Hometown Heroes 2024
John Patrick Altman was born March 17, 1930 in Greensburg. He enlisted in the Army at 17 and served as sergeant in the Korean War from 1947 to 1952.
Hayley Curry graduated as valedictorian from Latrobe High School and summa cum laude from Vanderbilt University, where she participated in the ROTC program. She is also an Airborne graduate. She was stationed with the U.S. Army at the Pentagon for five years as an honor's attorney for the Office of the Army General Counsel. She is now employed as an attorney in Dallas, working with data protection, privacy and security.
James Curry graduated from then-Greensburg High School before entering the Navy, where he was stationed on the USS Long Beach and the USS Dewey. He then served as a state police trooper in Greensburg for 28 years.
Lance Carleton completed military training at Fort Benning in Georgia, where he earned his Airborne Wings. He trained troops for the Gulf War and served at Fort Irwin in California.
Angelo DeBone served in the military, working with radio equipment on a B-24 airplane. He received a good conduct medal, distinguished unit badge and the European African Middle Eastern Theater Service Medal. He served in battles including Southern France, Naples-Foggia, Rome-Arno, Normandy and Germany.
Joseph A. DeFail was a Navy fireman in World War II. He served in the Navy's first aircraft carrier in Tokyo Bay, a USS Cowpens CVL 25 aircraft carrier, for the battles of the Philippine Sea and Leyte Gulf.
Michael Dell served in the Army for three years before becoming one of the first paramedics for the Mutual Aid Ambulance Service. He served 25 years in the Greensburg Police Department, retiring as a lieutenant. He also was the chief of campus police at Seton Hill University.
Adam S. Derr Sr. served as lance corporal for the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War in 1970 at 20 years old. He was injured in combat from an explosion, earning a Purple Heart for his service. He and his wife became dairy farmers in Dawson for half a century.
Louis Esola was raised in Kittanning and drafted into the Army in 1941. He was promoted in 1946 to captain and was honorably discharged in 1953. He and his wife got married that year and moved to Greensburg, where they raised four children. He lived in the city until his death in 2002.
Pellegrino "PJ" Fioere was born and raised in Greensburg. He enlisted in the Marine Corps and served in the Korean War. He later became a local master plumber and served in the Greensburg Volunteer Fire Department.
Fred "Chip" Funari was a U.S. probation officer after graduating from Greensburg Central Catholic High School. He served in the Air Force on the main gate in Saigon during the Tet Offensive and at the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force station in Colorado. He was a longtime baseball and softball coach and umpire. After retiring, he was a court-appointed special advocate in Westmoreland County. In 2010, he was named a distinguished alumnus by his alma mater, Saint Vincent College.
Charles Galbraith served in the Army from 1952 to 1954. He was stationed at Fort Sam Houston in Texas and received the Good Conduct and National Defensive Service medals.
Rocco A. Giallonardo was born Sept. 8, 1945, in Greensburg, living along West Otterman Street for nearly 80 years. He graduated from Greensburg Central Catholic High School in 1963 and served in the Army during the Vietnam War from 1966 to 1967. After returning, he started a trucking business and worked at Leonard Express, Consolidated Freightways and Pittsburgh Fayette Express. He retired in 2011. He is a father to two daughters and a grandfather to three granddaughters.
Charles Hamman Jr. was born Oct. 9, 1918. He enlisted in the Army Air Force as a firefighter in 1941. He served in England from 1942 to 1945, when he was discharged. During his time in the military, he received the European African Middle Eastern Service Medal. He died in 2004.
William Henry was a corporal who served in the Korean War. He earned a Purple Heart for his service.
Joseph A. Hudock was born in Greensburg and enlisted in the Navy after graduating from law school in 1963. He graduated from Officer Candidate School in Newport, R.I., and served in Japan until 1968. After leaving active duty, he entered the Naval Reserves. He achieved the rank of lieutenant commander.
Clarence Hyatt graduated from then-Greensburg High School before entering the Army, where he fought in the Korean War and received two bronze stars and a Purple Heart. During his years of service, he was stationed in Berlin.
