128 Union County Residents Will Receive State Military Awards September 30 

Two special award ceremonies will be held on Sept. 30, at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., at the Westfield National Guard Armory, 500 Rahway Avenue, Westfield, N.J.  During the 11 a.m. ceremony, 45 veterans of World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Persian Gulf and Operation Enduring Freedom will be presented with the state’s top military award, the New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal.  At the 1 p.m. ceremony, 81 veterans of the Korean War will be presented with the New Jersey Korean Service Medal.

At the earlier ceremony, 2 county residents who are combat veterans will receive the New Jersey Meritorious Service Medal for their service in the military.

The N.J. Distinguished Service Medal was originally issued in 1858 for those who distinguished themselves in the New Jersey Militia, but was used infrequently until re-authorized by Governor Kean in 1988.

After the Spanish American War, the Mexican Border Expedition and again after World War I, the State of New Jersey minted special medals for returning N.J. veterans to honor their service. After World War II, Korea, Vietnam and subsequent combat actions no such medal was available. The State of New Jersey was looking for an appropriate way to honor all of these returning combat veterans and acknowledge the debt the state owed them for their service. The N.J. DSM was then authorized for that purpose. It is New Jersey’s highest military award.

Since its re-authorization in 1988, more than 25,000 medals have been awarded to combat veterans from New Jersey.

In order to be eligible for the New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal you must meet all the following criteria:

~ currently be a resident of New Jersey
~ have been a resident of New Jersey at the time you entered into military service
~ have been honorably discharged
~ have proof of having served in combat while on active duty during wartime.

Those recipients whose service was recognized by the award of the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Air Medal or equivalent medal will receive a N.J. Distinguished Service Medal with an oak leaf cluster. 

The DSM can be awarded posthumously to the next-of-kin of a veteran who meets the criteria.

The New Jersey Meritorious Service Medal is being awarded to those combat veterans who were not residents of New Jersey when they entered the military service, but who are current residents of New Jersey and have resided in the state for the previous five years.  All other qualifications are the same as for the DSM.

Posthumous awards can be awarded; application must be made by the surviving spouse or immediate family member.

To be eligible for the New Jersey Korean Service Medal, veterans must meet the following criteria:

be a current resident of New Jersey and have resided in the state for at least the past five years,

combat veterans who served on active duty on or after June 23, 1950 and on or before January 31, 1955, in Korea, Japan or contiguous waters or airspace thereof; served one or more days with an organization directly participating in or supporting military operations or on temporary duty in contiguous areas for 30 consecutive days and 60 nonconsecutive days

Have an honorable discharge or be currently serving in the military

Posthumous awards can be awarded; application must be made by the surviving spouse or immediate family member. 

Anyone interested in applying for the New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal or Korean Service Medal should send a written request, e-mail or telephone call, requesting an application form to the following –

Mail

NJDMAVA
ATTN: Kathy Burek
P.O. Box 340
Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0340

Be sure to include full name, home address and a daytime phone number

e-mail:  patricia.richter@njdmava.state.nj.us

Phone:   1-800-624-0508, Press 7

NEW JERSEY DISTINGUISHED SERVICE MEDAL LIST OF RECIPIENTS 

Westfield Armory, Westfield, N.J. 

September 30, 2004 

LEGEND:  (WAR ) CW=Civil War, I=World War I, II=World War II,  K=Korea, BP=Bay of Pigs, V=Vietnam, LC=Lebanon Crisis (1958), LPM=Lebanon Peacekeeping Mission (1982-1987), G=Grenada, P=Panama (Operation Just Cause), DSS=Desert Shield/Storm, S=Somalia (Operation Restore Hope), B=Bosnia (Operation Joint Forge), DOM=Dominican Republic, KSV=Kosovo (Operation Joint Endeavor/Joint Guard), H=Haiti (Operation Uphold Democracy), OEF=Afghanistan & Iraq (Operation Enduring Freedom), OIF=Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom), NCTS=No Combat Theater Service 

Award	Rank	Last Name	First Name	MI	Posthumous	Branch	war	City
DSM	Specialist Three	Abitante	Joseph	J.		Army	K	Roselle
DSM	Staff Sergeant	Astone	Victor	C.		Marine Corps	K	Union
DSM w/C	Private 1st Class	Butler	Fred	G.	Posthumous	Army	II	Mountainside
DSM	Technician 4th Grade	Carollo	Peter	J.	Posthumous	Army	II	Bridgewater
DSM	Technician 5th Grade	Celani	Emil	J.	Posthumous	Army	II	Ho-Ho-Kus
DSM w/C	Specialist Four	Coit	Frank	E.		Army	V	Somerville
DSM	Sergeant	Curia	Richard	J.		Marine Corps	V	Cranford
DSM	Private 1st Class	Del Grippo	Joseph	T.		Marine Corps	K	Cranford
DSM	Corporal	DeVito	Robert		Posthumous	Army	II	Elizabeth
DSM	Corporal	Dulemba	John	A.		Army	K	Linden
DSM	Specialist Four	Ezekian	Gregory	T.		Army	V	Union
DSM	Sergeant	Fee	William	M.	Posthumous	Army	K	Rahway
DSM w/C	Specialist Four	Frankshun	Robert	A.		Army	V	Kenilworth
MSM	Specialist Five	Graff	William	J.		Army	V	Linden
DSM	Master Sergeant	Hartsfield	Jacqueline	M.		Air Force	OEF	Roselle
DSM	Specialist Four	Hospes	Alan	J.		Army	V	Kenilworth
DSM	Corporal	Hunt	William	F.		Army	K	Cranford
DSM	Sergeant	Iungerman	Joseph	F.		Marine Corps	V	Roselle Park
DSM	Petty Officer 2nd Class	Kaufman	Robert			Navy	K	Hillside
DSM w/C	Staff Sergeant	Kelsay	Leroy	W.		Air Force	V	Berkeley Heights
DSM	Water Tender 3rd Class	Lindquist	Walter	S.		Navy	II	Linden
DSM w/C	Technical Sergeant	Mauko	Richard	T.	Posthumous	Army	V	Elizabeth
DSM w/C	Corporal	McLaughlin	Thomas	H.		Marine Corps	K	Hillside
DSM	Sergeant	McLeavey	Anthony	T.	Posthumous	Army	II	Scotch Plains
DSM	Specialist Four	Nelson	Anthony	E.		Army	V	Plainfield
DSM	Staff Sergeant	Petracco