[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17581]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[[Page 17581]]

            HONORING WILLIAM A. GALLINA ON HIS 60TH BIRTHDAY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSEPH CROWLEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 22, 1999

  Mr. CROWLEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a man who embodies what it 
means to be a true American, a dedicated family man, an accomplished 
professional, and a consummate citizen of New York City, William A. 
Gallina, on the occasion of his 60th birthday.
  William, or ``Bill'' as he is known by those closest to him, has 
lifelong roots in the Bronx. Born on his parents' kitchen table in the 
West Farms section of the Bronx on July 26, 1939, Bill blazed an 
exceptional path from the very beginning.
  Growing up in the South Bronx home of his immigrant parents, his 
mother from Germany, his father from Italy, Bill attended Public School 
6, Herman Ridder Junior High School, and earned his diploma at James 
Monroe High School. Following high school graduation, Bill attended New 
York State Maritime College where he spent three years studying 
Maritime Engineering, then transferred to Fairleigh Dickinson 
University where he graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering.
  After graduation, he began working at Grumman Aircraft Engineering 
Corporation where he and a small group of rocket propulsion engineers 
successfully helped in the design of the descent engine of the Lunar 
Excursion Modules (L.E.M.) fulfilling President John F. Kennedy's dream 
and America's promise of landing on the moon before the close of the 
1960s.
  While working for Grumman, Bill attended St. John's University Law 
School in the evenings, graduating in 1967 with a Juris Doctor degree. 
Upon graduation from law school he went to work for a major Wall Street 
law firm specializing in intellectual property, eventually leaving to 
open his own firm specializing in criminal and personal injury law. He 
returned to the Bronx in the early 1970s where he was instrumental in 
constructing a professional medical office complex where he maintained 
his office for the practice of law.
  To this day, he continues to practice law in Bronx County where he 
has become one of the leading personal injury attorneys in the 
metropolitan New York area. His parents continued to live in Bronx 
County until their passing. Bill's mother used the very same kitchen 
table on which he was born until her death in 1997 at the age of 98.
  Bill is married to the former Ronnie Bernon and has an 11-year-old 
son, three daughters from a prior marriage, and two grandchildren. He 
is active in local and national bar associations, in particular, the 
New York State Trial Lawyers where he serves as a member of the Board 
of Directors, fighting to protect the rights of accident victims.
  Bill is an avid sailor, spending his limited free time sailing the 
waters of Long Island Sound.
  Mr. Speaker, please join me in commending William A. Gallina of 
Bronx, New York for a remarkable life on the occasion of his 60th 
birthday.

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