Ronald Hyatt was a police officer for the Youngwood Police Department. He entered the Army as a military police officer after graduating from then-Hempfield High School. After his time in the military, he served in the Austin Texas Police Department, including as a street detective.
Paul "Bud" Kepple served in the military from 1943 to 1946.
Robert Koveleskie was a state police trooper for nine years, which brought him to Greensburg in 1959. He then opened a business in the city. He worked to improve pedestrian safety, particularly in school zones. He volunteered for the military during the Korean War, where the Air Force sent him to bases throughout the country and in Canada across four years. He entered the Air Force Reserve following his active-duty service.
Robert E. Lore was born Nov. 2, 1920, in Blairsville. He graduated from Blairsville High School and met his wife before enlisting in the Army in 1942. He served as a corporal rifleman in the European Theatre of Operations during World War II. He was captured by the German Army in 1944 and taken as a prisoner for 14 months. Upon his liberation, he was honorably discharged from the Army in 1945. He later received a Purple Heart for his service. He returned to Blairsville to start his family, but moved to Greensburg in 1963. He worked more than 40 years with Peoples Natural Gas Company.
Joseph Lotto served in the Navy during World War II on an aircraft carrier and destroyer, USS Hawkins and USS Bataan. He received the Pacific Theater Ribbon, American Theater Ribbon and Victory Medal.
J. Alan Lukasik served in the Navy's Atlantic fleet from 1965 to 1971. He was based in Groton, Conn., on the USS Patrick Henry.
Paul L. McFarland was born in Greensburg on April 8, 1911. He enlisted in the Army in 1942, attending Officers Candidate School at Fort Knox in Kentucky. He was later sent to Fort Benning in Georgia. He left the U.S. to serve in England in 1944, later serving in France, Belgium, Cologne and Leipzig. He returned home in 1945. He was discharged from the military at the rank of 1st lieutenant in 1946. He worked as a manager for the state Liquor Control Board, got married and had five children. He died on Dec. 11, 2003.
Mike Moschetti was a lifelong Greensburg resident. He graduated from then-Greensburg High School in 1938, enlisting in the Marine Corps in 1942 during World War II. He served through 1946, primarily in the Pacific Theater. After his service, he attended Robert Morris University's business school. He later served as chief deputy sheriff, 5th Ward alderman and district justice.
Michael Panichella served during the Korean War from 1952 to 1954. He served on the front lines during most of his deployment. He assisted with Operation Big Switch, repatriating United Nations and Republic of Korea prisoners.
Nicola Panichella was born in Riccia, Campobasso, in Italy in 1893. He arrived in the U.S. in 1912, settling in Westmoreland County to work for the Pennsylvania Railroad. He registered for the World War II draft in 1917 and served in the Army in Bourges, Cher and France. He became a U.S. citizen in 1919 at Fort Dix in New Jersey. He met his wife in 1921 while visiting family in Italy. They had nine children, later moving to Greensburg. He lived there and continued his job with the Pennsylvania Railroad until his death in 1963.
Vincent Piscar Jr. served as a minesweeper with the B-Company 7th engineers. He died on July 19, 1967.
Dan Pultz graduated from then-Greensburg High School in 1961 and from Lehigh University in 1965. He joined the Marine Corps and in 1966 was sent to Vietnam. He earned the Bronze Star Medal. He was sent to Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in 1968 to prepare for a second overseas deployment. He was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps as a captain in 1969. He became a counselor therapist at the Pennsylvania Youth Development Center for adjudicated minors and later opened his own business, which he operated for 33 years. He played a pivotal role in the Veterans Leadership Program, Friends of Da Nang, the Pittsburgh Veterans Day Breakfast and Semper Fi Odyssey. Through Friends of Da Nang, he and members of his unit built an elementary school in Da Nang, Vietnam.
Adam Pyle has served in the Army for 19 years. He served in Kuwait, Afghanistan, South Korea and Germany. He is currently stationed at Hunter Airfield in Savannah, Ga., as a communications and computer specialist.
John D. Reese was born and raised in Beaver Falls. He relocated to Greensburg, where he raised his family and lived until his death in the 1980s. He was a local business owner and an active member of the community. John D. Reese Way in the city is named in his honor.
