Austin Guiffre - Obituary

ustin Guiffre, 93, a resident of Atria Manresa, previously of Heritage Harbour and formerly of Hyattsville, MD, passed away on September 27, 2015. He was born on March 18, 1922 in Washington, DC to the late Austin and Matilda Guiffre. Austin entered the U.S. Army in 1942 as an infantry soldier. He fought at the Battle of the Bulge and was captured by German forces on January 6, 1945. Imprisoned as a POW, Austin was forced to clean bricks. By the time he was freed on April 13, 1945, he suffered from starvation and frozen feet. He was awarded the Bronze Star. Austin used his POW work experience to launch a 40-year career as a bricklayer. He was proud to have been part of the construction team that built the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC. He also helped build the barbeque pits at the White House. He was a member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Annapolis and enjoyed golfing, gardening, especially growing his own garlic, and making his own wine. Austin was preceded in death by his sister, Jean O’Brien. He is survived by his nephew, James O’Brien of Annapolis; niece, Mary Breedlove of Lanham, MD; and his beloved Boston Terrier, Billy Kid. Friends are invited to celebrate Austin’s life from 2 to 4 p.m. on Thursday, October 1 at the George P. Kalas Funeral Home, 2973 Solomons Island Road, Edgewater, MD. A Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 9 a.m. on Friday, October 2 in the chapel at St. John Neumann Catholic Church, 620 N. Bestgate Road, Annapolis, MD. Burial will be at the Maryland Veterans Cemetery in Crownsville. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Boston Terrier Rescue of East Tennessee, 4501 Montuale Road, Maryville, TN 37803, ATTN: Joe Raibley. An online guestbook is available at: www.KalasFuneralHomes.com.