On September 25, 1982, an Army major from Bridgeport (Trumbull High School) was killed in Beirut. A jeep he was riding in hit a landmine. The incident also killed three others, including an Air Force officer.
On October 23, 1983, the Marine barracks in Beirut was bombed. The country lost 241 heroes, and Connecticut lost eight. 220 Marines, 18 sailors, and 3 soldiers made the ultimate sacrifice while on a peacekeeping mission. It was the greatest loss of life for the United States Marine Corps in one day since the Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945.
On June 15, 1985, Navy Seabee Robert Stethem was a passenger on a commercial flight when it was hijacked. All of the American active duty and veteran military personnel on the hijacked plane were identified. Robert Stethem, born in Waterbury, Connecticut, was singled out, beaten, murdered, and his body left on the tarmac at Beirut International Airport.
These ten heroes can never be forgotten. As time goes by, the country, Connecticut, and these heroes’ hometowns can never forget their service and sacrifice.
For a PDF document with data about these heroes, click HERE.
For a PDF document with all of the biographies, click HERE.
BIOGRAPHY SECTION
Click on a name to be taken to a page with their bio.
| MAJ RANDALL ARTHUR CARLSON Bridgeport/Trumbull | LCPL THOMAS ALAN DIBENEDETTO Mansfield |
| LANCE CORPORAL WILLIAM HART New London | PFC JOSEPH JOHN MATTACCHIONE Willimantic |
| CAPT PETER JAMES SCIALABBA New Haven | SSG THOMAS GIRARD SMITH Middletown |
| CPO ROBERT DEAN STETHEM Waterbury | LCPL DEVON LLOYD SUNDAR Stamford |
| PFC STEPHEN DALE TINGLEY Ellington | LCPL DWAYNE WILLIS WIGGLESWORTH Naugatuck |
