[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 186 (Wednesday, November 20, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H9102-H9103]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING MIKE MAROTTA, SR.

  (Mr. PANETTA asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PANETTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of Mike 
Marotta, Sr., an entertainment legend, a Monterey native, and a 
cornerstone of the Italian American community on the central coast of 
California in my district.
  I am sorry to say, Mike passed away earlier this week at the age of 
98. Mike was a family man, a businessman, and a civic leader.
  But I have to say everyone who knew him knew that music was Mike's 
first and everlasting love. He taught himself how to play the accordion 
when he was 11 years old. He would then take the accordion down to the 
bay and play for the Italian fishermen coming back and unloading their 
catch.
  His musical journey even led him to Hollywood eventually, where he 
played with stars like Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. During his military 
service during World War II, he entertained the troops throughout the 
United States.
  Now, recently you could find Mike playing Italian songs with his kids 
and grandkids and even at the Paisano Club, but also you could find him 
continuing his tradition of playing for fishermen and our community at 
the Festa Italia Santa Rosalia, the premier Italian American festival 
on the central coast of California.

[[Page H9103]]

  My condolences are with his family. Mike's civic-mindedness and his 
musical gift will be missed by our community, but his legacy and his 
love of music will be carried on by his family and friends through his 
everlasting songs played by his son, but most importantly, through the 
love in our hearts for Mike Marotta, Sr.

                          ____________________