What:
On January 3, 2012, legislation, which was introduced in the House of Representations by Michael Grimm and co sponsored by the NY Congressional Delegation to designate the St. George Post Office in Staten Island in honor of Sergeant Angel Mendez was signed into law by the President.
Angel Mendez (august 8, 1946 – March 16, 1967) was a United States Marine who was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross. In 1967, during the Vietnam War, Mendez saved the life of his platoon commander, Lieutenant Ronald D. Castille, who is currently the Chief Justice of Pennsylvania. U.S. Senator Charles Schumer has recommended that Sgt. Mendez’ award be upgraded to Medal of Honor, the United States highest military decoration.
Who:
Invited guests and speakers: U.S. Senator Robert Schumer, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Congressman Michael Grimm, Borough President James Molinaro, Chief Justice Ronald Castille, Marine Corp Dennis Tobin, USPS Triboro District Manager Frank Calabrese, Staten Island Postmaster Carmen Fede, St George Station Manager Ricky Perdemo, members of Veterans Organizations, Vietnam War Veterans, Alumni from the Mount Loretto orphanage where Angel Mendez was raised, family, friends and the public.
When:
Thursday, April 12, 2012 at 11:00 am
Where:
The dedication ceremony honoring Sergeant Angel Mendez will take place outside of the Saint George Post Office in front of the building at 35 Bay Street, Staten Island NY 10301 which is also the site for the Marine Corps Recruitment.
Background:
The event is free and open to the public. The Media is invited.
Today, the Postal Service currently employs more than 116,000 veterans which are approximately 21 percent of the career workforce. Roughly one-third of those are rated 30-percent or more disabled. Nearly 15,000 employees in the Northeastern United States are military veterans.
On March 16, 1967, Sgt. Mendez was conducting a search mission with his company in Duc Pho, Quang Ngai Province when they came under attack from a Viet Cong battalion. With half his platoon pinned down in a rice paddy — under heavy enemy fire — Mendez volunteered to lead a squad to extract the pinned-down Marines. While returning to friendly lines with two dead and two seriously wounded men Mendez’ Platoon Commander, Lieutenant Ronald D. Castille, was seriously wounded and fell, unable to move. Using his own body, Mendez shielded Lt. Castille as he applied a dressing to the wound; then picked up the Lieutenant and began carrying him to the American lines, which were more than seventy-five meters away. Mendez was hit in the shoulder at which time two of his comrades rushed to help him with their commander. Mendez, however, refused to let go of the Lieutenant and continued to shield Castille with his own body until unfortunately, he was mortally wounded. Mendez was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross and promoted to the rank of Sergeant.
Staten Island accounted for approximately 84 of the more than 58,000 brave soldiers who lost their lives in Vietnam. Three of the approx 84 were from Mount Loretto.
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington DC honors the fallen of the Vietnam War. The Virtual Wall Vietnam Veterans Memorial can be viewed at http://www.virtualwall.org. Angel Mendez is inscribed on the "The Wall" on Panel 16E — Line 94.
The Mission of the Immaculate Virgin was founded in 1871 by Father John Christopher Drumgoole, and is the largest childcare institution in the United States. See The History of the Mission of the Immaculate Virgin at Mount Loretto.
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Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at www.usps.com/news.
A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no direct support from taxpayers. With 36,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, the Postal Service relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $68 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 28th in the 2009 Fortune 500.
