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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are pleased to recognize George Klein for his
4service during the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944; and
 
5    WHEREAS, George Klein was born in Detroit, Michigan; he and
6his mother moved to the Chicago area when he was 2 years old;
7in February of 1938, shortly after completing high school, he
8enlisted in the United States Army National Guard and was
9assigned to a horse-drawn artillery unit; he was subsequently
10transferred to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, where he completed Officer
11Candidate School; afterwards, he volunteered to join the 2nd
12Ranger Battalion in April of 1943; and
 
13    WHEREAS, After training at Camp Forrest in Tennessee with
14the 5th Ranger Battalion, George Klein and his division were
15sent overseas to undergo extensive training on the Isle of
16Wight and in Devonshire, England; on the Isle of Wight, the men
17endured rigorous training as they prepared for the cliff
18assault that they would face when landing at Pointe Du Hoc;
19during a training run of scaling the cliffs, he fell and broke
20his ankle, causing him to spend several months recuperating
21from the fracture; after recovering from his injury, he was
22then placed in the 5th Ranger Battalion and traveled with this
23unit to Ireland for additional training; in February of 1944,

 

 

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1he was reunited with the 2nd Ranger Battalion; and
 
2    WHEREAS, On June 6, 1944, George Klein was onboard Landing
3Craft Assault #884 heading towards the amphibious landing at
4Pointe Du Hoc in Normandy, France; as a Second Lieutenant, he
5was the platoon leader for Fox Company; rough waves made an
6accurate landing nearly impossible for the armed forces set to
7land on the beach that morning; once at Pointe Du Hoc, the
8enemy forces began firing at full force, forcing the men to
9quickly alter the plan they had spent months preparing for;
10forced to improvise, he rushed through and began scaling the
11100-foot cliff; once on top, he continued the battle; later
12that afternoon, he was wounded by an attack from a German
13soldier, who punctured his right leg with his bayonet; for 2
14days, Mr. Klein had to wait to be evacuated from the
15battlefield and was only able to wrap his wounded leg in a
16bandage until he was able to receive proper medical attention;
17he was subsequently sent to recover in a field hospital in
18England for a month before he was sent back over to France to
19fight with the 5th Ranger Battalion in July of 1944; he
20continued to fight with this division until France was
21liberated on August 19, 1944; he was the recipient of 2 Purple
22Hearts for his valiant actions during the war; and
 
23    WHEREAS, After the war, George Klein returned home to
24Chicago, married his wife, Barbara, and raised a son and

 

 

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1daughter; he spent another 15 years in the United States Army
2Reserve before retiring around 1960, having attained the rank
3of Captain; he later embarked on a career in the lighting
4business through a company called Lightolier, remaining there
5until 1986; following his retirement, he continued to help
6people by volunteering through the Service Corps of Retired
7Executives for 20 years, helping small businesses succeed in
8the business world; and
 
9    WHEREAS, George Klein was invited to the major anniversary
10celebration of the D-Day invasion on June 6, 2014, but fell ill
11and was unable to make the trip; he plans to complete the trip
12in 2015 during the 71st anniversary of the D-Day invasion; and
 
13    WHEREAS, George Klein's patriotism and courage serves as a
14model for the members of this body and the people of the State
15of Illinois; therefore, be it
 
16    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
17NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
18recognize George Klein for his service during the D-Day
19invasion on June 6, 1944 and wish him well on his trip to
20Normandy on June 6, 2015; and be it further
 
21    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
22presented to George Klein as a symbol of our esteem and

 

 

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1respect.