2026 SESSION

INTRODUCED

26109245D

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 281

Offered March 9, 2026

Commending Romuald Lipinski.

—————

Patron—Watts

—————

WHEREAS, Romuald Lipinski, a Polish veteran of World War II who later settled in the Commonwealth and served the United States government as an engineer, celebrated his 100th birthday in 2025; and

WHEREAS, born in Poland in 1925, Romuald Lipinski was the youngest child of Edward and Salomea Lipinski; and

WHEREAS, in September of 1939, after the Soviet Union occupied eastern Poland, Romuald Lipinski and his family were forcibly relocated to a one-room apartment, but continued to open their home to refugees, Polish soldiers, or anyone in need of assistance; and

WHEREAS, in 1941, Romuald Lipinski and his family were deported to Siberia, where he endured a weeks-long battle with typhus; they were subsequently allowed to leave after joining a Polish military unit to fight against Nazi Germany; and

WHEREAS, Romuald Lipinski was assigned to a mortar platoon in the 12th Podolski Lancers Regiment of the British Eighth Army; after training, he landed in Taranto, Italy, in December of 1943; and

WHEREAS, in April and May of 1944, Romuald Lipinski participated in the Battle of Monte Cassino, and his unit planted their banner on the highest point of the monastery on the morning of May 18th; and

WHEREAS, after the war, Romuald Lipinski studied chemical engineering in Turin, Italy, before pursuing additional schooling in England, where he met Izabela “Iza” Zienkiewicz, a fellow Polish refugee, whose family had also been deported to Siberia during the war; and

WHEREAS, Romuald and Iza Lipinski married in 1952, then relocated to the United States and settled in New Jersey, where he took night classes at the Newark College of Engineering while working during the day; and

WHEREAS, Romuald and Iza Lipinski became citizens of the United States in the late 1950s, and shortly thereafter, he pursued a career with the federal government, first as a civilian employee of the United States Navy designing antenna towers, then as a member of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, where he worked for 22 years; and

WHEREAS, Romuald and Iza Lipinski settled in Annandale, where they raised three children, Adam, Eva, and Yolanda, and enjoyed 67 happy years together until Iza's passing in 2019; and

WHEREAS, in addition to his career, Romuald Lipinski taught courses at the University of Virginia, Northern Virginia Community College, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Graduate School, now known as Graduate School USA; and

WHEREAS, in later life, Romuald Lipinski returned to Poland numerous times and visited Italy in 1994 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Monte Cassino; and

WHEREAS, Romuald Lipinski's life of service and unwavering determination in the face of numerous hardships over the course of his life represent the highest ideals of the Commonwealth, and his story is an inspiration to members of his community and all Virginians; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Romuald Lipinski on the occasion of his 100th birthday; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Romuald Lipinski as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration for his lifetime of achievements and best wishes.