[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 160 (Tuesday, December 7, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2079]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    IN REMEMBRANCE OF GEORGE DOBREA

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 7, 2010

  Mr. KUCINICH. Madam Speaker, I am saddened to learn of the passing of 
George Dobrea last Saturday. Please join me in remembering George 
Dobrea, a businessman, soldier, statesman, activist, constituent, and 
friend who did much to make Cleveland and the world a better place.
  George was born 84 years ago in Gary, Indiana, to a family of 
Romanian ethnic background, a heritage he embraced throughout the many 
facets of his life. He was active in his church, St. Mary Romanian 
Orthodox Cathedral in Cleveland, where his priest, Rev. Remus Grama, 
referred to him as a ``priest without a collar.'' According to Rev. 
Grama, ``He helped so many immigrants. He never said no.'' He served on 
the board of St. Mary, founded the Romanian Ethnic Art Museum alongside 
the church, and helped stock it with thousands of art objects.
  George served in the Army in World War II in the Philippines. He 
volunteered to be a spotter in a Piper Cub, radioing the positions of 
the enemy while dodging bullets flying toward the plane. His radio 
transmissions, which may have saved thousands of American and allied 
lives, earned him two Bronze Stars.
  Like his father before him, George worked in the steel mills of Gary. 
At the University of Detroit, he boxed and ran track while earning a 
bachelor's degree. He went on to study business at the Wharton School 
of Economics at the University of Pennsylvania before settling in 
Cleveland, becoming a stock broker and marrying the former Jean Barson.
  His work in stocks launched many other business interests, including 
scrap steel, greeting cards, greenhouses, toboggan chutes, and 
racehorses. George Dobrea did a weekly spot on The Mike Douglas Show, a 
popular local TV program, explaining finances and investing to the 
public.
  George was enthusiastic about international trade and served as a 
lobbyist for the Greater Cleveland Growth Association, the regional 
chamber of commerce. He saw bilateral trade as a stabilizing influence, 
toward promoting peace and democracy abroad while promoting business at 
home. He was especially influential in promoting trade with Romania, 
Russia and Hungary. He helped Americans adopt orphans from Romania and 
lobbied President Clinton to admit former Iron Curtain countries to 
NATO. He served as Romanian Honorary Consul for the Cleveland area 
while advocating for a fair and independent judiciary in that country 
after the fall of the Soviet Union. He also served as the president of 
the Union & League of Romanian Societies, headquartered in Cleveland 
and the largest Romanian mutual benefit society in the United States 
and Canada.
  George Dobrea was active in politics. He was an early supporter of 
John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election and helped garner 
support for Kennedy among European ethnic voters in Ohio. He also 
supported Kennedy's opponent 12 years later as the chairman for the 
Ohio Democrats for Nixon. He reportedly turned down administration jobs 
with President Nixon and Ohio Governor John Gilligan. George served for 
many years as an elected member of the Cleveland school board, 3 years 
as its president.
  Madam Speaker and respected colleagues, please join me in offering 
condolences to Jean, their 4 children Peter, George, Paul, and Mary 
Grindahl, their 3 grandchildren, and their many friends in Cleveland, 
Romania, and around the world.

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