At Last: Fallen CIA Officer Honored

By COLlive reporter

On Monday, May 18, the Monroe post office held a ceremony to mark the naming of the post office for Gregg Wenzel, a Monroe native who died while working for the CIA.

After the tragic events of September 11, 2001, Wenzel decided to serve his country and became a member of the CIA in the first post-9/11 recruitment class. At the age of 33, Wenzel lost his life while serving in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on July 9, 2003.

A bill bestowing his name on his hometown post office began in 2011 under former Rep. Nan Hayworth, was carried forward by her successor, Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, and finally became law last December after the Senate passed the measure and President Barack Obama signed it.

Rabbi Pesach Burston, Director of Chabad of Orange County in New York, delivered the opening invocation as well as the closing remarks and prayer.

More than 200 people, including officials from state, county and village levels, as well as from the CIA and the USPS, gathered in the parking lot of the Post Office for this bittersweet event.

A succession of speakers on Monday – including Congressman Maloney, former congresswoman Hayworth, Assemblyman Karl Brabenec, Monroe Mayor James Purcell, USPS Monroe Postmaster Joseph A. Curto as well as Mitchell and Gladys Wenzel – paid tribute to Wenzel.

In his remarks, Gregg’s father, Mitchell, read an article about Gregg that was written by the CIA and spoke of the significance of the number 18 – Chai: “Gregg was born on the 18th, this event in his honor is on the 18th and the number of his star on the Memorial Wall at the CIA in Langley is 81, which, in reverse, is also Chai. Gregg lived life to the fullest.”

Burston recalled that he got to know Gregg’s family through Chabad. Gregg was involved with Rabbis Mendy Katz of the Aleph Institute and Rabbi Zev Katz of Chabad on Wheels in Miami, FL. When Chabad moved to Orange County in June 2004, shortly after Gregg’s passing, Rabbi Mendy Katz put him in touch with Wenzel.

“On a personal note,” Burston said, “Mitch and Gladys are true examples of keeping the life and legacy of a loved one alive through the good deeds done in his memory.”

Burston spoke of the Gregg David Wenzel Scholarship Fund the Wenzel family set up to help support scholarships for Chabad Hebrew School. Burston also mentioned that Mitch honors the memory of his son by putting on Gregg’s tefilin every weekday.

“When the CIA returned Gregg’s belongings to his family,” Burston explained, “one of the items was a pair of Tefillin. Mitch took upon himself this daily mitzvah in his memory.” Mitchell added that he puts on his son’s Tefillin each year at the CIA Memorial and even has a photo of him with then CIA director while wearing it.

Burston concluded: “Every time I think of Tefillin, I think of Gregg. Every time a Jewish child gets a Jewish education scholarship, I think of Gregg. Now every time I will get a bill in the mail, I will think of Gregg…”

The event was concluded with a Prayer for the Nation.