Our Veterans
In honor of those who served our country in the armed forces, this San Marino Tribune article continues a series of individual salutes to our courageous veterans.
By Mitch Lehman
He invaded Normandy, fought in the Battle of the Bulge and covered the Nuremberg War Trials. Other than that, longtime San Marino resident Steve Antosy’s military service was uneventful.
He doesn’t wear glasses, takes no medication and tells this reporter – who is 35 years his junior, by the way – to “watch your step” as we move to the beautiful sun room of his Monterey Rd. home.
Antosy appears to be a fraction of his 90 years. He moves nimbly about with flawless recall of events both recent and past, which he proves over and over during our 90 minutes together.
His home more resembles a museum, each rug, dresser and appointment significant of a journey here, there…basically, everywhere. He later showed me a picture-sized map of the world with a colored push-pin marking each travel destination for he and his wife, Dorothy, until she passed away two years ago.
And there are a lot of push pins.
I failed to look for three – Omaha Beach, France; Wallonia, Belgium and Nuremberg, Germany – three far-away places Antosy visited before he could legally take a drink.
On June 19, 1943, shortly after graduating high school in his hometown of Reading, Pa., Antosy was drafted into the Army and sent to basic training in Fort Belvoir, Va. World War II was raging. An uncle of Antosy’s had nearly lost his life in Pearl Harbor aboard a repair ship that was tied up to the USS Arizona at the time of the attack.
For the full story, see the print edition of the San Marino Tribune, or download the e-edition.
