5 Girard servicemen killed in Nam honored today at Chesty's

GIRARD

The Heroes of Vietnam celebration of the lives of five Girard men who died in that war was a time to appreciate ... a time to honor ... a time to remember.

“Joe was my best friend,” Bill Lileas, 67, of Girard said of Marine Spec. 4 Joseph A. Siciliano Jr., who was killed May 25, 1967.

Four others recognized at the Heroes celebration Saturday were: Army Pfc. James W. Charlesworth Jr., killed May 11, 1970; Army Staff Sgt. Ronald C. Ross, killed July 18, 1968; Army Pfc. Robert A. Jones, killed Aug. 21, 1969; and Army Spec. 4 Paul A. Sgambati, killed March 3, 1971.

The celebration took place at Chesty’s Blue Collar Tavern, 20 S. State St., a bar whose walls are lined with military memorabilia and military-themed paintings by Youngstown Artist Ray Simon.

Chesty’s is even named after Marine Gen. Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller, one of the most decorated Marines.

“This is more than a bar, it’s a place of honor,” said Simon, whose painting, “Heroes of Vietnam, was unveiled.

The painting, prints of which will be presented to family members of those honored or posted around Girard, depicts a hand touching the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, foot soldiers crossing a rice paddy and running toward a helicopter for evacuation after a patrol, a search and destroy boat plowing down a river, and dominant in the foreground, a soldier carrying two frightened Vietnamese children to safety.

Read more about the emotional ceremony in Sunday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.