Letter: Kudos North Adams Police Department

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To the Editor:

Praise to members of the North Adams Police Department:

Interim Chief Mark Bailey, Detective Sgt. Bran Vivori, Detective Josh Zustra, Officers Taylor Kline and Khalil Paul will be participating in Boston's Run To Remember (on May 28) honoring Officer George Angeli, who lost his life while on duty in North Adams.

This half marathon/10K is a true testament to the kindness and dedication these amazing North Adams Police Department officers are to our community. Best of luck on a great run.

Jim Holmes
North Adams, Mass. 

 

 

 


Tags: benefit run,   

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Veteran Spotlight: Army Sgt. John Magnarelli

By Wayne SoaresSpecial to iBerkshires
PLYMOUTH, Mass. — John Magnarelli served his country in the Army's 82nd Airborne Division and the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment in Vietnam from May 4, 1969, to April 10, 1970, as a sergeant. 
 
He grew up in North Quincy and was drafted into the Army on Aug. 12, 1968. 
 
"I had been working in a factory, Mathewson Machine Works, as a drill press operator since I graduated high school. It was a solid job and I had fallen into a comfortable routine," he said. "That morning, I left home with my dad, who drove me to the South Boston Army Base, where all new recruits were processed into service. There was no big send off — he just dropped me off on his way to work. He shook my hand and said, 'good luck and stay safe.'"
 
He would do his basic training at Fort Jackson, S.C., which was built in 1917 and named after President Andrew Jackson. 
 
"It was like a city — 20,000 people, 2,500 buildings and 50 firing ranges on 82 square miles," he said. "I learned one thing very quickly, that you never refer to your rifle as a gun. That would earn you the ire of the drill sergeant and typically involve a great deal of running." 
 
He continued proudly, "after never having fired a gun in my life, I received my marksmanship badge at the expert level."
 
He was assigned to Fort Benning, Ga., for Combat Leadership School then sent to Vietnam.
 
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