Fitzgibbon's name is on the Wall
Published on June 2nd, 1999
STONEHAM, MA - A father and son together in death and in the hearts of their family are now united on a monument to their supreme sacrifice.
Richard B. Fitzgibbon, Jr. and Richard B. Fitzgibbon III, native sons of Stoneham, are the only known father and son pair to die serving the United States in Vietnam.
But the elder Fitzgibbon was not considered a Vietnam veteran until this year. A ceremony Monday made official what the family believed for years — the father's name should be on the Vietnam Veterans War Memorial along with his son.
"It was emotional, a real catharsis," said Parker Chase Road resident Alice DelRossi, sister and aunt of the fallen servicemen. "The whole family cried."
The name of Air Force Technical Sergeant Richard B. Fitzgibbon, Jr. was added to the Vietnam War Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C. in a Memorial Day ceremony. The name of Marine Corps Lance Corporal Richard B. Fitzgibbon III was already on the Wall.
The younger Fitzgibbon was killed in action in 1965. His father was killed in Saigon in 1956, five years before the qualification date to be included on the Wall.
Through the tireless efforts of DelRossi, Richard B. Fitzgibbon, Jr. is again with his son.
"He was the best guy God ever made," DelRossi said about her late brother. "His whole life was dedicated to serving his country."
Alice and other family members, including her son Richard DelRossi, a Vietnam veteran and Stoneham police officer, petitioned government officials for years to get the elder Fitzgibbon's name on the Wall.
U.S. Representative Ed Markey of Malden (D - 7th District) listened and took action in Washington. The legislator convinced the Department of Defense to change the Wall Memorial qualification date to Nov. 1, 1955, the day American troops first entered Vietnam.
"Alice and Dick DelRossi dedicated a large part of their lives to rectifying this historical injustice, and I was just glad to help them," Markey said.
On Wednesday May 26, the NBC Today Show interviewed Alice DelRossi on the front lawn of the Stoneham Town Hall.
Earlier this week the family, including Eunice Fitzgibbon, the wife and mother of the honored veterans, was in Washington D.C.
For the first time in years, the family members celebrated Memorial Day with a sense of closure.
Alice DelRossi said she wished America had done more to honor all Vietnam veterans after they returned home.
"There are 58, 219 names on the Wall," Delrossi said. "But 60,000 veterans killed themselves after returning home.."
But DelRossi was glad the Fitzgibbon name would now be associated with bringing honor to those men and women who served in Vietnam in the 1950s.
Everyone from USA Today to NBC to the BBC contacted DelRossi to ask how she felt. The answer: happy, sad and exhausted from endless interviews.
"This closes a chapter in American history," Markey said.
- Jason Fredette contributed to this article
Subscribe and get Home Delivery of The Independent
Save 36% off the newstand price — that's like 18 FREE issues!