Hold the presses... We have great news about one of our oldest local war heroes.
Bob Branizza is back home after undergoing emergency medical treatment at a local hospital, therapeutic care and recovery sessions at two area convalescent centers. His gradual recovery of health and strength follows an accident, which City Island Images previously reported.
90 year old US Military War Veteran ROBERT BRANIZZA has lived on City Island most of his life. He moved to City Island with his parents from Astoria, Queens when he was 5 years old. He recalls days when islanders were using kerosene stoves, while he and his pals spent time scrounging for metal scraps in local boatyards to sell later on.
When Bob Branizza was a student he had studied German language, culture and topography as part of the school curriculum. Part of the language course included the study of the maps of Germany. So he knows the city of Berlin. That knowledge would serve him well on that fateful day in June of 1944. His last mission over Berlin, when he was shot down and held as a prisoner of war by the Germans.
As of this day Bob Branizza is back home on City Island as he looks forward to playing golf once again. City Island Images is grateful to his son, his daughter and son-in-law for sharing this information with us, so we could keep our loyal readers up to date.
City Island Images could never thank Bob and all those members of the greatest generation who served with him during World War II enough for the freedom that we all enjoy today.
To learn more about this local American World War II hero, please visit this link:
http://www.nycop.com/LastMissionoverBerlin/body_lastmissionoverberlin.h…