Malvern community honors fallen heroes with services
By Thomas Clapper
FPS Staff Writer
The Village of Malvern held three different stops to honor the fallen at the annual Memorial Day event May 26, featuring guest speaker U.S. Army Vietnam and Desert Storm veteran William “Bill” Logozzo. He served 22 years.
After a breakfast served by American Legion Post 375, the parade started at the Malvern Historical Society following a brief ceremony at the Veterans Wall. The parade marched to St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church Cemetery for a brief ceremony, and finally continued on to Bethlehem Cemetery for the service featuring Logozzo.
Taps was played and a three-volley salute was fired to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice. The Ladies Auxiliary placed a wreath at the veterans memorial at Bethlehem Cemetery.
Emcee Lynn Edwards of the Ladies Auxiliary led the Pledge of Allegiance and introduced Logozzo.
Logozzo had active duty in Vietnam and various other areas, retiring after Desert Storm in 1992.
Logozzo is a native of Magnolia and graduated from Malvern High School in 1964. He is a member of Malvern American Legion Post 375 and a life member of VFW Post 3120 in Minerva. He also is a past commander of the Carroll County 40/8 and resides in Malvern.
Logozzo’s speech delivered a tribute to fallen soldiers, emphasizing the deeper meaning of Memorial Day beyond its marking as the “unofficial start of summer.” He honored those “who lost their lives defending our great nation,” calling on Americans to remember their sacrifice not only with flags and wreaths, but also through shared stories.
Reflecting on his own experience in Vietnam, he recalled U.S. Army Specialist Jerry Norman Duffey of Charlotte, Michigan, “the only one who died that week,” whom Logozzo saw make the ultimate sacrifice just four days before returning home.
“No matter where the battlefield was—the mountains of Afghanistan, deserts of Iraq or Syria, the skies over Europe, islands of the Pacific, battle areas of Korea, the jungles of Vietnam or elsewhere—the stories of the fallen matter and need to be told,” said Logozzo. “By sharing their stories, we keep their memories alive, giving others a glimpse of military service that aims to inspire others to create a better world and a stronger nation.”
Logozzo concluded, “Let’s carry their sacrifice with us in our hearts and strive to honor their memory by being good, faithful, hopeful, and strong, and committed to building a brighter future for all. Duty, honor, country—they lived for it and they died for it. As a nation, we must remind ourselves of the future they fought for and do our best to live up to those values.”
Edwards thanked the Brown Local Schools band, the Great Trail Fire District and the Carroll County Sheriff’s Department for participating in the Memorial Day events. A light lunch was held afterward at the Legion.
