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WWII vet gifts Coast Guard with historical flag

Alex Obrizok, who served aboard a Coast Guard Cutter named Tampa during WWII, donated his ship's old ensign to the current Tampa in Portsmouth.

PORTSMOUTH, Va. — A World War II U.S. Coast Guard veteran presented a historical flag to the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Tampa on Thursday.

Earlier this year, 96-year-old Alex Obrizok of Selma, North Carolina was at a wedding, where he met Patricia Larken. Both Obrizok and Larken are Coast Guard veterans who served aboard a Coast Guard Cutter with the same namesake, the Tampa.

After the wedding, Obrizok went into a storage chest, where he found a Coast Guard ensign that belonged to the original Tampa. He gave the flag, which had been in his possession for over 70 years, to Larken, and asked that she return it to the current Tampa because of its historical significance.

"It’s a beautiful flag," Obrizok said in a news release. "It survived all these years and belongs with her namesake, it belongs to the Tampa."

Obrizok, his daughter and son-in-law drove from North Carolina to Portsmouth to give the flag to the current Tampa. The flag was flown on the ship during his visit.

Credit: US Coast Guard Atlantic Area
The flag of the World War II-era Coast Guard Cutter Tampa flies over its current namesake, after WWII veteran Alex Obrizok donated the ensign to the current Tampa.

Obrizok served in the Coast Guard from 1942 to 1946. In addition to his Coast Guard service, he is also a Navy and Sea Bees veteran with over 20 years of cumulative service to his country. He participated in operations for both World War II and the Korean War.

During World War II, Tampa was part of the historical Greenland Patrol and was an escort vessel for the Dorchester convoy. That Tampa was decommissioned late in 1946.

The current Tampa has been in service with the Coast Guard since its commissioning in 1984.

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