News Detail
Dr. Alphonse Cardi '34 Featured In Providence Journal
La Salle Academy graduate Dr. Alphonse Cardi ’34 was featured in the front page lead story in the Providence Journal on Veterans Day, November 12, 2012 in which three Rhode Island veterans – all in their 90s – spoke about their military service in World War II.
Quoting the Journal story, “I’m no hero,” says Dr. Alphonse Cardi, 97, of Cranston. “I did my duty.”
The story goes on to tell Cardi’s story about growing up in Cranston, being the fifth of 10 children and graduating from La Salle in 1934, Providence College in 1938 and Georgetown University Medical School in 1942 and enlisting in the Army “inadvertently” when an Army general came to the medical school to speak to the graduating class. In that talk the general asked if anyone would refuse to serve if asked. No one spoke and general then told them that they had joined the Army!La Salle Academy graduate Dr. Alphonse Cardi ’34 was featured in the front page lead story in the Providence Journal on Veterans Day, November 12, 2012 in which three Rhode Island veterans – all in their 90s – spoke about their military service in World War II.
Quoting the Journal story, “I’m no hero,” says Dr. Alphonse Cardi, 97, of Cranston. “I did my duty.”
The story goes on to tell Cardi’s story about growing up in Cranston, being the fifth of 10 children and graduating from La Salle in 1934, Providence College in 1938 and Georgetown University Medical School in 1942 and enlisting in the Army “inadvertently” when an Army general came to the medical school to speak to the graduating class. In that talk the general asked if anyone would refuse to serve if asked. No one spoke and general then told them that they had joined the Army!
And with that, Dr. Cardi became a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army!
The story continued with Dr. Cardi describing his landing on Omaha Beach on D-Day. “For some reason, every bullet missed me.”
The story ran more than 46 column inches with the two other veterans telling stories of their service.
La Salle Academy is a high school rich in history and grounded in the person and teachings of Jesus and the Catholic faith, which are core to the school's life and culture. The De La Salle Middle School provides a strong holistic foundation for students to transition into high school. The high school and middle school provide students of diverse ethnic, economic, and religious backgrounds, a community to foster growth in the tradition of St. John Baptist de La Salle’s ideals of faith, service, and community.
