Pol-Am WWII Hero Honored with Bronze Statue
Bayonne, NJ — The Stephen R. Gregg County Park has a new addition as of July 15 — a large bronze statue of its namesake, Lt. Stephen R. Gregg (1914–2005). The 7-foot-tall statue was ceremoniously unveiled by Hudson County officials, in a dedication ceremony which paid tribute to the World War II Medal of Honor recipient.
“My father was a very humble man. Frankly, he would be embarrassed by the honors being bestowed on him today,” said son Stephen Gregg Jr. “He always said there were other servicemen who did brave deeds and did not receive their claim.”
Born Stephen Grzegorzewski to Polish immigrants in the Bronx, the family settled in Bayonne when Stephen was six months old. He later worked at the Kearny shipyards before being inducted into the U.S. Army in 1942, serving with the 143rd Infantry Regiment, 36th Infantry Division in the European Theater. In the summer of 1944, after fighting in the Italian Campaign, the 36th Infantry Division took part in Operation Dragoon, the Allied landings in Southern France on August 15. Following the successful amphibious assault, Allied forces pushed into France’s Rhone river valley.
On August 27, near Montélimar, France, Lt. Gregg (then a TSgt.) and his platoon suddenly found themselves under heavy enemy fire and suffering numerous casualties. In the moments that followed, Lt. Gregg acted, as would later be recognized, at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty to rescue his fellow soldiers. Seeing that the medic was unable to retrieve the injured men, Gregg, “took one of the light .30-caliber machine guns and, firing from the hip, started boldly up the hill with the medical aide man following him” reads his Medal of Honor citation. Lt. Gregg continued to provide cover until all seven wounded men were retrieved, at which point, having exhausted his ammunition, he himself was briefly captured by the Germans. Shortly thereafter the German party attempting to apprehend him were fired upon, allowing Gregg to retrieve a weapon, fire upon his captors and make his escape.
The next day, during a strong German counter attack, Lt. Gregg again displayed conspicuous gallantry, directing his mortars against advancing units which were supported by tanks. When his mortar position was overtaken, he organized an attack party which managed to retake the firing position and capture two German prisoners-of-war.
Gregg received a battlefield promotion to Lieutenant, and on March 14, 1945 he was presented with the Congressional Medal of Honor by Lt. Gen. Alexander M. Patch Jr., Commanding General of the U.S. 7th Army, during a ceremony near Bernoisheim, France. He is credited with saving the lives of seven American servicemen.
In addition to the Congressional Medal of Honor, Lt. Gregg was awarded a Silver Star, a Bronze Star with cluster, a Purple Heart with cluster, the French Croix de Guerre, and the Combat Infantry Badge. He returned to Bayonne in 1945 and was greeted with a celebratory parade attended by 50,000 people, during which he met his future wife, Irene Zawalick, whom he married in 1947. Gregg worked for the Hudson County Sheriff for the next fifty years and was active in several organizations including being honorary member of the American Polish Veterans, Bayonne.
“Stephen Gregg was a son of Bayonne willing to do his duty but then go far beyond the call of duty when the circumstances demanded it,” said County Commissioner Kenneth Kopacz, who sponsored the resolution to build the statue. Kopacz was the 2018 Bayonne Contingent Marshal of the tri-state General Casimir Pulaski Day Parade in New York City.
When asked to describe his father, Stephen Gregg Jr. said, “An ordinary man who did something stupendous. A true representative of Bayonne and Hudson County and a symbol for veterans everywhere.”
This article was published in the September 2021 edition of the Polish American Journal
