For Immediate Release

 

Contact:         Maryjane Briant
                        News and Media Relations Director
                        Galloway, N.J. 08205
                        Maryjane.Briant@stockton.edu
                        (609) 652-4593
                        stockton.edu/media

Galloway, N.J. - Stockton University will host the New Jersey Pearl Harbor 75^th Anniversary tribute to heroes of that era, including a presentation by 91-year-old D-Day survivor Peter Fantacone of Mays Landing, N.J., on Wednesday, Dec. 7, beginning at 11 a.m.

John Thomas, chairman of the event and a World War II veteran, has worked with a statewide committee which includes National Operation College Promise Director Wendy Lang, Fairleigh Dickinson University Veteran Outreach Director and OCP national board member Martha Papson Garcia, Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors member Lee Darby of Northfield, N.J., Atlantic County Veterans Advisory Board representative Herb Davis, and the president of Stockton’s Student Veteran Organization, Paul Garrity.

The event will feature a memorial tribute in Stockton’s Veterans Park, followed by a luncheon with noted military speakers such as Mid-Atlantic Battalion Commander Lt. Col. Edward Croot, and U.S. Navy veteran William Keyes.   
 
At 12:48 p.m., the group will take part in a national moment of silence to observe the time of the initial surprise attack by the Japanese on Pearl Harbor in Oahu, Hawaii. All eight U.S. Navy battleships were damaged, with four sunk, along with cruisers, destroyers and other ships.  American fatalities totaled 2,403, with 1,178 others wounded. The attack shocked the American people and led directly to the nation’s entry into World War II in both the Pacific and Europe.

“We are expecting a large turnout from our wonderful veterans and political supporters as well as community members from around the state,” said Tom O’Donnell, assistant dean of Students/director of Veteran Affairs.

Stockton is ranked in the Top 20 among the best colleges and universities nationwide for veterans by the Military Times’ “Best for Vets: Colleges 2017,” and by the Online College Plan’s “Top 20 Best 4-Year Colleges for Veterans.”

For further information about the statewide Pearl Harbor Day event, please contact Tom O’Donnell at: tom.odonnell@stockton.edu  or call 609-652-4676.