DOB/DOD: July 23, 1925 (Pemberwich, NY) – July 2, 2004 (Norwalk, CT); 78 years old
MARITAL STATUS: Married to Mabel Travis (1930-2002) of Port Chester, New York, in 1950.
CHILDREN: Two sons, Richard (1954-) and Jeffrey [Army veteran] (1955-2016). One daughter, Jane Stempien Pulitano (1959-).
LOCAL ADDRESS: High View Road, Glenville, CT
ENLISTMENT: Inducted on October 4, 1943, and entered active duty on October 25, 1943
SERVICE NUMBER: 31406721
DISCHARGE: January 18, 1946, at Fort Devens, Massachusetts
UNIT: Headquarters Battery, 321st Glider Field Artillery Battalion, 101st Airborne Division
FAMILY: Son of Max (1878-1952) and Mary Konieczna [Konig] Stempien (1892-1961). Sixth born of ten children. Five sisters, Frances Stempien Pastula (1927-2012), Josephine Stempien Witkowski (1915-2005), Stella Stempien Kelly (1917-2014), Genevieve “Jeannie” Stempien Dorazio (1935-2013), and Helen Stempien Tomsiewicz (1933-2014). Four brothers, Edward (1919-1985), John (1920-2008), Leonard (1922-2013), and Bruno (1929-2012).
OTHER: Prior to the service, he worked as a shipping clerk for Alfred D. McKelvy Company in Greenwich for one year. He filled orders from stock bins and shelves. After the war, he worked as a dairyman at Dellwood Dairy. He retired in 1990 after 35 years with them.
The shield is scarlet for Artillery. The lion’s paws are significant for the Field Artillery, which may be likened to a mountain lion whose paws have great strength and power in felling and crushing a victim. Enscrolled beneath the shield is the motto “Noli Me Tangere,” which translates to “Touch Me Not.”
Served as a switchboard operator for an airfield. Connected phones in the field with other parts of the division. Used standard switchboard technique using small field switchboards. Also worked as a lineman on telephone lines. Repaired and set up wires in combat and base camp for inter-battalion communications.
From “Screaming Eagle Gliders –
The 321st Glider Field Artillery Battalion of the 101st Airborne Division in WWII”
Author: G.J. Dettore
Citation: Dettore, G. J. (2016). Screaming Eagle Gliders: The 321st Glider Field Artillery Battalion of the 101st Airborne Division in World War II. United States: Stackpole Books.
ISBN: 9780811764872, 0811764877
Recipient of the Belgian Fourragere
(pronounced fur-‘zher)
The Belgian fourragére may be awarded by the Belgian Government if a unit was cited twice in the order of the day. The award of the fourragére is not automatic and requires a specific decree of the Belgian Government. The fourragére is the same color as the ribbon for the Croix de Guerre. A streamer is displayed on the organizational flag/guidon to indicate the award of the Croix de Guerre. The streamer is the same color and pattern as the ribbon for the medal. Army units may display the Croix de Guerre on ceremonial occasions by pinning it on the streamer. In addition, the fourragére may be displayed on the guidon for ceremonial occasions, as shown in Chapter 9, Army Regulation (AR) 840-10. The Belgian Fourragére is authorized for permanent wear only. Personnel temporarily assigned to a unit which was awarded the fourragére may not wear the fourragére.
NOTE: Tec 5 Stempien also received the European African Middle Eastern Theater Campaign Ribbon and the World War II victory medal.
From The Norwalk Hour July 4, 2004
Anthony C. Stempien, age 78, of Norwalk, formerly of Greenwich, died on July 2, 2004, at Norwalk Hospital. Born in Greenwich on July 23, 1925, he was the son of the late Max and Mary Konig Stempien. He was a retired foreman for Dellwood Dairy in White Plains, N.Y. He was a veteran of World War II, serving in the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne Division in the Battle of the Bulge and the invasion of Holland. He was a member of the Gliders Unit. He was predeceased by his wife. Mabel Travis Stempien, in 2002, and by a brother, Edward Stempien. He is survived by his two sons, Richard Stempien of Potomac, Maryland, and Jeffrey Stempien, of Greenwich; a daughter, Jane Pulitano of Wilton; five sisters, Frances Pastula of Old Greenwich, Stella Kelly of Greenwich, Jeannie Dorazio of York, Pa., Josephine Witkowski of Norwalk and Helen Tomsiewicz of Utica, N.Y.; three brothers, John Stempien of Greenwich, Leonard Stempien of Georgia and William Stempicn of Bristol; and seven grandchildren. Graveside services will be held on Wednesday, July 7. 2004, at St. Mary Cemetery, Greenwich, at 11 a.m. Calling hours are Tuesday, 4 to 8 p.m., at the Castiglione Funeral Home, 134 Hamilton Ave., Greenwich.
Buried in Saint Mary’s Cemetery, 396 North Street, Greenwich, Connecticut; plot number unknown. Photo from findagrave.com.
Honor Norwalk CT veterans 
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