Vice President Nelson Rockefeller once said, “I think of the 1.5 million Americans of Italian descent who made up ten percent of the armed might of the United States in World War II, and many of these men you have met in years still well remembered.”

May 8^th – VE Day (Victory in Europe) – is the anniversary of the surrender of Nazi Germany to the Allied forces, ending World War II in Europe. Approximately 3% of the world’s population perished in combat during the world’s deadliest war. In the United States, Italian Americans played a pivotal role in fighting the Axis Powers – many of them sacrificing their lives. Often honored as the “Greatest Generation,” let us honor some of the brave Italian-Americans who served as we commemorate the 75^th Anniversary of VE Day.