Iraq vet named grand marshal of N.B. parade
Memorial Day activities include parade, 5K walk/run
BY JENNIFER AMATO Staff Writer

Joseph D'Angelo

NORTH BRUNSWICK - A veteran of the Iraq war will serve as this year's North Brunswick Memorial Day Parade grand marshal.

Joseph D'Angelo, 24, a lifelong township resident, spent a total of 22 months in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2005. The former Boy Scout became interested in military police after speaking with a North Brunswick Township High School graduate, and decided to enlist the summer after his graduation.

Becoming a member of the 108th Military Police Company Army, he joined the Army on Sept. 10, 2001, as a senior under the delayed-entry program. On Sept. 11, he was getting his driver's test and was at Fort Dix doing a security background check when the second plane hit the World Trade Center.

He was then deployed on March 25, 2003, at the beginning of the war overseas, and remained there until March 22 of the following year. He was in Tillel, working to train the Iraqi police, and his battalion set up three police academies and a number of new police stations in Mosul.

At the end of his tour, he returned to Fort Bragg, learning in October that he would be leaving for Iraq again in a few months. His second tour of duty began in January 2005, going to Baghdad.

Although his first tour was mild, his second tour was filled with more violence. He said for 10 months, for 12 hours a day, for six days a week, their job was to patrol the roads and look for bombs. During this time, the former member of the North Brunswick FirstAid and Rescue Squad received a Purple Heart because of a bomb going off on the side of his vehicle and throwing his truck, causing a piece of shrapnel to go through his side.

D'Angelo eventually received early discharge based on a Green to Gold scholarship and returned to New Jersey.

Although he was just 21 when he entered the military, and is still fairly young, he said he "feels honored" to be nominated as grand marshal, especially since most of the other applicants are older men who fought in World War II, Korea and Vietnam.

"It is an honor to do the parade. I'm pretty proud I was selected to be grand marshal for that tradition," he said.

D'Angelo said Memorial Day is important because "it shows a lot of tradition, the fact that our people will put their lives on the line to support and defend our country, which is something our country was built on."

D'Angelo now spends time with his wife, Tania, and their 5-month-old son, Aarik Joseph, in North Brunswick.

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North Brunswick Township will honor its veterans on May 26 with the Department of Parks, Recreation & Community Services 29th Annual Memorial Day 5K Run/Walk at the North Brunswick Community Park off Route 130.

Registration for the race begins at 7:30 a.m., with the walk beginning at 8:30 a.m. and run starting at 8:45 a.m., rain or shine. The registration fee of $15 includes a T-shirt, computerized race results by mail, and a chance to win awards and prizes.

After the race, the 53rd annual Memorial Day Parade will begin at noon in the area of Linwood Middle School.

The parade features participants from local community groups, the North Brunswick Township High School Marching Band, Weezie's Band, the Melrose Blackhawks, the Faith Exchange Church of North Brunswick, the Patriot Band, and more. Pastor Joseph Adevai of The Faith Exchange Fellowship will serve as the parade chaplain.

For more information, call 732-247- 0922, ext. 475, or visit www.northbrunswickonline. com.

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In addition, resident Tom Salva has donated personalized copies of "Boots on the Ground by Dusk: The Remarkable Life and Death of Pat Tillman," written by the soldier's mother, Mary Tillman, to the North Brunswick Public Library, the North Brunswick Township High School and Linwood Middle School.

He suggested that the new turf field to be built at Sabella Park be named in honor of Tillman, a former Arizona Cardinal who gave up a football contract to go into the military after Sept. 11, 2001 and who was killed by friendly fire. He also said that if a new skateboard park is constructed in town, it should be dedicated in honor of U.S. Army Cpl. Steven Koch, a former North Brunswick resident who was killed by a vehicle-borne explosive device in Afghanistan on March 3.

"When I think about these young guys, what they did, I feel a little bit in awe, a little proud," Salva said.