[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 45 (Monday, March 9, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H1539]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              REMEMBERING WORLD WAR II VETERAN RALPH WAITE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio 
(Mr. Gonzalez) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GONZALEZ of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to honor the life 
and legacy of World War II veteran Ralph Waite, a Medina native and 
northeast Ohio icon who died on February 18 at age 93.
  Ralph joined the Army in June 1944, immediately after his graduation 
from Medina High School. He served in the U.S. Army, 924th Field 
Artillery Battalion, in the European theater and took part in the 
Battle of the Bulge.
  When he came home from the war in 1946, Ralph married his high school 
sweetheart, Helen Clark, in 1948. Together, they raised their twin 
sons, Harold and Darrell.
  He lived a life committed to serving his community and our Nation. 
Ralph was Scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 501 for 36 years and active in 
Buckeye Boys State for 40 years, and he led the Medina Rotary Youth 
Exchange Program.
  Ralph's crowning honor in the community was the naming of Ralph E. 
Waite Elementary School in 2009.
  Ralph was an icon in the Medina community, known for his outstanding 
service to his church, our youth, and our veterans. Ralph's life motto 
was: ``We occupy space on this Earth, and community service is the rent 
that we pay for the space that we are permitted to occupy.''
  Ralph lived by these words throughout his life, and his legacy and 
example will live on in his children, grandchildren, great-
grandchildren, and the entire community of Medina long into the future.

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