Thank you, veterans, for your service

• Matthew Longnaker

I want to say thank you to my dad. Today is his first Veterans Day as a veteran, and my golden birthday, too! Thanks, Dad! Love, Abby Abby’s dad is Matthew Longnaker of Duluth. He joined the Army on June 23, 1992, attended basic military training at Fort Knox, Ky., and advanced training as a combat medic at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. He served 20 years, and retired on June 30, 2012. He was deployed four times: Bosnia, Kuwait and twice to Iraq. He served as a combat medic instructor and did multiple overseas tours. He was awarded the Expert Field Medical Badge and the Combat Medical Badge. Submitted by Abby Longnaker of Duluth
• Maj. Angelo Michael Talarico

Maj. Angelo Michael Talarico was born in Duluth in 1923 and graduated from Denfeld High School in 1942. He took his pre-flight training at Duluth’s Williamson Johnson Municipal Airport. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1943 and took his training to become a Marine Corps aviator at Pasco Washington and Corpus Christi, Texas. Talarico was awarded his “Wings of Gold” and served as a ferrying pilot from January to August 1945 at San Pedro Island, known as Terminal Island. Bud flew almost every single-engine aircraft in the Marine inventory. He was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Badoeng Strait (CVE-116) in 1946 as a F4U-4 Corsair pilot. On one particular training mission he walked away unscathed after a crash landing on April 2, 1946. The carrier’s barrier net had to be deployed. He was discharged in 1947 and reactivated for the Korean War. He flew the F2H-2 Banshee jet fighter and was very proud of his 66 jet carrier landings. State-side assignments were at Cherry Point, N.C., and El Toro, Calif. After the Korean War he remained in the Marine Corps Reserves. His total military service was 16 years and his highest rank attained was major. From 1956-79 he flew helicopters for Chicago Helicopter Airways in Glenview, Ill. Bud Talarico lives at the Pines III in Duluth. Semper Fidelis, Bud. Submitted by Alvin D. Grady in Hermantown.
• Lt. Col. Grant R. Doty

Lt. Col. (U.S. Army, retired) Grant R. Doty served 20 years, including during Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom. He is the son of Ralph and Diane Doty of Duluth and The Villages, Fla.
• Cpl. Jared BraveHeart

Judy and Les Northrup of Cloquet want to recognize and thank their grandson, Cpl. Jared BraveHeart, who joined the U.S. Marine Corps on Sept. 3, 2007. He graduated from basic military training on Nov. 30, 2007, and from CH-53E mechanic school on May 19, 2008. BraveHeart was deployed to Djibouti, Africa, in January 2010 and returned in August 2010. In March 2011 he was deployed with the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit and returned in February 2012. While deployed he was on the USS Bataan and the USS Mesa Verde. On Sept. 3, 2012, he received an honorable discharge. BraveHeart was an aerial observer on CH-53E with 560 flight hours and was a collateral duty inspector on CH-53Es.
• Pat O'Hara

Sandi Skoglund of Duluth wanted to thank her dad, Pat O’Hara, for the many stories of time served from 1953-54 during the Korean War when he was stationed in Yokohama, Japan.
• Nancy O'Hara Wagner

Skoglund also wanted to thank her sister, Master Sgt. Nancy O’Hara Wagner, for her service in the U.S. Air Force Reserve. Nancy retired after serving 20 years. Like their father, she has many wonderful stories about the years serving the country!
• Chief Boatswain's Mate Thomas E. Erickson Jr.

I thank all veterans, but my special “thank you” is for my brother, Chief Boatswain’s Mate Thomas E. Erickson Jr., U.S. Coast Guard (retired). He served from May 1981 to November 2007, during the Cold War and the Persian Gulf War, also known as Desert Storm. His enlistment brought him to numerous Coast Guard stations around the country. Half his career was spent as a coxwain aboard 41-foot utility boats running search-and-rescue cases on Lake Erie and Lake Superior. He has been deployed on U.S. naval ships as well as a British ship, and policed waters near South America to stop drug trafficking into the United States. Tom ended his career in Duluth at the Coast Guard Marine Safety Office, working with local agencies in disaster preparation. He served the Coast Guard with honor to duty, dedication and pride. I am proud of my brother and thank him for his service well done. Happy Veterans Day. Submitted by Toni Erickson Barrett of Duluth.
• Robert "Jerry" Lowney

Robert “Jerry” Lowney of Duluth served in the U.S. Marine Corps from February 1945 to February 1949. His family says “We love and honor you, Dad.” Submitted by Tim and Nancy Lowney of Duluth.

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• Veterans (cont.)
• And More Thank Yous to Veterans (cont.)