[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 41 (Thursday, March 17, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E530]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     TO HONOR AND CELEBRATE THE LIFE OF BRIGADIER GENERAL ALVIN D. 
                              UNGERLEIDER

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. GERALD E. CONNOLLY

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 17, 2011

  Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and 
celebrate the life of a true American hero, Brigadier General (RETD) 
Alvin D. Ungerleider who recently passed away at the age of 89.
  General Ungerleider honorably served our country in uniform for 36 
years, beginning when he was drafted in November, 1942. He received his 
commission and was assigned to the 115th Regiment, 29th Infantry 
Division of the National Guard. On D-Day, June 6, 1944, at the age of 
22, then Lieutenant Ungerleider led 50 men into battle on the beaches 
of Omaha.
  The Invasion of Normandy changed the course of World War II and of 
history. During the intense fighting in the opening days of the 
Normandy invasion, Lt. Ungerleider was wounded twice. He reluctantly 
left the battlefield for only two weeks to recover from his wounds, and 
then returned to continue fighting throughout France and into Germany. 
He led his men through minefields and joined the battles to free the 
town of St. Laurent-sur-Mer and the city of Brest from Nazi occupation.
  Nearly one year later, during the spring of 1945, Lt. Ungerleider 
received orders to capture part of an industrial complex and liberate 
Dora-Mittelbau, a slave labor concentration camp that was a subcamp of 
Nordhausen prison. In April, 1945, after taking heavy fire from the 
Nazi soldiers guarding the prison, Lt. Ungerleider and his men 
liberated the camp. Years later, General Ungerleider said that although 
he had become battle hardened, nothing had prepared him for what he 
encountered at Nordhausen. To quote General Ungerleider, ``We thought 
we had entered the gates of hell.''
  At Nordhausen, he and his men freed approximately 300 prisoners, most 
of whom he described as ``living skeletons.'' He and his men shared the 
small amount of food that they had with the prisoners. Lt. Ungerleider 
then led them in reciting Kaddish, the Jewish prayer for the dead. Only 
then did the prisoners accept that the horror of the Nazi death camp 
had ended.
  General Ungerleider continued serving our country in the United 
States Army for several more decades, in times of both war and peace. 
He commanded an armored tank unit during the Korean War and a Tactical 
Unit during the war in Vietnam, where he spent his free time working 
with a Vietnamese orphanage. Later in his military career, he commanded 
the Aberdeen Proving Grounds and eventually retired in 1978.
  In recognition of his distinguished military service, General 
Ungerleider received three Legion of Merit awards, the Four Chaplains 
Award, 2 Bronze Stars for bravery and meritorious service, and a Purple 
Heart. While commanding at Aberdeen, he established Equal Opportunity 
programs, and he was recognized by the Secretary of the Army and the 
NAACP for these innovations. The Brigadier General also received 
decorations from the Korean and Vietnamese governments, and he is one 
of only 99 Americans to be awarded the French Legion of Honor for his 
role in D-Day and the eventual liberation of France.
  On June 6, 1994, in commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of D-Day, 
General Ungerleider was selected to escort President Clinton at the 
American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer in Normandy France. There he 
walked alongside the President and together they laid a wreath to honor 
all who fought and died to liberate Europe.
  As committed as General Ungerleider was to serving our country, he 
was equally committed to his family, Jewish faith, and community. He 
was a loving and devoted husband to Ruth Golden Ungerleider for more 
than 66 years, a dedicated father to Neil, Ilene and Daniel, and a 
doting grandfather to his grandchildren. In 1955 while still on active 
duty stationed in Monterrey, CA, he started that city's very first 
Jewish Sunday School. He worked with the Jewish Welfare Board to find 
new homes in America and Palestine for displaced Jews. The National 
Holocaust Museum recognizes the 29th Infantry as Liberators due to the 
efforts of General Ungerleider and the men he led in Europe.
  He was also active in his temple, Olam Tikvah, and served for 8 years 
as an administrator, helping to build the membership of the temple and 
increase its involvement in the community.
  I would like to personally thank Mr. Bruce Waxman, an officer of 
Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 227 and a member of Congregation 
Olam Tikvah, for bringing the extraordinary contributions of General 
Ungerleider to my attention.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that my colleagues join me in honoring the life of 
Brigadier General Alvin D. Ungerleider and in expressing our deepest 
condolences to his family and friends. Often we hear a person described 
as a hero, but rarely does that moniker fit as well as it does in this 
case. General Ungerleider dedicated his life to serving his country, 
his family, his faith, and his community. He rightfully earned the 
appreciation and respect of all Americans for his lifetime of honorable 
service to our nation, as well as the gratitude of many others around 
the globe who owe their lives and their quality of life to this true 
American hero.

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