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[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E873]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REMEMBRANCE OF MR. VINCENT GIEDRAITIS
______
HON. JOE COURTNEY
of connecticut
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, September 23, 2020
Mr. COURTNEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to share a remembrance of
Mr. Vincent Giedraitis, a member of the ``Greatest Generation'' from
Vernon, Connecticut who passed away at the age of 95 on August 10,
2020. Vin, as he was known to friends and colleagues led an
extraordinary life, setting an example of how to really succeed by
balancing family, professional success as an attorney, and service to
his country at sea in the U.S. Navy.
Vin balanced a long life full of many interests and hobbies with his
work, with his valued friendships and his vibrant family life. He was
an avid skier and fisherman. He enjoyed tennis, ballroom dancing,
boating, golf and making a yearly batch of wild grape jelly. He played,
studied and worked with determination and great satisfaction. He
graduated from New Britain High School and then served in the Navy as a
radar engineer on the U.S. John Bole destroyer in WWII. In the time
after the war, he attended Central Connecticut State College and
graduated from McGill University with a degree in Philosophy. While at
McGill he met the love of his life, Joyce, and they were married for
over 70 years. After settling in Connecticut and while raising their
family, he went on to earn his Law Degree at the UConn School of Law.
He went on to work for IBM, Aetna Insurance, Fuller Brush and then
established his own private law practice in Hartford. He became a
Public Defender for the City of Hartford and then for the town of
Vernon-Rockville.
Madam Speaker, I had a chance to see Vin's work in the Public
Defender's Office up close over the years. As a law school intern who
worked in the Hartford Superior Court, I helped interview clients and
witnesses and assisted him during court hearings and trials. After
passing the bar I continued to work with Vin as a public defender
myself and in private practice. As most people know, public defenders
have to grapple with high caseloads, sometimes difficult clients and
limited resources to fully investigate cases. Sometimes public
defenders succumb to viewing their role as moving cases along, and not
pursuing the fullest defense possible. Not Vin. He took his oath and
the constitutional duty under the Sixth Amendment to provide effective
assistance of counsel to the fullest degree possible. I saw him press
judges and prosecutors harder than they were normally accustomed in his
pursuit of fairness and equal justice. It gave me a true insight into
his strong character, which I admired deeply. As friendly and affable a
person as he was, he had a spine of steel that was always centered on
ethics and compassion.
Madam Speaker, Vin was devoted to his amazing, impressive wife Joyce,
their eight children and many grandchildren who all loved him dearly
and mourn his passing. Madam Speaker, I would ask the members to join
me in honoring the wonderful life and legacy of Vincent Giedraitis.
____________________