Portrait of George Belezos
Born November 3, 1924 in Boston
Rank: Tec 5. Service: US Army. Division/Ship: 299th Ordnance, 3rd Army - Patton's Army. Theater: Europe. Dates of Service: 1943 - 1946. Specific Battles: Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland. Special Citations: Purple Heart, Legion of Honor

Boston-born, George Belezos, his sister, and his parents found themselves in Gloucester because his father was searching for work during the Great Depression. He found it working at the Pine Tree Tap Room, a local bar for Gloucester fishermen on Main Street. George finished high school at Gloucester High with a GED before being drafted into the Army. Assigned to Patton's Army, his primary job was to maintain small arms for the combat infantry. While awaiting their mobilization in England, he and his division mates were bombed by German buzz bombs. They arrived in France about a week after the initial D-Day invasion. Near Metz, France, he and four other guys from his contact party took shelter in an abandoned German barracks. The building was hit by a shell and demolished, killing three of the five. Belezos was flown to England to recover from his wounds. Though he thought he would lose his leg, ultimately he recovered enough to be shipped back to the front lines and the Battle of the Bulge. He returned home in 1946. "We were just kids." Once home, he married Angelica "Kiki" Gounaris and the couple were married for 62 years. They had three children and five grandchildren (at the time). Belezos earned his Associates Degree form Salem Teacher's College, studying fire training, and took a job with the Gloucester Fire Department for 30 years, retiring as a Deputy Chief.