advisor; and WHEREAS, she was promoted to Major in 1993 while continuing her service with the 335th Signal Theater Command, later transferring to the 2nd Battalion, 347th Regiment, 87th Division at Fort Eisenhower and subsequently serving as an Equal Opportunity Advisor and Signal Lanes Officer-in-Charge at Fort Gillem; and WHEREAS, she completed Command and General Staff College in 1994 and was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in 2000, joining the FORSCOM Augmentation Unit as Operations Team Officer-in-Charge in G6, where she ensured the successful execution of 24-hour communications operations at the United States Army Forces Command; and WHEREAS, her final assignment was with the 1st Army Headquarters at Fort Gillem, where she served as an Operations and Training Officer, ensuring units received the necessary training materials and preparation; and WHEREAS, a highly decorated veteran, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Heyward has earned numerous awards and decorations, including the President's Lifetime Achievement Award and two Meritorious Service Medals; and WHEREAS, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Heyward remains actively engaged in her community as a charter and life member of the National Association of Black Military Women, where she has volunteered with NABMW's Real Women Read initiative; and WHEREAS, it is abundantly fitting and proper that the outstanding accomplishments of this remarkable and distinguished individual be appropriately recognized. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the members of this body recognize and commend Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva Heyward for her exceptional career and dedicated service to her nation and extend the most sincere best wishes for continued health and happiness. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed to make an appropriate copy of this resolution available for distribution to Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva Heyward. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Georgia Senate resolution honors Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva Heyward for her 27-year career in the U.S. Army Signal Corps and her continued community service. ### Plain-language summary This is a ceremonial resolution from the Georgia Senate, not a change to state law. It recognizes Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva Heyward, who served 27 years as a Communications Electronic Officer in the Army Signal Corps across active duty and the Army Reserve, including assignments in Germany and at several Georgia posts such as Fort Gordon, Fort Eisenhower, and Fort Gillem. The resolution recounts her promotions from Second Lieutenant to Lieutenant Colonel, her awards including the President's Lifetime Achievement Award and two Meritorious Service Medals, and her ongoing volunteer work with the National Association of Black Military Women. The Senate resolves to commend her for her service and directs the Secretary of the Senate to provide her with a copy of the resolution. ### What it does - Formally recognizes and commends Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva Heyward for her 27-year military career in the Army Signal Corps. - Directs the Secretary of the Senate to prepare and distribute a copy of the resolution to Heyward. - Extends the Senate's best wishes to Heyward for continued health and happiness. - Creates no new law, funding, or regulatory requirement; it is a purely ceremonial honor. ### Who it affects The resolution directly honors Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Geneva Heyward. It also involves the Secretary of the Senate, who is tasked with producing and delivering a copy of the resolution to her. ### Why it matters The resolution has no legal or regulatory effect on Georgians generally. Its significance is symbolic: it puts the Georgia Senate's formal recognition of an individual veteran's decades of military and community service into the official record. ### Key provisions - The whereas clauses detail Heyward's military career, including her commissioning at Central State University in 1981 and assignments at Fort Gordon, in Germany, and at Fort Gillem. - The resolved clause states the Senate recognizes and commends Heyward for her exceptional career and dedicated service. - A further resolved clause directs the Secretary of the Senate to make a copy of the resolution available for distribution to Heyward. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-03-04) - Last action: Senate Read and Adopted (2025-03-04) - Sponsors: Kenya Wicks, Tonya Anderson, Randal Mangham, Donzella James, Michael Rhett, Jason Esteves - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71092 > The history, votes, and amendments (94 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr328.md?full=1