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Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee 801 Ninth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20220 CCAC October 20, 2014 The Honorable Jack Lew Secretary of the Treasury Department of the Treasury 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20220 Dear Secretary Lew: A public meeting of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (Committee) was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2014, at United States Mint Headquarters in Washington, D.C. The Committee reviewed proposed obverse and reverse designs for the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders Congressional Gold Medal. For the medal’s obverse design the Committee recommended design DTR-CGM-O-02. The design garnered 17 of the 24 possible points through the Committee’s scoring process. Committee members commented that the design provided an interesting, stylized and visually pleasing depiction of the launch of B-25B Mitchell Bomber Aircraft from the deck of the USS Hornet on April 18, 1942. The Committee recommended that the superstructure of the aircraft carrier be added to the design so as to avoid any confusion with Japanese aircraft carriers that did not have superstructures. The Committee further recommended that the inscription, “FIRST STRIKE BACK” appearing adjacent to the lower right rim of the design be replaced with the date of the mission, “APRIL 18, 1942”. For the reverse of the medal the Committee collectively assigned 20 of the possible 24 possible scoring points to design DTR-CGM-R-08. Members stated that the design provides an interesting visual portrayal of the heroic first strike back at the nation on Japan in the aftermath of the Pearl Harbor attack. The Committee recommended that the squadron names appearing adjacent to the lower rim be replaced with the inscriptions, “FIRST STRIKE BACK” and the Doolittle Raiders motto, “TOUJOURS AU DANGER” which translates to “Always into Danger”. Members commented that the pairing of the two recommended designs provided a visual story. On the obverse the straight on perspective of the airplanes launching from the deck of the aircraft carrier conveys the message “we’re coming at the enemy”, while the reverse with a visual of the bomber aircraft over Japan tells the story of the actual attack which proved pivotal in turning the course of the war. Members urged that the two designs be utilized for this medal as a way of effectively “telling the story” of the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders in a visually attractive way while also providing specific inscriptions important to the medal. The sense of the Committee was that the pairing of the recommended designs would produce a spectacular medal through which to honor the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders. Sincerely, Gary B. Marks Chair Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee 801 Ninth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20220 CCAC October 20, 2014 The Honorable Jack Lew Secretary of the Treasury Department of the Treasury 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20220 Dear Secretary Lew: A public meeting of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (Committee) was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2014, at United States Mint Headquarters in Washington, D.C. The Committee reviewed proposed obverse and reverse designs for the American Fighter Aces Congressional Gold Medal. For the medal’s obverse design the Committee recommended design AFA-CGM-O-02. The design garnered 14 of the 24 possible points through the Committee’s scoring process. Committee members commented that the design’s depiction of four fighter pilots each wearing flight headgear appropriate to one of the four wars that produced American fighter aces effectively provides recognition to all aces, regardless of time periods, in a visually pleasing way. The Committee recommended that the ace of spade image appearing on the design be removed in recognition of the major focal role the image provides on the Committee’s recommended reverse design, AFA-CGM-R-07. The Committee further recommended that the inscription, “COURAGE TENACITY AND DUTY ABOVE ALL” appearing adjacent to the lower rim of the design be removed. Members felt the inscription cluttered the design and its removal would produce a cleaner and more attractive image. For the reverse of the medal the Committee recommended AFA-CGM-R-07 by collectively assigning 15 of the possible 24 possible scoring points. Members noted that the American Bald Eagle traditionally conveys the ideas of defense and strength in American medallic iconography and, in that light, the design’s use of the eagle image formed in the shape of an ace of spades was a visually pleasing and engaging choice for the reverse of the medal. Members noted that the use of four stars on the design to represent the four wars that produced aces was confusing. The use of stars in association with the fighter aces would normally denote the status of the ace; which would be conveyed by five stars representing the five enemy kills needed to become an ace. As such, the Committee recommended the removal of the four stars. Members commented that the pairing of the Committee’s two recommended designs would produce a distinctive medal that would effectively honor the nation’s fighter aces. Sincerely, Gary B. Marks Chair