US Government Honors the Late Col. George Juskalian by Naming Post Office in His Honor

In remarks marking the occasion, Rep. Frank Wolf paid tribute to Colonel George Juskalian heroism and dedication to public service: “Col. Juskalian served in the Unites States Army with great distinction for nearly 30 years, including service in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. He spent 27 months in captivity as a Prisoner of War (POW) during WWII and received numerous awards from the US Army for outstanding service including its highest honor, the Legion of Merit. Colonel Juskalian was an example of the best of America, son of immigrants who devoted himself to the preservation of our nation and freedom around the world. Col. George Juskalian was one of the most highly decorated Armenian-American veterans to ever serve in the US Military. He is recognized for his service and his dedication to America.”

The House of Representatives had unanimously approved on December 1, 2010 HR 6392, legislation introduced by Wolf (R-VA) and supported by Virginia’s entire Congressional delegation, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 5003 Westfields Boulevard in Centreville as the “Colonel George Juskalian Post Office Building” in honor of his military career and dedication to public service. Swift Senate approval of HR 6392 followed and President Barack Obama signed this resolution as Public Law 111-367 on January 4, 2011.

Friends and neighbors led by Greg Mathieson who knew Juskalian, organized a letter-writing campaign and lobbied Frank and Sen. Mark Warner to sponsor jointly the bill. Representatives from the American Legion Post 1995 and Veterans of Foreign Wars 9469 Post 8469 also wrote to them to help support the idea.

American Legion Post Commander Peter DeFreece wrote that naming the building after Juskalian was an act that would do much more than to honor one veteran’s service: “Although Centreville, Virginia has many residents that have served our nation with distinction, there is no monument, plaque or memorial dedicated to the men and women of the US Armed Forces. Naming the Centreville Postal Facility for Colonel Juskalian would represent a constant reminder to patrons of the service and sacrifices made by the military veterans in their community. By placing Colonel Juskalian’s name and a small memorial in the Centreville Post Office, we honor him and all the veterans within our community, past, present and future”.

Juskalian was born in Fitchburg, Mass., on June 7, 1914 and was the youngest son of Kevork Juskalian of Kharpert and Maritza Ferrahian of Arapkir. He was raised in Fitchburg, attended the local high school and graduated from Boston University in 1936 with a Bachelor of Science degree in journalism while concurrently earning a commission as a second Lieutenant in the US Army Reserve via ROTC.

Juskalian was called to active duty in November of 1940. During WWII, he saw combat duties in North Africa where he was a prisoner of war for more than 27 months; he was a battalion commander in Korea in 1952-1953; he was military advisor to the Vietnamese Army under combat conditions in 1963-1964 and advisor to the Imperial Iranian Army in Teheran, 1957-1958. Other key assignments included service in General Dwight Eisenhower’s secretariat in the Pentagon, 1945-1948 and subsequent postings at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas and Fort Benning, Ga. He retired from the United States Army with the rank of colonel in 1967.