[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Page 7517]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO ANDY SIMKOVITCH

  Mr. TOOMEY. Mr. President, today I wish to honor and recognize a 
distinguished D-Day veteran from Pennsylvania, Mr. Andy Simkovitch, and 
to commemorate the 72nd anniversary of the D-Day landings.
  A resident of Erie, PA, Mr. Simkovitch was a U.S. Navy sailor that 
served aboard the tank landing ship USS L.S.T. 501 during World War II. 
He was involved in Operation Overlord at Utah and Omaha Beaches, where 
he transported troops during the D-Day landings on June 6, 1944. During 
the operation and while under heavy German fire, he went to the beach 
nine times. Following his actions in France, his ship headed to the 
Pacific and saw combat in numerous battles, including the Battle of 
Okinawa. Mr. Simkovitch stayed in the Pacific until Japan surrendered, 
and he was then honorably discharged in March 1946.
  The courage and bravery displayed by Mr. Simkovitch earned him the 
Chevalier Legion of Honor medal, the highest honor bestowed by the 
nation of France. With only 855,000 of the 16 million American WWII 
veterans remaining today, it is increasingly important to honor those 
that served our great Nation and ensure future generations know about 
the struggles and sacrifices these brave veterans endured.
  On behalf of the U.S. Senate, I wish to thank Mr. Simkovitch for his 
dedicated service to our Nation in advance of the 72nd anniversary of 
the D-Day landings.
  (At the request of Mr. Reid, the following statement was ordered to 
be printed in the Record.)

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