THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE RESOLUTION

INTRODUCED BY M. WHITE, PILEGGI, ROBBINS, BAKER, D. WHITE, GREENLEAF, ALLOWAY, STACK, ERICKSON, WAUGH, COSTA, RAFFERTY, DINNIMAN, FONTANA, HUGHES, BOSCOLA, VOGEL, SCHWANK, TARTAGLIONE, EARLL, WARD, FOLMER, CORMAN, SMUCKER, TOMLINSON, VANCE, BROWNE, PICCOLA, McILHINNEY, MENSCH, GORDNER, EICHELBERGER, YAW, FARNESE, BLAKE, BREWSTER, FERLO, KASUNIC, KITCHEN, LEACH, SOLOBAY, WASHINGTON, WILLIAMS, WOZNIAK AND YUDICHAK, JUNE 19, 2012

INTRODUCED AND ADOPTED, JUNE 19, 2012  

A RESOLUTION

Designating July 31, 2012, as "Abie Abraham Day" in

Pennsylvania, in tribute to the late retired United States

Army Sergeant and Butler County resident who died March 22,

2012, at 98 years of age.

WHEREAS, Born July 31, 1913, Abie Abraham attained

distinction as a heroic defender of the Philippines during World

War II, Japanese prisoner of war, lecturer, author and volunteer

on behalf of hospitalized veterans at the Butler Veterans

Affairs Medical Center; and

WHEREAS, Sgt. Abraham served with the 14th, 15th, 16th, 18th,

30th and 31st Infantry Regiments, having enlisted in the United

States Army in the 1930s; and

WHEREAS, Stationed in the Philippines in 1941, Sgt. Abraham

fought the Japanese Imperial Army with valor and honor while

undersupplied and underfed; and

WHEREAS, During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines,

Sgt. Abraham endured injury and untold privation and barbarities

in the course of the Bataan Death March and while interned at

Cabanatuan prison camp; and

WHEREAS, Liberated in 1945, Sgt. Abraham worked in the

postwar period to identify and disinter the unmarked grave sites

of thousands of fallen Allied soldiers along the Bataan Death

March route; and

WHEREAS, Sgt. Abraham chronicled his wartime experiences and

attested to the sacrifice of his fellow soldiers in his books:

"Ghost of Bataan Speaks" and "Oh, God, Where Are You?"; and

WHEREAS, For his notable military service, Sgt. Abraham

received the Purple Heart, Silver Star and Bronze Star medals

and numerous other honors; and

WHEREAS, The United States Marine Corps recognized Sgt.

Abraham as an honorary member; and

WHEREAS, The Philippine Army recognized Sgt. Abraham as an

honorary colonel; and

WHEREAS, Sgt. Abraham generously supported the Defenders of

Bataan and Corregidor Museum at Brooke County Public Library in

Wellsburg, West Virginia; and

WHEREAS, Sgt. Abraham received the 2003 Ellis Island Family

Heritage Award and was honored as the 1994 Outstanding Disabled

Veteran of the Year in Pennsylvania and the 1995 Butler County

Veteran of the Year; and

WHEREAS, At the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center Sgt.

Abraham logged a record 36,851 hours in more than two decades of

distinguished volunteer service; and

WHEREAS, Sgt. Abraham was buried April 25, 2012, in Arlington

National Cemetery in Virginia; and

WHEREAS, The Senate commends the 30-year military career of

Sgt. Abraham, including his significant contributions while

serving in the Pacific Theater during World War II, and applauds

his outstanding citizenship and commitment to enriching the

lives of his fellow veterans; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the Senate designate July 31, 2012, as "Abie

Abraham Day" in Pennsylvania, in tribute to the late retired

United States Army Sergeant and Butler County resident who died

March 22, 2012, at 98 years of age.