Bridgewater’s Post Office Acknowledges Raritan’s Favorite Son

On Friday, June 15, as I scurried about Bridgewater, looking to complete a string of errands, I stepped into the post office to mail a certified letter.

While waiting in line, I noticed a medium-sized picture frame with a block of stamps under glass, sitting on the overflow service counter. I walked over, removed the frame from the countertop with my left hand, and returned to the line. There, I instantly recognized the now unforgettable likeness of Gunnery Sergeant John A. Basilone in the lower left-hand corner, complemented by three other distinguished U.S. Marine icons, including Lieutenant General John A. Lejeune, for whom the North Carolina, Marine Corps training camp is named

Basilone’s legendary fighting in the Pacific, during three consecutive days and nights on the island of Guadalcanal, turned back a ferocious Japanese assault on his unit’s position.

(See http://www.medalofhonor.com/JohnBasilone.htm.) Basilone returned to the states and toured the country, raising cash for bond purchases to fund the war effort for WWII. But, unwilling to be separated from his fellow Marines, he returned to the front lines. Fighting just as bravely during the invasion of Iwo Jima, he perished from an artillery round, but not until having single-handedly destroyed an enemy blockhouse, leading to the capture of an airfield

That picture frame depicting the photos of four U.S. Marines, including one from Raritan, now sits in my home.