SUMMIT, NJ – U.S. Senator Bob Menendez stopped by the Summit, N.J. home of 91-year-old World War II veteran Michael Pannullo Friday to personally thank him for his service to this nation. The Senator also presented Mr. Pannullo with an American flag he had flown over the U.S. Capitol in his honor.

“Michael Pannullo is a true hero who fought valiantly during World War II for the freedoms all Americans enjoy to this day. On behalf of all New Jerseyans, I say, ‘Thank you.’” said Sen. Menendez. “Sadly, with the passage of time, there are fewer members of the Greatest Generation still with us today. We owe each and every one of them the eternal gratitude of a grateful nation for their service and sacrifice.”

Mr. Pannullo served as corporal in the Army’s 179th Combat Engineer Battalion, and was awarded the European African Middle Eastern Theater Ribbon, American Theater Ribbon, Victory Ribbon, Three Bronze Battle Stars, and the Good Conduct Medal.

“Having the Senator come into my home to meet me was such a huge honor,” said Mr. Pannullo, who served two years on active duty until being discharged on November 26, 1945. “Being presented with a special U.S. flag means so very much. I want to thank Sen. Menendez and all those at his office for making this day possible.”

On March 12, 1944, Mr. Pannullo was injured while on a night mission near the front lines in Echternach, Luxembourg. As the vehicle he was in rounded a curve in the road, it was hit head-on by another jeep that later was determined to have been stolen by a German soldier who was either lost or left behind. Mr. Pannullo was thrown from the passenger side, knocked unconscious, and suffered a very bad break to his leg. He received treatment at Tilton General Hospital at Fort Dix in southern New Jersey prior to his honorable discharge from the Army.

Upon completing his military service, Mr. Pannullo worked as a postal carrier at the Summit Post Office, where he would retire as a supervisor. Active in the Veteran community, he spent two decades organizing transportation through the Springfield Knights of Columbus to take Veterans at the Lyons VA hospital to church. He later collected thousands of eyeglasses for “New Eyes For The Needy,” and enrolled hundreds of Veterans in the World War II Memorial in Washington D.C.

The senator met with Mr. Pannullo and several members of his family, including his wife Rose, son Joe and his wife Karen, daughters Maria Adams and Michelle Matunas, and nephew Ken Schnall. Mr. Pannullo showed the senator his medals and photos of him during the war.

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