[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 94 (Tuesday, June 29, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H4996-H4997]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO LIEUTENANT COLONEL STANLEY WAWRZYNIAK
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of
January 19, 1999, the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Jones) is
recognized during morning hour debates for 5 minutes.
Mr. JONES of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute
to a truly outstanding Marine, Lieutenant Colonel Stanley ``Ski''
Wawrzyniak, a native of Gary, West Virginia.
Although Lieutenant Colonel Wawrzyniak passed away in 1995, his
legacy is still felt in the ranks of the Marine Corps, particularly in
the Marine community of eastern North Carolina, where he made his home.
His courage and discipline as a dutiful Marine served as an
inspiration to all that knew him. Even now, his courage under fire,
fighting expertise, and leadership skills are widely remembered and
respected.
Stanley's 35 years in the Corps and his record of valor distinguish
him as a Marine Corps hero. He was awarded two Navy Crosses, one Silver
Star, two Bronze Stars, and four Purple Hearts.
Although highly decorated, Stanley loved the Marines he served with
and always gave 110 percent in every situation.
Mr. Speaker, after dropping out of high school, Stanley enlisted in
the United States Navy. After serving 23 months, he was released from
active duty in September of 1946. Three days later, he enlisted in the
United States Marine Corps.
He went to China in the late 1940s and entered the Korean War. In two
tours with the 5th Marines in Korea, he was awarded two Navy Crosses, a
Silver Star, and three Purple Hearts.
{time} 1245
In 1953, as a Master Sergeant, Stanley was commissioned a Marine
Second Lieutenant while serving at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
In the years between his commissioning and his time in Vietnam,
Stanley went through the Basic Officers School, Underwater Demolition
and Mountain Leadership Training Course, where he broke his spine on a
mountain drop, yet hiked out unassisted. He also went through Evasion,
Escape and Survival school, where he led his team in avoiding capture
and finished first in his class.
As a matter of fact, he finished first in a lot of things, such as
Army Airborne School and Army Ranger School.
Mr. Speaker, in July of 1965 then Major Wawrzyniak embarked for
Vietnam. He served in the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment and was
awarded two Bronze Stars and his fourth Purple Heart.
During his time in the Marine Corps, Stanley demonstrated his great
love for his country and his fellow Marines. However, his
accomplishments did not end with his military career. Perhaps his
proudest legacy remains with the strong relationship he held with his
wife Adaline, his two daughters, Bernadette and Paula, and his sons
Michael, Andrew and Stanley.
With a career that, although distinguished, would have strained even
the strongest of family ties, Stanley took the time to mend the
relationships that were most important to him.
Mr. Speaker, shortly after his retirement and until the time of his
death, Stanley's two youngest sons were living in the Swansboro, North
Carolina, area and working in the building trades. He went to work as a
foreman with the same contractor who employed his sons. This gave him
the opportunity to accomplish two things that were very important to
him. First, he was able to work side by side with his sons and rebuild
relationships with them that had suffered during his long service-
related separations. Second, he was able to build homes. For a man
whose entire life had been spent at war in foreign countries, he felt a
great sense of accomplishment from building homes. The fact that he did
it side by side with his sons made it that much more important to him.
Lieutenant Colonel Stanley Wawrzyniak's life can best be described by
the quote from General Chesty Puller, perhaps the most famous of all
Marines. He said, and I quote, the real rewards of military service are
not the medals you wear on your chest. The real rewards are the looks
in the eyes of men who have served with you, men who understand the
nature of your service, men who have observed your actions in the most
stressful of conditions and have seen the depth of your character.
Mr. Speaker, Stanley Wawrzyniak is a man who served as an example to
all of us. He is sorely missed, but his remarkable service to this
country is something that will ensure his memory will live on.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in tribute to the life of a truly exemplary
Marine, LtCol Stanley ``Ski'' Wawrzyniak, a native of Gary, West
Virginia. Although LtCol Wawrzyniak passed away in 1995, his legacy is
still felt in the ranks of the Marine Corps, and particularly in the
Marine community of eastern North Carolina where he made his home. He
was one of the last of the old fashioned, hard charging, hill taking
sort of Marine. The sort of men who fought without laser guided
weapons, global communications, or spy satellites. His courage and
discipline in living his life as a Marine and in carrying out his
duties was an inspiration to all those who knew him. Even now his
memory is widely known and respected for his courage under fire, his
fighting expertise, and his leadership skills.