John Rosatti entered the Marine Corps in 1954 after graduating from high school. After his military service, he got married and had six children. He was later a grandfather to five and a great-grandfather to six. He was active in his church and the Forbes Road Volunteer Fire Department until his death in 2017.
William Rudolph owned local business William Rudolph and Associates. He was a lifelong member of the Greensburg Volunteer Fire Department, serving as a captain and a director of the department's museum, which he founded. He was the director of Go Greensburg and a member of the Greensburg Rotary Club.
Matthew Shellgren was born on April 23, 1981. He served in the military for eight years while stationed in San Diego. He went on tours in Afghanistan and Okinawa, Japan, from 1999 to 2008. He later married and had three children. He remained in Ventura, Calif., until his death due to coronary artery disease on Sept. 3, 2020.
Richard "Dick" Shifko was born on May 29, 1933. He graduated from Youngwood High School where he excelled academically and played football. He served in the Army, during which he spent time in Germany and worked on planes. When he returned home, he got married and raised three children in Greensburg. He worked for PPG Industries in South Greensburg. After a short battle with pancreatic cancer, he died on Oct. 8, 1993.
Clifford Steiner served in the Army as a rifleman in Korea and Japan. He received the World War II Victory Medal and Army of Occupation Medal from his time in Japan.
Franklin Sundry was a first sergeant in the Army during World War II. He raised four children in New Alexandria, and they attended Greensburg Salem High School. He has 10 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.
Charles Varriano was born and raised in Greensburg. His parents came to the U.S. from Italy in 1921. He had three siblings — one sister and two brothers. He met his wife while stationed in Okinawa, Japan. After they got married, they had five children. He served in the Navy and the Marine Corps.
Harry K. Wilcox was born and raised in Philadelphia, but moved to New Jersey. He came to Greensburg in the 1950s to work for ITE. He spent most of his career as the CEO of Westmoreland Hospital until his retirement in the 1990s. He was active in the Greensburg community, and the alley next to the Palace Theatre is named after him.
Quentin Zambano was born in Hempfield's Hannastown community. He moved to Greensburg and worked as a heavy equipment operator for his family's construction company, Zambano and Sons. He served in the Army Air Corps during World War II in the Pacific Theater. He was a member of an engineering combat battalion of the 5th Air Force that created airfields in New Guinea, Papua and the Netherlands East Indies. His battalion received a Presidential Unit Citation and Bronze Battle Stars for three campaigns. He rejoined Zambano and Sons after his service.
Quentin Dennis Zambano was born in Greensburg in 1946. He moved to Bellevue, Wash. in 1962 where he completed high school before joining the Army in 1966. He attended officer candidate school at Fort Benning in Georgia and served as a platoon leader in Vietnam. He was killed in action on Oct. 15, 1967 while serving as a military advisor in the Binh Dinh Province. He received a Purple Heart and Bronze Stars for valor and merit.
Leo M. Bacha was born and raised in Natrona. He attended Georgetown University and graduated from Temple University and Eckels College of Embalming in Philadelphia. He worked at his father's funeral home and opened his own in Greensburg in 1960. He was elected as the Westmoreland County coroner in 1978 and served six terms before his retirement in 2001. He was a lifetime member and former officer of the Greensburg Volunteer Fire Department's Board of Control. He was also a member of the Church of St. Paul, Greensburg Knights of Columbus, Westmoreland County Firemen's Association, Fire Chief Association of Westmoreland County, the state firemen's association, Westmoreland County Law Enforcement Officers Association and Westmoreland County Emergency Services Training Center. He had three children with his wife. He was a grandfather to four and a great-grandfather to two. He died in 2006.
John Ciavarra was born Dec. 24, 1921, in Italy. He came to Southwest Greensburg in 1927. He was a halfback for then-Greensburg High School's football team. Upon graduation, he enlisted in the Marine Corps during World War II. He participated in four campaigns — Marshall Islands, Tinian, Saipan and Iwo Jima. He received the Bronze Star, two Silver Stars and a commendation for heroism. After his service, he returned to Southwest Greensburg, graduated from Saint Vincent College, got married and worked at ABB, where he was employed for 35 years. He has five children and six grandchildren.