On the recordMarch 9, 2020
Today, I rise to honor the life and legacy of World War II veteran Ralph Waite, a Medina native and northeast Ohio icon who died on February 18 at age 93. Ralph joined the Army in June 1944, immediately after his graduation from Medina High School. He served in the U.S. Army, 924th Field Artillery Battalion, in the European theater and took part in the Battle of the Bulge. When he came home from the war in 1946, Ralph married his high school sweetheart, Helen Clark, in 1948. Together, they raised their twin sons, Harold and Darrell. He lived a life committed to serving his community and our Nation. Ralph was Scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 501 for 36 years and active in Buckeye Boys State for 40 years, and he led the Medina Rotary Youth Exchange Program. Ralph's crowning honor in the community was the naming of Ralph E. Waite Elementary School in 2009. Ralph was an icon in the Medina community, known for his outstanding service to his church, our youth, and our veterans. Ralph's life motto was: ``We occupy space on this Earth, and community service is the rent that we pay for the space that we are permitted to occupy.'' Ralph lived by these words throughout his life, and his legacy and example will live on in his children, grandchildren, great- grandchildren, and the entire community of Medina long into the future. ____________________