LtCol Wawrzyniak's thirty-five years in the Corps and his record of
valor, distinguish him as Marine Corps hero. He earned two Navy
Crosses, one Silver Star, two Bronze Stars,
[[Page H4997]]
and four Purple Hearts. Although highly decorated, LtCol Wawrzyniak
loved the Marines he served with and never rested on his laurels,
always giving one hundred and ten percent in every situation.
After dropping out of high school, LtCol Wawrzyniak enlisted in the
US Navy. After serving 23 months in the Navy he was released from
active duty in September 1946. Three days later he enlisted in the
Marine Corps. He went to China in the late `40's and entered the Korean
War. In two tours with the 5th Marines in Korea he was awarded two Navy
Crosses, a Silver Star and three Purple Hearts, by the end of the war
he was a Master Sergeant.
In 1953, MSgt. Wawrzyniak was commissioned a Marine Second Lieutenant
while serving at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
In the years between his commissioning and his time in Vietnam,
``Ski'' went through the Basic Officers school, Underwater Demolition,
Mountain Leadership Training--where he broke his spine on a mountain
drop, yet hiked out unassisted. Evasion, Escape and Survival school--
where he led his team in avoiding capture for the entire four day
period, and where he finished first in his class. As a matter of fact,
he finished first in a lot of things, such as Army Airborne School and
Army Ranger School.
LtCol Wawrzyniak's experience in Airborne Training (Jump School)
illustrates his personality. Then Captain Wawrzyniak arrived at Jump
School at the ripe old age of 35, at least 10 years older than most of
his classmates. I'm sure his Army instructors must have thought that
they had an easy drop out in Captain Wawrzyniak. They must have been
quite surprised a month later when he left Jump School not only with
jump wings on his chest, but with the IRON MIKE trophy in his fist--
graduating number one in his class. Stan's logic was that he should
graduate at the top of his class from these demanding schools because
he was older and more experienced than his cohorts. That was typical
Wawrzyniak logic.
In July, 1965 then Major Wawrzyniak embarked for Vietnam where he
served in the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment where he was awarded
two Bronze Stars and his fourth Purple Heart.
His accomplishments did not end with his career in the military.
Perhaps his proudest legacy from his post-Marine Corps history were the
strong relationships he had with his wife Adaline, his daughters,
Bernadette and Paula, and sons Michael, Andrew and Stanley. With a
career that although distinguished, would have strained even the
strongest of family ties, Stanley took the time to mend the
relationships that were most important to him.
Shortly after his retirement and until the time of his death LtCol
Wawrzyniak's two youngest sons were living in the Swansboro, North
Carolina area and working in the building trades. Stan went to work as
a foreman with the same contractor who employed his sons. This gave him
the opportunity to accomplish two things that were very important to
him. First he was able to work side by side with his sons and re-build
his relationships with them that had suffered during his long service
related separations. Second he was able to build homes. For a man whose
entire life had been spent at war in foreign countries, the sense of
accomplishment he felt from building homes was enormous. The fact that
he did it side by side with his sons made it doubly important to him.
LtCol Stanley Wawrzyniak's nature can be described by the quote from
perhaps the most famous of all Marines, General Chesty Puller: ``The
real rewards of military service are not the medals you wear on your
chest. The real rewards are the looks in the eyes of men who have
served with you, men who understand the nature of your service, men who
have observed your actions in the most stressful of conditions and have
seen the depth of your character.''
It is my honor to have such men and women serving in the United
States Marine Corps, and residing in my district. Stanley Wawrzyniak is
a man who is sorely missed, and greatly appreciated.
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