[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 135 (Thursday, September 8, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1228]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            MR. GEORGE PIRO

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. LEE M. ZELDIN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 8, 2016

  Mr. ZELDIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay a special tribute to Mr. 
George Piro, who passed away on July 23, 2016, at the age of 95.
  George's story is unlike any other. When he answered his country's 
call to duty and enlisted in the U.S. Army in January of 1942 during 
World War II, he could have never envisioned the trials and 
tribulations that would await him just a year later. In September 1943, 
on his ninth combat mission, George was forced to parachute from a B-24 
Liberator after it was shot down in the mountains about 80 miles east 
of Rome. When they made landfall, they were unfortunately taken by the 
local police and found themselves continually on the move from one POW 
camp to the next until they arrived at Stalag Luft 1, where they would 
spend the remainder of the war as prisoners.
  George and his fellow service members were finally liberated on April 
30, 1945, the same year he returned to Bellport, NY. In 1946, he 
married Madeleine Myers, whom he had met prior to enlisting, and 
started working at the local post office. In addition to all he managed 
to accomplish as a service member and in his personal life; he was also 
a charter member of the VFW in East Patchogue, NY. George is survived 
by his brother, daughter, two grandchildren, four great-grandchildren, 
and two great-great grandchildren.
  I would like to take this opportunity to thank George for his years 
of dedication and service to our country and community. What he had to 
endure as a POW cannot be summarized in a few words; however it is 
important we honor these types of individuals as best we can. It is my 
hope that many will follow in his footsteps and give back to our 
country as graciously as he did. People like him are a rare breed and 
they help make not only our country, but our world a much safer and 
better place.

                          ____________________