thedrifter
06-15-03, 01:51 PM
Lyndhurst names park for 3 killed in WWII
Sunday, June 15, 2003
By JOHN A. GAVIN
STAFF WRITER
LYNDHURST - For years, the small park in the southeast corner of town in the old Polish neighborhood has been unofficially known as Lewandowski Park, and with good reason.
The park, which has a time-scarred monument recognizing the town's World War II dead, is adjacent to Lewandowski Street, named after Alex, Walter, and William Lewandowski, three Lyndhurst brothers killed in the war.
Saturday, a new monument featuring a large plaque and three gold stars was unveiled in the park, and it was officially named Lewandowski Park.
In a somber ceremony held on Flag Day, about 90 people - including township commissioners, war veterans, schoolchildren, and Lewandowski family members - paid tribute to the brothers' sacrifice.
"We've seen cemeteries, and most are beautifully kept, but this is much more real," said Christine Lewandowski of Severna Park, Md., who came to the ceremony with two of her three adult children, James and Melissa.
Christine Lewandowski's husband, Bill Jr., was less than a year old when William Sr.'s B-17 bomber was shot down in a raid over Osnabrueck, Germany, on March 14, 1945.
She said Bill Jr., who was overseas on a business trip Saturday, followed in his father's footsteps, serving in the military for 21 years after graduating from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.
After the brothers died, their mother, Stella Lewandowski, received three gold stars in a ceremony attended by first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The family's sacrifice is still well known in town, because the AMVETS post is named after the brother, and so is a shopping plaza.
Thomas Graffam, a township commissioner, said the park serves as an added reminder of the family's heroism.
"With all the fighting our troops are going through now and the patriotism, I think it's a good opportunity for people to know about our local heroes," said Graffam, a Vietnam veteran and commander of the Lyndhurst VFW post.
Walter, a Marine sergeant, was killed on the first day of the invasion of Guam on July 21, 1944, according to "Three Gold Stars,'' a book about the brothers by R.J. Rosamilia.
Alex, an Army private first class, was killed by German artillery fire on Nov. 25, 1944, near Apweiler, Germany.
William, an Air Force lieutenant, is buried in Belgium, Walter in Hawaii, and Alex in the Netherlands.
Christine Lewandowski said that she and her husband, now an aerospace executive in Washington, D.C., have visited the grave sites of all three brothers.A fourth brother, Ted Lewandowski, the last of six siblings, died this year.
After passing the Lewandowski Commons shopping center and the street bearing his family name, James Lewandowski, 34, said he was touched to see the tributes.
"I know the story [about my grandfather and great uncles], but there is so much we don't know," said James Lewandowski, who lives in Reston, Va. "The people do remember. The people do realize the sacrifices."
Town officials passed a resolution last Tuesday officially changing the park's name from Southeast Memorial Park.
Town officials used $12,500 from an $18,000 Bergen County Community Grant to spruce up the park and erect the 7-foot-tall brick memorial, Graffam said.
http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk3JmZnYmVs N2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2MzkxNzA5JnlyaXJ5N2Y3MTdmN3ZxZWVFRX l5Mw==
Sempers,
Roger
Sunday, June 15, 2003
By JOHN A. GAVIN
STAFF WRITER
LYNDHURST - For years, the small park in the southeast corner of town in the old Polish neighborhood has been unofficially known as Lewandowski Park, and with good reason.
The park, which has a time-scarred monument recognizing the town's World War II dead, is adjacent to Lewandowski Street, named after Alex, Walter, and William Lewandowski, three Lyndhurst brothers killed in the war.
Saturday, a new monument featuring a large plaque and three gold stars was unveiled in the park, and it was officially named Lewandowski Park.
In a somber ceremony held on Flag Day, about 90 people - including township commissioners, war veterans, schoolchildren, and Lewandowski family members - paid tribute to the brothers' sacrifice.
"We've seen cemeteries, and most are beautifully kept, but this is much more real," said Christine Lewandowski of Severna Park, Md., who came to the ceremony with two of her three adult children, James and Melissa.
Christine Lewandowski's husband, Bill Jr., was less than a year old when William Sr.'s B-17 bomber was shot down in a raid over Osnabrueck, Germany, on March 14, 1945.
She said Bill Jr., who was overseas on a business trip Saturday, followed in his father's footsteps, serving in the military for 21 years after graduating from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.
After the brothers died, their mother, Stella Lewandowski, received three gold stars in a ceremony attended by first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The family's sacrifice is still well known in town, because the AMVETS post is named after the brother, and so is a shopping plaza.
Thomas Graffam, a township commissioner, said the park serves as an added reminder of the family's heroism.
"With all the fighting our troops are going through now and the patriotism, I think it's a good opportunity for people to know about our local heroes," said Graffam, a Vietnam veteran and commander of the Lyndhurst VFW post.
Walter, a Marine sergeant, was killed on the first day of the invasion of Guam on July 21, 1944, according to "Three Gold Stars,'' a book about the brothers by R.J. Rosamilia.
Alex, an Army private first class, was killed by German artillery fire on Nov. 25, 1944, near Apweiler, Germany.
William, an Air Force lieutenant, is buried in Belgium, Walter in Hawaii, and Alex in the Netherlands.
Christine Lewandowski said that she and her husband, now an aerospace executive in Washington, D.C., have visited the grave sites of all three brothers.A fourth brother, Ted Lewandowski, the last of six siblings, died this year.
After passing the Lewandowski Commons shopping center and the street bearing his family name, James Lewandowski, 34, said he was touched to see the tributes.
"I know the story [about my grandfather and great uncles], but there is so much we don't know," said James Lewandowski, who lives in Reston, Va. "The people do remember. The people do realize the sacrifices."
Town officials passed a resolution last Tuesday officially changing the park's name from Southeast Memorial Park.
Town officials used $12,500 from an $18,000 Bergen County Community Grant to spruce up the park and erect the 7-foot-tall brick memorial, Graffam said.
http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk3JmZnYmVs N2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2MzkxNzA5JnlyaXJ5N2Y3MTdmN3ZxZWVFRX l5Mw==
Sempers,
Roger