Melrose Park in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Photographed By Sean Flynn
1. Vietnam Veterans Memorial Marker
of Veterans Park District
who lost their lives
in the Republic of Vietnam.
We honor and remember
their ultimate sacrifice.
Dwight Farwell Bennett, Jr., Marine Corps, 1948-1967 James Patrick Califf, Army, 1950-1971 Russell Martin Erickson, Army, 1944-1968 Russell Eugene Gedeon, Army, 1946-1969 Frank R. Gilchrist, Jr., Marine Corps, 1950-1969 Michael John Havard, Army, 1950-1969 Thomas Howard Heise, Marine Corps, 1950-1969 Robert Edward Johnson, Air Force, 1945-1967 Charles Norbert Kowalk, Army, 1949-1971 David Joseph Latoria, Army, 1949-1968 Albert Louis Lazzarotto, Army, 1947-1968 Joseph Anthony Maggio, Jr., Marine Corps, 1947-1967 Matthew Paul Malczynski, Army, 1944-1967 Vernon Arthur Manheim, Jr., Marine Corps, 1946-1966 Olaf Thomas Olsen, Army, 1948-1970 Jon Peter Turk, Army, 1948-1967
Erected 2016 by Veterans Park District.
Topics. This memorial is listed in this topic list: War, Vietnam.
Location. 41° 54.364′ N, 87° 49.824′ W. Marker is in Melrose Park, Illinois, in Cook County. Memorial is on Riverwoods Drive just south of North Avenue (Illinois Route 64), on the left when traveling east
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Veterans Park District (approx. 0.9 miles away); World War I Honor Roll (approx. 0.9 miles away); Nike Tomahawk Missile (approx. one mile away); Apollo Test Capsule (approx. one mile away); The Historic Maywood Home for Soldiers' Widows (approx. 1.2 miles away); Joseph I. Bulger Jr. Memorial Park and Auditorium (approx. 1.2 miles away); Veterans Memorial (approx. 1.2 miles away); Alumni Bell Tower (approx. 1.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Melrose Park.
More about this memorial. The marker was unveiled in 2016, when the City of Melrose Park donated the small parcel of land to the Veterans Park District. The park district boundaries include parts of the Chicago suburbs of Franklin Park, Melrose Park, Northlake and River Grove. The marker features an etching of the "Three Soldiers" statue that is part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the National Mall in Washington.
Photographed By Sean Flynn, October 27, 2023
2. Vietnam Veterans Memorial
The small plaques near the flagpole were placed by two different veterans groups: American Legion Sarlo-Sharp Post 0368, from Melrose Park, and Winfield Scott VFW Post, from Maywood.
Regarding Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Dwight Bennett Jr., from Melrose Park, was a 19-year-old machine gunner with Company C, 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division when he was killed when a bridge his company was defending in Quang Nam Province was ambushed on November 29, 1967. He is buried in Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois.
Corporal James Patrick Califf of Northlake was 20 years old when he died on February 21, 1971 in Quang Ngai Province. He is buried in St. Joseph Cemetery in River Grove, Illinois.
Corporal Russell Erickson was an infantry operations and recon specialist in the 59th Scout Dog Infantry Platoon, a unit that worked with specially trained dogs to identify possible ambushes and hidden attacks deep in the jungle. Erickson was killed by an explosive device on July 24, 1968. He is buried at Oakridge-Glen Oak Cemetery in Hillside.
Sgt. Russell Gedeon, a member of the Army's Americal Division from River Grove, was killed by an explosive device on December 7, 1969, in Quang Ngai. He was 23 years old. He is buried in the mausoleum at Queen of Heaven Cemetery.
Pfc. Frank Gilchrist Jr. a member of the 3rd Marine Division, was one of five Marines killed on July 30, 1969, when U.S. bombers fell short of their target during an evening raid. The Melrose Park native was
Photographed By Sean Flynn, October 27, 2023
3. Vietnam Veterans Memorial
The Residences of Riverwoods and Thatcher Woods apartment complex can be seen in the background.
Pfc. Michael Havard, a Northlake native and member of the Army's 1st Infantry Division, died of fragment wounds on August 21, 1969, less than two months after he began his tour in Vietnam. He is buried in Northlake's Fairview Memorial Park.
Melrose Park native Pfc. Thomas Howard Heise graduated from Proviso East High School in Maywood in 1968 and began his tour in Vietnam as a mortarman for the 3rd Marine Division in February of 1969. He was only 18 years old when he was killed during early-morning fighting on Mutter's Hill in the DMZ, on May 10, 1969. Heise is also memorialized at Conner-Heise Park in the neighboring suburb of Maywood. He is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in Forest Park, Illinois.
Bob Johnson served as an airman first class with the 7th Air Force's 460th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, which was responsible for American reconnaissance. A native of Northlake and a graduate of West Leyden High School, Johnson died on March 12, 1967, when he was accidentally ejected during routine maintenance of an aircraft. 21 years old, he was survived by a young wife and a 1-year-old son.
Specialist Charles Kowalk, of Melrose Park, was 21 when he was killed by an enemy artillery rocket on May 21, 1971, in Quang Tri Province. He is buried Queen of Heaven Cemetery.
Pfc. David Latoria of the Army's 1st Cavalry Division was killed by gunfire in Thua Thien Province on May 15, 1968, three days before his 19th birthday. He was a 1967 graduate of East Leyden High School in Franklin Park. He is buried in Queen of Heaven Cemetery.
Albert Louis Lazzaratto was a private first class in the 25th Infantry Division, 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry, A Company. He was serving in a night defensive position at Ben Cui 3, Tay Ninh province, when he was killed in battle on September 11, 1968, at the age of 21. He is buried in St. Joseph Cemetery in River Grove.
Pvt. Joseph Maggio Jr. was a Marine rifleman from Melrose Park. A 1965 graduate of Proviso East, he had been on tour in Vietnam for 12 days when he was killed by friendly fire on May 25, 1967, while his company was under attack by the North Vietnamese Army. He was 19 years old. He is buried in Queen of Heaven Cemetery.
Matthew Malczynski, an Army medic from Northlake, was fatally injured when a booby trap detonated near a patrol he was attached to, on December 26, 1967. He is buried in Queen of Heaven Cemetery.
Lance Corporal Vernon Mannheim, of Franklin Park, was a machine gunner with the 1st Marine Division when he was killed by enemy fire on August 25, 1966, at age 20. He is buried in St. Joseph Cemetery in River Grove.
Olaf Olsen of Melrose Park, an Army corporal, was one of four men killed by an explosion in Tay Ninh on March 11, 1970. He was 21 and left a young widow, Donna. He is buried in Chicago's Mount Olive Cemetery.
Corporal Jon Turk was a Melrose Park native who attended Proviso East and was a member of the Army's 17th Cavalry Regiment. He was 19 years old when his six-man reconnaissance patrol was attacked by the Viet Cong on October 27, 1967, killing Turk and four of his fellow soldiers. He is buried in Queen of Heaven Cemetery.
Also see . . . 'A long time coming': Park district pays tribute to Vietnam vets. (Submitted on October 27, 2023, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)
Credits. This page was last revised on January 6, 2024. It was originally submitted on October 27, 2023, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 2,789 times since then and 171 times this year. Last updated on January 5, 2024, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on October 27, 2023, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.
