Struthers Fallen Soldiers Memorial dedicated Monday

May 31, 2016 at 12:05a.m.

STRUTHERS

Charles Johnston’s memories of his brother, Cpl. Edward A. Johnston, are fleeting, but one recollection embedded in his mind is that of a sibling who cared deeply for and looked after others’ well-being.

“He was a big, strong teddy bear of a guy who would stick up for others. He was a protector and a hard-working person,” Charles recalled about his brother, a Marine who was killed Oct. 23, 1983, in Beirut during a peacekeeping mission when a suicide bomber drove a truck filled with explosives into the U.S. Marine barracks. He was 22.

The attack killed 241 U.S. military personnel.

Edward A. Johnston was among the 74 Struthers soldiers who were honored for their service to the nation during Monday morning’s Fallen Soldier Memorial Dedication at the Veterans Memorial at Struthers High School, 111 Euclid Ave.

During the somber, one-hour ceremony, the Struthers Fallen Soldier Project unveiled and dedicated three monuments to honor the men who were killed during World Wars I and II, in the Korean and Vietnam wars and while serving in peacetime operations.

Charles Johnston also recalled that his brother, a 1978 Struthers High grad who served four years in the Marines, had plans for a career in law enforcement after leaving the military. In addition, Edward Johnston’s daughter, Alicia, was almost 2 years old when she lost her father, Charles said, holding back tears.

“She knows him through pictures of him holding her as a baby,” he added.

Accompanying Charles at the event were his mother, Mary Ann Johnston, and several other family members and friends.

Ray Ornelas of the Veterans Service Commission served as master of ceremonies.

The remembrance’s guest speaker was Michael A. Shepherd, chaplain of the Tri-State Marine Corps League Detachment No. 494.

He told the crowd of about 150 that rather than automatically seeing Memorial Day as a celebratory time, people should view the holiday more as a sobering reminder of the fact that many died for others’ freedoms. Those who paid the highest price should be remembered beyond special occasions, he said.

Mahoning County Commissioner Anthony T. Traficanti said he would like to see the military strengthened and more people appreciate the symbolism behind memorials such as those dedicated Monday.

Traficanti, who said the soldiers’ sacrifices should never be forgotten, also blasted President Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran that was completed earlier this year, saying that it makes the U.S. less safe from foreign threats.

“When Iran stands up and says, ‘Death to America,’ we should say, ‘You first,’” the commissioner said. “We should not surrender our austerity and freedoms to a bunch of black-robed, crazed clerics who wish us nothing but destruction.”

The ceremony also had personal meaning for Traficanti, whose father, Sam Traficanti, died Dec. 29, 2015, at age 87. The elder Traficanti served five years in the Navy as an electrician and an interpreter during WWII.

America continues to face foreign threats, so that’s another reason it’s imperative that people appreciate those who continue to serve the nation and place themselves in harm’s way, in addition to remembering those before them, said U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Howland, D-13th.

“These guys were average fellows who wanted to serve and make a difference. They wanted to be part of something bigger than themselves,” said state Rep. John Boccieri of Poland, D-59th.

Boccieri has had a long military career in the Air National Guard and the Air Force Reserves, including having taken part in Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. He added that remembrances such as the one in Struthers also serve to uplift the American spirit.

“We can’t forget those who made the ultimate sacrifice,” he said.