DeLauro Dedicates WWII Wing to "Branford Battery Boys"

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday August 3, 2005

DeLauro Dedicates WWII Wing to "Branford Battery Boys"

-Wing Lost After War Has Been Fully Restored, Will Be Displayed -

BRANFORD, Conn. - Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (Conn.-3) today honored "The Branford Battery Boys" by dedicating a restored tail wing that bears the decorations received by the men in WWII, including the campaigns they served in, the towns where they were stationed and a record of the enemy aircraft destroyed. "The Branford Battery Boys" was a name given to the 211th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion, Battery D, a Connecticut National Guard unit activated by the U.S. Army during WWII.

"In unveiling this wing, we display a symbol of those in our community who heeded their nation's call - whose model of service, of patriotism, of sacrifice continues to this day in our conflicts overseas," said DeLauro. "We are reminded that because of their sacrifice we are free to speak our minds, meet with whom we choose, worship where we choose, elect our leaders, and live under laws that are a model around the world. That is freedom. And that is the legacy of the Branford Battery Boys."

Surviving members of the unit who worked to return the wing to Connecticut includes: Edward Zack Sr., George D. Birbarie, Burton H. Dickinson, Stanley Gumkowski, Dominic Palumbo, Stanley Markleski, Dominic J. Raiola, and Gabriel Altrui, as well as Vinnie Raiola and John S. Makowsky, who recently passed away.

The battalion served in the Philippines, the East Indies, Papua New Guinea, and Bismark as well as several other South Pacific locations through 1945. The unit brought down more enemy aircraft than any other unit in the South Pacific, yet experienced no casualties of its own in the process.

The wing unveiled by DeLauro today was from a Japanese Mitsubishi Zero that the unit shot down in the Philippines during February of 1942. American soldiers referred to these planes as "Zeroes" because of the red circles on the wings.

"This wing has a unique history for our region and our country," said DeLauro. "When the unit returned to Connecticut, they left the wing in the South Pacific, where, unbeknownst to them, it would be recovered a few years later and brought back to Connecticut. I am delighted that this unit has been reunited with a symbol of their service."

DeLauro's office worked with the National Guard to return the wing to the unit and see that it was restored to its original condition. After today's ceremony, the wing will be on display in the rotunda of the Blackstone Library for the month of August and then will become part of a traveling road show conveying the story of "the Branford Battery Boys" throughout Connecticut. The Connecticut National Guard will then find a permanent home for the wing.

http://www.house.gov/delauro/press/2005/August/branford_boys_08_03_05.html