Gion, Alphonse Francis (01177462): Difference between revisions

Alphonse was born on April 25, 1920, on the homestead farm of his parents, near Regent, N.D. Worked as farmer and aircraft riveter. Soon thereafter, Captain Gion was assigned to serve as Executive Officer of a Strategic Intelligence Unit at 7th Army Headquarters near Stuttgart, Germany. Gion remained active in the reserves until 1974 when he retired with the rank of Colonel. Upon graduation in 1933, he attended Assumption Abbey, a monastery/seminary high school at Richardton, N.D. Upon completion he chose not to become a monk, but returned to the farm until he was drafted into the U.S. Soon after completing basic training he was selected to attend Artillery Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill, Okla., from which he was commissioned in October 1942. Having a German language skill, he was sent to Military Intelligence School, Camp Ritchie, MD., where he completed a course in Prisoner of War Interrogation and German Order of Battle. He was then assigned to a post in England where he completed parachute training in preparation for service as commanding officer of a prisoner of war interrogation unit with the 101st Airborne Division in the Normandy (D-Day) Invasion and later the Holland invasion and the Battle of the Bulge at Bastogne. Upon separation from the service in January 1946 he completed studies at UW-Madison for a B.A. degree in political science. He was recalled to active duty in June 1950 accompanied by his bride to do duty at the Army Intelligence School at Fort Riley, Kan. After completion of his tour of duty in July 1954 he returned to UW-Madison to complete his M.A. Subsequently, he served in various operational and administrative roles with the Wisconsin State and federal public programs for the furtherance of civil rights and equal opportunity. He retired from the federal civil service in June 1979 and returned from Chicago to Madison.