Raritan to hold 34th annual John Basilone Memorial Parade

Gunnery Sgt. John Basilone, who was raised in Raritan, is the only U.S. Marine awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, the Navy Cross and the Purple Heart.

SOMERSET -- Despite the nationalism that engulfed the country following attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, John R. Pacifico, chairman of the John Basilone Memorial Parade, said an alarming number of young people still don't know about America's proud military history and its many fallen war heroes.

One such hero will be honored on Sunday when Raritan Borough remembers one of its bravest -- World War II veteran John "Manila John" Basilone -- with the 34th annual John Basilone Memorial Parade, a half-mile march through the borough towards the John Basilone statue.

Basilone, whose story was memorialized by HBO's 2010 television mini-series "The Pacific," became a national hero during World War II by leading more than a dozen gunners against thousands of Japanese soldiers at Guadalcanal in 1942. He came home to receive the Medal of Honor, but returned to combat in 1945 and was killed in action on Feb. 19 at Iwo Jima at the age of 28. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

The parade, Pacifico said, isn't just to pay homage to Basilone but to also say thanks to veterans across the nation, especially World War II veterans -- many of whom are now in their 80s and 90s.

Gunnery Sgt. John Basilone, who was born in Buffalo, N.Y. but raised in Raritan, has the distinction of being the only United States Marine to be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, the Navy Cross and the Purple Heart for his heroism in World War II.

"Many of our young people hardly know George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, so you know they have no idea of who John Basilone was," said Pacifico, 88, an Army command engineer veteran.  "In order for us to keep this parade alive we need the young people. They're our life blood."

"But they don't think about this country as we did growing up," he said. "We used to sing our country's song and say the Pledge of Allegiance every day in school. Our parade isn't just to preserve the memories of John and other veterans but to revive patriotism. We want people, especially our young people, to be aware of what our military does to protect us and preserve our freedom."

The parade, which begins at 1 p.m. and is expected to attract a crowd of 5,000, will feature more than 150 units, including several young military organizations such as the Lebanon Civil Air Patrol, the United States Navy Sea Cadets of Lawrence, the Rahway High School Marine Corp Jr. ROTC, the Linden High School U.S. Navy Corp Jr. ROTC and the Colts Neck Naval Jr. ROTC among others.

There will also be military groups and veterans' organizations, Marine detachments, military vehicles, floats and many civic and patriotic groups. Twenty marching bands are scheduled to participate.

Col. Jon D. Duke, a commanding officer of the Marine Corps Special Operations Command in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, will be the guest speaker.

The Grand Marshall of this year's parade is World War II Navy veteran Tony Lettieri, a Raritan native who now lives in Howell. During the war, he served on the USS Nicholas, a highly-decorated destroyer that spent the war in the Pacific Ocean. The vessel was awarded 16 battle stars and The Presidential Unit Citation and survived four attacks from kamikaze plane formations off the coast of the Philippines from Nov. 27 through Dec. 5, 1944.

During the Japanese surrender ceremony on Sept. 2, 1945 aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, the USS Nicholas was anchored beside the USS Missouri because of its extensive battle record throughout the war.

"This is quite an honor," Lettieri said. "Raritan is my home. This means a lot to me. I remember being at the first John Basilone Parade (in 1943). I met him. He was a very nice and humble guy."

Lettieri said he had several close brushes with death during his two years on the USS Nicholas from 1943 to 1945. He was stationed aboard the destroyer after leaving boot camp and never left the vessel until the end of the war, he said.

"Some people say we shouldn't have dropped the Atomic Bomb but if we didn't, I don't think I would be here," he said. "The Japanese had over 8,000 suicide planes. I saw other ships get blown up. We had some close calls. I was one of the lucky ones."

Prior to the parade, the John Basilone Museum at the Raritan Public Library will be open at 10 a.m. and a Memorial mass will be celebrated at St. Ann's Church at 10:30 a.m.

On Saturday, the 26th John Basilone Commemorative Concert, presented by the Summerswing Orchestra, will take place at 7 p.m. at The Theatre at Raritan Valley Community College.

Basilone's memory can be found throughout Raritan. There's the John Basilone Veterans Memorial Bridge across the Raritan River, Basilone Place, Basilone Park, and the memorial statue at the intersection of Canal Street and Somerset Street, where the parade ends with an official ceremony each year.

For more information log onto www.basiloneparade.com.

Dave Hutchinson may be reached at dhutchinson@njadvancemedia.com.Follow him on Twitter @DHutch_SL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.