Roll of Honor
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Paul Eugene Betowski
- School: Physicians & Surgeons
- Class Year: 1906
- War: World War I
- Date of Death: July 2, 1918
Captain Paul Eugene Betowski, 65th Aero Squad, Hospital Number 37, was killed in an auto accident, July 2, 1918.
Tributes
I wish I had known my great-uncle, Paul Eugene. His brothers, whom I did know growing up, were wonderful men. One of his brothers, Leon (after whom my father and I were both named), also graduated from Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia. My great-uncle, Paul Eugene, befriended the poet Joyce Kilmer (CC'08) while in the army. (Joyce Kilmer was killed in action on August 1, 1918, a month after Paul Eugene died.) Paul Eugene's other brother was a monsignor in the Catholic church teaching at a seminary in New York, and then became pastor of a parish in Yonkers. He was a friend of Dorothy Day, the founder of the Catholic Worker.
- Leon Betowski
And I, Paula, am honored to be named after my great uncle Paul, the brother of my grandfather, Dr Leon S Betowski. Dr Paul E Betowski was a hero who carried gas masks from the hospital to the soldiers on the front line in a Model T ambulance. Sadly, he never made it back to his post at the hospital, gone at 37 years of age and I never got to meet him. Paula Betowski Flaherty
- Paula Flaherty
Is any of our information incorrect? You can submit corrections, additional photos, and/or tributes to uarchives@columbia.edu.