Biography of Louis Bresciano

Louis “Louie” Bresciano, was born in Greenfield, Massachusetts on June 20, 1912. He grew up in Greenfield and at the age of 12, starting working as an apprentice cobbler for his uncle, Vincent Tataro. In 1931, Louie opened his own shoe repair shop in his home town and in 1939, married Irene J. Chmielewska. In March1944, at the age of 31, with a wife, two children ages 1 year and 2, and the sole proprietor of a shoe repair business, closed up shop and joined the Navy as a way of serving his country in a time of great crisis.

Upon completion of recruit training at the U.S. Naval Training Station, Sampson, New York, Seaman Second Class Bresciano was headed to North Africa to become a member of Bombing Squadron ONE HUNDRED ELEVEN (VB-111) at the Naval Air Station (NAS) Port Lyautey, French Morocco. Shortly after his arrival, the Squadron received orders to deploy back to the States and prepare for deployment to the Pacific Theater of Operations. This preparation took him to NAS Quonset Point, RI; NAS Camp Kearney, Calif.; NAS Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii and in December of 1944, he and the re-designated Patrol Bombing Squadron ONE HUNDRED ELEVEN (VPB-111), transferred to the combat zone at NAS West Field, Tinian.

Here the squadron’s Navy PB4Y-1 Liberators conducted strategic long-range searches for Japanese shipping and movements. In January of 1945, VPB-111 was relocated to NAB Morotai, Dutch East Indies to conduct long-range reconnaissance and anti-shipping patrols in the Borneo and Celebes Island areas. On 1 February 1945, Louie relocated with the squadron to Tacloban Air Base, Leyte, Philippines where the squadron conducted the same type of operations as those at Morotai. By the middle of April 1945, with the defeat of the Japanese in the Philippines, VPB-111 moved to the Army Air Field on the island of Palawan just out side the city of Puerto Princessa. Combat operations against the Japanese were conducted from the far northern coast of Indo-China to as far south as Sinapore. Long-range, single aircraft patrols were conducted right up until the war’s end and for a short period thereafter.

By this time Seaman Bresciano had acquired the rate of Aviation Machinist Mate Third Class and had performed duties within the squadron as a runner, mechanic, and crewmember on the squadron’s Liberators. He also became the father of a third boy, James Michael, born in May of 1945. His awards and decorations consist of the World War II Victory Medal, American Theater Ribbon, European-African-Middle Eastern Theater Ribbon, Asiatic-Pacific Theater Ribbon with 3 stars, and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon with 1 star. AMM3/c

Bresciano returned to the States in late October 1945 and was honorably discharged in mid November 1945. Louie returned to the shoe repair business and ran his own store for over 51 years. In 1946, another boy was born into the Bresciano family. Within a few years, these four boys were in a neighborhood that numbered 16 boys and 2 girls. Louie’s wife, Irene passed away in August 1963 at the young age of 51. In 1983, Louie retired from the shoe repair business and not long afterwards, suffered a stroke and was partially paralyzed. “Louie” Bresciano was deceased on November 6, 1995 at the age of 83.