[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 63 (Wednesday, April 30, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E816]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 PRESIDENT OF POLISH HERITAGE ALLIANCE, JOHN J. WALLOCH, TO BE HONORED

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                         HON. GERALD D. KLECZKA

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 29, 2003

  Mr. KLECZKA. Mr. Speaker, on Sunday, May 4, 2003, the Pulaski Council 
of Milwaukee will be honoring John Walloch, President of Polish 
Heritage Alliance, at its twenty-third Heritage Award Dinner.
  Mr. Walloch's ties in our Polish community run deep. The proud son of 
Leonard and Helen Walloch, John grew up on Milwaukee's southside where 
he graduated from my alma mater, Don Bosco High School. Following his 
time at Don Bosco, he entered the Milwaukee Institute of Mortuary 
Science and graduated in 1961 with certification as both a Funeral 
Director and Embalmer. With the assistance of his parents, he opened 
the John J. Walloch Funeral Home in 1966 and has been overseeing its 
operations ever since.
  Despite his hectic professional schedule, John has always found time 
to serve his fellow Milwaukeeans. He has previously held leadership 
roles for the South Side Business Club and Xaverian Missionary Fathers 
Advisory Board, and is currently a member of St. Joseph's Foundation, 
the Knights of Columbus, St. Alexander's, and St. Roman's Parishes.
  For many years, John has also played an important role in the Polish-
American community in the Milwaukee area. He is an active member, and 
past president, of the Milwaukee Society of Polish National Alliance, a 
fraternal Polish-Americans organization. In 2002, he assumed the 
presidency of the Polish Heritage Alliance. Under John's leadership, 
the Polish Heritage Alliance has continued to gain notoriety as the 
directing organization for Milwaukee's famous Polish Fest, America's 
largest Polish Festival. During each visit to the festival, attendees 
are sure to see him dancing the polka while donning a red czapka.
  John, the avid outdoorsman, likes to spend his ``free time'' boating, 
hiking and entertaining friends and his two daughters, Linda and 
Christi, and his son, Jason, at his recently refurbished second home on 
Elkhart Lake. In the past years, John has been collecting stamps in his 
passport, and had the opportunity to visit the homeland of his 
ancestors, Poland.
  Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I extend my congratulations 
to John Walloch for his exemplary work in the Polish-American 
community. May he continue to be blessed with happiness and success for 
years to come. Sto Lat!

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