Illinois Congressman Sorensen Hosts Medal Award Ceremony for Local World War II Veteran
On Friday, August 2, 2024, Congressman Eric Sorensen (IL-17) hosted a medal award ceremony for local World War II veteran Roald Zvonik who was awarded the American Campaign Medal, the Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal, an Honorable Service Lapel Pin, and a World War II Victory Medal but never received the physical medals. Over the past year, Sorensen’s office worked with the military to help secure these medals for Mr. Zvonik.
Moline native World War II veteran Roald Zvonik turned 98 this past May. Roald’s teenage years were cast in the shadow of the Great Depression and World War II. At just 17, he enlisted in the Navy.
His service took him to the Pacific, aboard the USS LST 722 as a 20mm aircraft gunner. This unassuming ship, a Landing Ship Tank, was the workhorse of the war, carrying troops and equipment to the shores of hostile territory. Roald was part of the surge in the Philippine Island Campaign, making two landings and one invasion. He also spent 6 months in Japan; he was walking the streets of Tokyo at 19 years of age. President Truman announced Japan’s surrender and the end of World War II, with the formal surrender occurring on September 2nd, 1945. As such, Roald was discharged from the Navy on July 20, 1946.
Roald worked at the Rock Island Arsenal and the US Army Weapons Command, a career that would span three and a half decades. As a civilian, he was deployed to Germany. His next civilian deployment sent him to the heart of the Vietnam War where he was stationed in Saigon.
In retirement, Roald’s commitment to service found a new outlet in the Rock Island Arsenal Cemetery. For decades, he has volunteered his time and skills to maintain sacred ground, ensuring the final resting place of those who served is treated with the utmost respect. Roald is a 70-year plus member of Riverside United Methodist Church, a Master Gardner; he participated in the Mississippi Valley Rose Society; and was part of the Community Health Care Board of Directors.
In 2000, a decommissioned LST, once a stalwart of the Navy, caught his attention. With a passion that belied his years, Roald joined a group of veterans paying his own way to Greece to restore the ship to its former glory. The fruits of their labor, the USS LST 325, arrived in the US in 2001. Now a floating museum, she has even graced the waters of the Quad Cities, a homecoming of sorts for the man who dedicated his life to serving his country. Roald has performed restoration, maintenance and tour guide duties, and shared WWII stories over his 20 years of service to LST.
Eric Sorensen
