Two North Jersey veterans chosen as grand marshals of Newton Memorial Day parade

NEWTON — Carmen Turrisi has a couple of memories of his two years in the Army that stand out.

One was "the fight I had with a mortar shell," the 77-year-old, third-generation wartime veteran said on Tuesday. His suit coat sported a miniature Purple Heart medal for the injuries he sustained in Vietnam.

The second standout memory for the North Jerseyan was his return home on a red-eye flight into New York City after his tour of duty. The woman in the seat next to him, looking out the window, remarked, "Isn't the city pretty at night?"

"I told her, 'Ma'am, if I live to be a hundred, I'll never know anything that looks as good,'" Turrisi recalled during an interview in which he was introduced as one of two veterans who will be honored in Monday's Memorial Day parade in Newton.

Turrisi, 77, was 19 when he was drafted in 1966. After his return to civilian life, he eventually retired after 30-plus years with United Parcel Service.

Born in Passaic, he now lives in East Hanover, in Morris County, and will lead the parade as it steps off at 10 a.m. on Lower Spring Street, makes its way through the downtown and then ends at the veterans' memorial in Memory Park.

After ceremonies there, the Veterans of Foreign Wars post at the corner of Clinton and Mill Streets in town will host a reception.

The parade's other grand marshal will be Cornelius Neal Faber, who turns 100 in August. He is currently in the medical unit of a nursing home in Sussex County and will not be able to attend in person.

Harry Kaplan, former commander of American Legion Post 86 in Newton, helped find veterans to honor at the past several parades. He said Faber is a transplanted Sussex County lad. At age 5, Faber visited a relative's farm Sussex County and asked his mother if he could stay.

She agreed and Faber grew up working the farm until his late teens, when he moved to Paterson. At the start of World War II, he joined the Navy and served as a gunner's mate. In one action, the crew of his ship was credited with sinking a German submarine.

More: Our big list of things to do on Memorial Day in North Jersey

He married his wife, Norma, in 1943 while home on leave. After the war, he took a job as an apprentice carpenter, but never let go of his dream of owning his own roller rink. At age 50 he built was then the Hampton Roller Rink, where he enjoyed roller skating.

He and Norma were married for 77 years until her death in 2021. He is a member of the American Legion Post in Sussex.

Turrisi, meanwhile, is a third-generation war veteran, he explained on Tuesday, his cane perched by his side. His grandfather served in World War I and his father saw action in the Second World War.

"We're keeping it going," he said of his family. "I got two nephews who were Marines in Afghanistan."

Nobody knew he was coming home when he flew into New York. But, he said with a smile, "When I came in the house, my mother woke up. She recognized my footsteps, even with boots on."

He said he had some issues readapting to civilian life, partially because of the way veterans were treated during the war in Vietnam. Turrisi found his job driving a UPS truck to be a salvation. But at the insistence of friends who had also served, he finally went to the Veterans Administration for a checkup.

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"They wanted me to come back for a test," he said. "It showed I had PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). I guess I was 'self-medicating' with my job. I didn't have to interact with anyone."

In a short conversation Tuesday, Turrisi talked about firefights with the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese soldiers during his 11 months in the war zone, and life at his base camp, Bear Cat, not far from Saigon. Trained to drive an armored personnel carrier, once in-country he became a foot soldier and was assigned to operate the lieutenant's radio.

Of his encounter with the mortar, he explained that when the attack began, he ran for cover in the APC. "I saw the flash of the one that got me," he remembered.

"We went on a lot of missions," he said. "Much of it was road security. We went into the jungle with our 'tracks,'" he said, using slang for an APC. Later on, he rode "choppers" − helicopters − with another unit.

Turrisi and his wife, Carmen, have been married for 53 years and have three children.

Memorial Day weekend events in Sussex County

Andover Borough

A wreath ceremony will be held at May 27 at 9 a.m. at Andover Borough Park.

Hopatcong

A parade and celebration will be held at 10 a.m. May 25, rain or shine. The parade route will be from the Municipal Building, 111 River Styx Road, Hopatcong, to Veteran's Field Memorial Park, 351 Flora Ave., Stanhope. A memorial celebration will follow. For information, call Roseann at 862-217-6938.

Montague

A service remembering and honoring all who served will take place at 11 a.m. May 27 , at the Township Community Center, 275 Clove Road.

Newton

A parade will take place on Spring Street on May 27 at 10 a.m., followed by a remembrance of fallen heroes at Memory Park. To participation in the parade, applications must be submitted to the Greater Newton Chamber of Commerce by May 15. Visit newtontownhall.com for the application.

Stanhope

The Musconetcong American Legion Post 278 will be celebrate with a parade on May 27 at 1 p.m, with a ceremony to follow. The parade will begin at the Netcong School on College Road in Netcong and will end at the American Legion on Route 183 in Stanhope.

Stillwater

The Township's Memorial Day Service will be at 10 a.m. May 27 at Veterans Memorial Park, Pond Brook Road, rain or shine. Honor and remember all those who have sacrificed and served our country to ensure our rights and liberties as Americans. All veterans are encouraged to participate. Call Lou at 862-268-3553 with questions.

Email: bscruton@njherald.com Twitter/X: @brucescrutonNJH

This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Newton Memorial Day 2024 parade will be led by NJ veteran