[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 107 (Friday, July 27, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Page S8343]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING BENJAMIN VINCI

  Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, Senator Clinton and I rise today to 
recognize and honor the service of Benjamin Vinci of Port Chester, New 
York--a true American hero.
  In 1941, at the age of 21, Benjamin Vinci left home to serve in the 
U.S. Army, and by December of that year, was stationed in Hawaii with 
the 97th Army Coast Artillery Guard. Like so many there on the morning 
of December 7, 1941, Benjamin Vinci was going about his daily business. 
He had just completed all night guard duty and was eating breakfast 
when the whole base erupted in smoke and fire as Japanese war plans 
attacked Pearl Harbor and the surrounding area.
  As bombers strafed the mess tent, a 50-caliber bullet hit Private 
Vinci in the back. But ignoring his wound, Benjamin Vinci reached an 
anti-aircraft emplacement and began to fight back. He stepped down only 
when he was ordered to find an ambulance and tend to his wound.
  Along the way, instead of seeking cover, Benjamin Vinci ran down to 
the beach and rescued a man who had been shot through the legs. Helping 
the other soldier into a motorboat, he navigated through a hail of 
bombs and ammunition to the other side of the bay where he finally 
boarded an ambulance. But on the way to the hospital at Hickham field, 
planes targeted the ambulance and Benjamin Vinci was wounded again--
this time a 50-caliber bullet coming to rest near his heart.
  Mrs. CLINTON. In the aftermath of the attack, doctors believed 
Private Vinci's wounds were fatal, but he persevered. He received the 
Purple Heart and eventually was transferred to a hospital in Colorado, 
where doctors were able to remove one of the two bullets that had 
almost taken his life, but not both. He continues to carry with him the 
second bullet, which has never been able to be removed.
  Disabled from his wounds, Benjamin Vinci returned to Port Chester 
after being discharged from the Army and resumed life as a civilian. 
For many years, Mr. Vinci worked as a vacuum cleaner salesman in 
Westchester County. He married Rose Civitella in 1945, and together 
they raised four children: Peter, Burnadette, JoAnn, and Joseph.
  We honor and thank Benjamin Vinci for his tremendous sacrifice, vital 
contribution, and gallant service to our Nation. His acts of bravery 
are an exceptional example of the fortitude, determination, and 
strength of the American spirit. As Mr. Vinci carries the burden of his 
wounds and the bullet he received on that December morning of infamy, 
so too must we carry the memory of his heroic deeds, remembering and 
honoring all the men and women of that great generation--those veterans 
of World War II who saved our Nation, and the world.

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