Veterans Honored, Remembered on Memorial Day
On Memorial Day, the City of McKeesport remembered and honored those who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving our country.
At a morning ceremony in Memorial Park, participants heard from keynote speaker Wayne Dean, Second Vice Commander of AMVETS Post 8, who spoke about the importance of holding on to the true meaning of Memorial Day. City Administrator Tom Maglicco, a U. S. Army veteran, offered special thanks to the McKeesport Area High School for encouraging students to participate in the ceremony. He thanked the choir, band, and Air Force JROTC for participating in the ceremony.
At the LaRosa Youth Club, Gold Star Family members gathered to remember 11 young men who were killed in action in Vietnam. The club is home to the oldest Vietnam memorial in the state of Pennsylvania.
SS McKeesport Celebrated cKeesport
CITY OF MCKEESPORT NEWS
On April 29, the City hosted a ceremony honoring the 81st anniversary of the SS McKeesport ' s final voyage – not only to mourn the loss of this ship, as it sank on April 29, 1943, but also to remember its service to this great nation.
After transporting supplies to England on one final voyage, the S. S. McKeesport sank in the North Atlantic Ocean after being torpedoed by a German U-boat.
The ship’ s history extends far beyond its role in World War II; the S. S. McKeesport was an old merchant ship that was pressed into service as that war progressed. It was built in part with steel supplied by the National Tube Works in McKeesport, and at the time of the ship’ s launch, members
of that local company and their families participated in the program. It was one of thirty ships built at the U. S. Steel plant in Kearny, and so was named like all the others in honor of towns where U. S. Steel operated mills.
28 MCKEESPORT AREA