[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 150 (Wednesday, November 17, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1939]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         GENE ROSSI REMEMBERED

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                             HON. TIM RYAN

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 17, 2010

  Mr. RYAN of Ohio. Madam Speaker, I rise today in recognition Gene 
Rossi. A long-time personal friend, a model citizen and a beloved 
father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, Mr. Rossi will be truly 
missed by the many people whose lives he has touched. Born on May 12 
1926, Mr. Rossi was part of our greatest generation and his life story 
embodies that to the fullest. Gene's accomplishments began early, 
notably at Warren G. Harding High School where he was the senior class 
president and captain of the basketball team, an All-Ohio selection 
that year.
  It was not long after Gene was leading his high school basketball 
team that he was fighting for our freedom as an Army soldier in the 
Battle of the Bulge. Returning after the conclusion of World War II, 
Gene received an honorable discharge from the U.S. Army and returned to 
Warren, Ohio where, throughout the 1940s, he worked as a timekeeper for 
Mullins Manufacturing, played semi-pro basketball with the Warren 
Coaches and later graduated from Youngstown College with a B.S. degree 
in business administration.
  It was 62 years ago this September that Gene and his wife, Ginny, 
were married in 1948.
  A veteran of war, a college graduate, and a newlywed, Gene in 1950 
founded Warren's Rossi Insurance Agency, from which he never retired. 
His accomplishments in the insurance business included those of trustee 
of the Independent Insurance Agents of Ohio and president of the 
Trumbull County Independent Insurance Agents. His membership in the 
Trumbull County Association of Life Underwriters included more than 50 
years of service as a respected agent of the Equitable Life Assurance 
Society.
  Gene loved sports--baseball, basketball, football, tennis and golf. 
It is in sports where he distinguished himself as a 1992 inductee into 
and trustee of the Warren Sports Hall of Fame. In 1999, he received the 
Man of the Year Award from the Mahoning Valley Chapter of the National 
Italian-American Sports Hall of Fame.
  Gene's membership in local clubs and organizations included BOE Lodge 
295, American Legion Post 278, VFW Post 1090, Knights of Columbus 620, 
where he was past Grand Knight, Buckeye Club, Trumbull Country Club and 
Notre Dame Subway Alumni.
  A member of Blessed Sacrament Parish, Gene's faith was paramount. For 
his devoted participation, he received the honor Cross Pro-Ecclesia Et 
Pontiface (Cross for the Church and Pontiff) in 2000, served on the 
Youngstown Diocese Financial Advisory Board and was a member of the 
Board of Trustees of the Oblate Sisters of the Sacred Heart.
  A man who could have hung his hat up time and time again after 
service to his country, family, and community, Gene never stopped 
giving back. Gene loved and served his community and was noted numerous 
times for his efforts. In 1986, he served as president of the Warren 
Area Chamber of Commerce and was recipient of its Distinguished Citizen 
award. In 2001, he was named president of the Mahoning Valley Economic 
Development Corp. and was recipient of its Person of the Year award. In 
2006, he was an inductee into the Warren Harding Distinguished Hall of 
Fame. Gene also served as a trustee for the St. Joseph Development 
Foundation, YSU Foundation and CSC, Copperweld, Scholarship Foundation.
  On August 17, 2010, at the age of 84, Gene Rossi passed away from 
complications of prostate cancer. He is survived and sorely missed by 
the family he devoted so much of his life to, his wife of over sixty 
years, Ginny; their four sons and daughters-in-law, Michael and 
Rosanne, E. Jeffrey and Carol, Dennis and Luann, and Gregory and 
Leslie, all of Warren; 13 grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; 
sisters, Mary Louise Rose and Elaine Wallace; and brother, Anthony G. 
(Marilyn) Rossi.
  It is hard to sum up the life of a man like Gene Rossi--a man who 
truly lived the American dream. He bore the hardships of the Great 
Depression, fought in one of the deadliest battles in American history, 
and returned home to spend a lifetime of devotion building a wonderful 
family and a successful business all while being a man of faith and a 
pillar in his community. Madam Speaker I want to thank Gene Rossi, for 
his service to his country abroad, his service to his community at 
home, and for his dear friendship.

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