I was named after my Uncle Tony, my dad’s older brother. There were 3 Gallo brothers who fought in WWII, Tommy Gallo, Tony Gallo and my dad who was the youngest. (My dad dropped out of Lorain High School at 17 and signed up after lying about his age.) My dad and Uncle Tommy were in the Navy, but my Uncle Tony was in the Army. All 3 were stationed in the Pacific Theater.

My dad was able to meet up with my Uncle Tommy in Hawaii and I have several letters that my dad received from my Uncle Tony during the war. While fighting in Europe officially ended with the surrender of Germany on May 8, the fighting in the Pacific went on until September 2. Unfortunately for my Uncle Tony, he was killed in action on May 23, 8 days shy of his 24th birthday. He had married a woman he met while stationed in Tennessee before being deployed, and unfortunately, she became a widow before any of his 10 siblings or my grandmother could meet her. He received the purple heart posthumously, which was presented to my grandmother Rose M. Gallo. His remains were identified and sent back to Lorain where he is buried in Calvary Cemetery, very near my grandmother Rose.

My father named me in honor of his brother, and I have the Purple Heart in my possession as well as his Garrison Cap. My father and uncles loved their brother and always spoke kindly of him. We were always taught to respect his service to the United States, giving the ultimate sacrifice of his life. My grandparents immigrated to Lorain from Bovalino Marina, Calabria Italy in 1903. During WWII, my grandmother was visited in Lorain by federal agents to remove the 2-way radio from their home, not knowing if she was communicating with Italian communist enemies. This is despite her having 3 sons in the military as well and eventually losing her son Anthony.