[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 138 (Tuesday, August 23, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E871]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING TOWACO VETERAN AND COMMUNITY LEADER GERALD CHARLES GEMIAN ON 
                           HIS 100TH BIRTHDAY

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                          HON. MIKIE SHERRILL

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, August 23, 2022

  Ms. SHERRILL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Mr. Gerald Charles 
Gemian and wish him a very happy 100th birthday on August 25, 2022. Mr. 
Gemian is a veteran and a longtime resident of Montville, New Jersey.
  I want to thank him for his service in the United States Army Signal 
Corps during the Second World War. Mr. Gemian served from 1942 to 1945 
as an Army Staff Sergeant combat radio operator in the Central Pacific 
Theater. There, he supported assault groups during the Island Hopping 
Campaign, which was an integral part of the Allies' military strategy 
against Japan. This mission involved taking over an island and 
establishing a military base on it, which would in turn be used as a 
launching point for the assault and takeover of another island. As a 
radio operator, Mr. Gemian's job was crucial to the success of the 
Allied efforts in battle. His unit landed on shore and secured the 
island in order to set up a communications base. They used a grid 
system to determine locations for the artillery to bombard, and then 
radioed the coordinates over to the fleet and the field artillery. He 
and his unit remained in combat until the island was fully secured, and 
once one island was secured, they traveled to the next target. Mr. 
Gemian went from island to island in the Pacific until the end of the 
war.
  Mr. Gemian fought in actions across the Pacific theater; including in 
the Kwajalein and Eniwetok campaigns in the Marshall Islands; in the 
Mariana Islands and Palau. His unit encountered difficult conditions 
during the campaigns. They were often short on supplies including 
water, food, and ammunition. The islands were hot and humid, with 
temperatures often exceeding 100 degrees. Mr. Gemian and his unit also 
had to worry about hidden snipers and booby traps that littered the 
islands. He survived numerous enemy attacks and battles and he was 
never wounded.
  After serving in the military, Mr. Gemian became an engineer and 
moved to Montville in 1977. There, he became an active life-member of 
Montville VFW Memorial Post 5481.
  Mr. Gemian was married to his wife, Elizabeth, for 74 years until she 
passed away in 2021. He has a son, 3 granddaughters, and 3 great-
grandchildren.
  Mr. Gemian is a true American hero, and we are indebted to him for 
his great service to our Nation. It was a pleasure to sit down with Mr. 
Gemian at Montville's Memorial Day Ceremony around the 75th anniversary 
of D-Day to talk about his experiences from World War II. I am proud to 
honor him today, and I hope he has a wonderful 100th birthday.

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