[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 63 (Friday, May 7, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E792]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     HONORING THE WILZIG HOSPITAL AT THE JERSEY CITY MEDICAL CENTER

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ROBERT MENENDEZ

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 6, 2004

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the Jersey City 
Medical Center on the opening of the new Wilzig Hospital. The 
extraordinary life of Mr. Siggi B. Wilzig will be honored by Liberty 
Health on Thursday, May 6, 2004, at the Hyatt Regency on the Hudson in 
Jersey City, New Jersey.
  The life of the late Mr. Wilzig is a story of struggle and triumph. A 
survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp, Mr. Wilzig came to the 
United States in 1947. Starting out as a bow tie presser, Mr. Wilzig's 
tireless work soon led to a position as a furniture salesman, and from 
there to manager of the furniture store. After wisely investing his 
earning in the Wilshire Oil Company, Mr. Wilzig was elected to their 
Board of Directors in 1965. He went on to serve as President and Chief 
Executive Officer. Rising from humble beginnings, Mr. Wilzig is the 
personification of a self-made man.
  Under Mr. Wilzig's strong leadership, the Wilshire Oil Company 
acquired a large percentage of the Trust Company of New Jersey. In 
1971, Mr. Wilzig was elected President, Chief Executive Officer, and 
Chairman of the Board. He served in that capacity until his passing in 
2003. Mr. Wilzig was also an ardent community activist, serving on the 
National Israel Bond Cabinet and the United States Holocaust Memorial 
Council. For his outstanding volunteer work, Mr. Wilzig received the 
Prime Minister's Medal of the State of Israel and the Ellis Island 
Medal of Honor.
  Mr. Wilzig's life of philanthropy and community activism is being 
commemorated by naming the Wilzig Hospital at the Jersey City Medical 
Center in his honor. The Wilzig Hospital will bring to Jersey City 
modern amenities that have become standard in hospitals, as well as 
providing the tools necessary for the most updated medical care. One 
such major technological advance is the new wireless telemetry system, 
which allows physicians and nurses to monitor every moment of a 
patient's cardiac activity from a computer.
  Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring the life of Siggi 
B. Wilzig, a survivor, a talented businessman, and a source of 
inspiration. His legacy will be forever remembered with the opening of 
the new Wilzig Hospital at the Jersey City Medical Center.

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