R.I.P. Sgt. Laloup

Carol Klein forwarded this obituary fo Marine Sgt. Brian J. Laloup that originally ran in the Daily Local of Chester County on Aug. 28.

 
Sgt. Laloup was serving as an embassy guard in Greece when he died.

Marine Sergeant Brian J. Laloup, 21, an Afghanistan “Operation Enduring Freedom” veteran passed away on August 12, 2012 in Athens, Greece.

Born in Malvern, Pa., he lived in Honey Brook, Pa., where he graduated early from Twin Valley High School before leaving for boot camp in February 2009. Brian was a Christmas Eve baby born in 1990.

He is the son of extremely proud parents, Craig and Beverly of Downingtown. In addition to his parents, he is survived by his brothers, Craig, Jr. of Spring City, Pa. and John of Downingtown, Pa.

He was serving our great country as a Marine Corps Embassy Guard at the time of his death. Brian lived his life his way and on his terms. He enjoyed horseback riding, skydiving and scuba diving. He excelled as a Marine earning the rank of Sergeant in just three and a half years on August 1, 2012.

Sgt. Laloup received a full military burial at Washington Crossing National Veterans Cemetery in Newtown, Bucks County.

 In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, 1120 G Street NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20005. Online condolences at www.donohuefuneralhome.com.

Joe Barrett, Newsman, Soldier

 Joe Barrett, Newsman, SoldierJoseph Barrett died Sunday, June 17. He was 90. Mr. Barrett was an award winning police reporter for 27 years for the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin and one of the first reporters hired by the respected weekly County Press.
Despite his journalistic achievements which included a Keystone Award from the Pennsylvania Newspaper Publishers Association in spot news for a  report of a Rittenhouse Square bank holdup and a Fraternal Order of Police Award for best police story that concerned the murder of warden Patrick N. Curran and his deputy, Robert F. Fromhold, at Holmesburg Prison in 1973, the subject most dear to his heart was likely his World War II experiences.
He landed on Utah Beach on D-Day as a member of the 474th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion fighting with them through the Battle of the Bulge until the surrender of Germany.
One radio reporter working out of Room 619, City Hall Press Room enjoyed boasting about being the last American to interview Adolph Hitler. Mr. Barrett once quieted him saying “You entered Berlin with a typewriter. I went in with an M1”.
Mr. Barrett liked to tell of an incident that occurred on  D-Day when his battalion inadvertently shot down an American P-51 fighter. Barrett said the pilot parachuted to the beach wearing his dress uniform and carrying a bottle of whiskey. He had a date with an English nurse in London that night and was only supposed to make a single pass over the beach and go home.
“He was mad as hell but in our defense we had been told to shoot at anything lower than 1,000 feet”
The story, oft told to his friends, was recorded by historian Stephen E. Ambrose and published in his 1994 book D-Day, June 6, 1944: The Climatic Battle of World War II.
Mr. Barrett said the beachmaster did arrange for the pilot to get a ride back to England that day.
“He was lucky,” he said. “If he had landed on Omaha Beach, they would have handed him an M1 and put him in the infantry.”
Mr. Barrett was active in Battle of the Bulge organizations.
Mr. Barrett who grew up in his beloved “Swampoodle” near 22nd and Lehigh and old Shibe Park in North Philadelphia was a long-time resident of Havertown where he attended St. Denis Church. He was a devout Catholic and rarely missed Mass citing the Battle of the Bulge and the Blizzard of 1993 as two occasions on which he remembered doing so.
He was active in Alcoholics Anonymous becoming sober in 1961.
He had a degree in economics from Villanova University.
He was the first police reporter hired when the County Press began in September 1982 nine months after the Bulletin’s closing. He held the post for several years.
He was married to the former Josephine Quinn, an Army nurse with three battle stars from Korea. She died in 2001.
He is survived by sons Joseph P. Jr. and Anthony;  a daughter, Jo Ellen Keating and grand children Alysa, Kaitlyn, and Samantha.
Viewings will be 7- 9 p.m. Thursday and 9:30-10:30 a.m., Friday at the The Funeral Home of John Stretch, 236 E. Eagle Road, Havertown, Pa. 19083.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 11 a.m., Friday in St. Denis Church, 2401 St. Denis Lane, Havertown.
Burial will be at St. Denis Cemetery.
Donations in his memory may be made to Southeastern Veterans Center Welfare Fund, c/o Welfare Coordinator 1 Veterans Drive, Spring City, Pa. 19475.

Jeff Zaslow R.I.P.

Jeff Zaslow, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal and a best selling author, died yesterday, Feb. 10, when his car crashed on an icy  road in Petosky, Mich, where he had been for a book signing.

He was 53. He is survived by his wife of 25 years, Sherry Margolis, a Detroit a TV news anchor with WJBK television in Detroit, and  daughters Alex, Eden and Jordan.

Mr. Zaslow was a graduate of Marple Newtown High School. His mother, Naomi,was for many year’s the school district’s director of information, and a good friend.

Jeff Zaslow R.I.P.

 

Larry Weathers R.I.P.

Larry Weathers Jr.  died yesterday, Jan. 6, 21 months after being diagnosed with  metastatic melanoma. He was 80.

Mr. Weathers was the proprietor of Weathers Motors the auto dealership at 1187 Baltimore Pike, Middletown Township, Delaware County, Pa.

It was started as Weathers Dodge in 1922 by his father, Lawrence Sr., on land next to his family’s grocery store. It remained a Dodge dealership until May 2009 when Chrysler — with the federal government now holding a significant stake in it — announced that franchise agreements wouldn’t be renewed with 789 dealerships nationwide.

Rather than fold, Mr. Weathers and his son, Lawrence III, turned it into Weathers Motors, which has become a very highly regarded auto repair shop and dealer of used vehicles.

R.I.P. Mr. Weathers.

Larry Weathers R.I.P.

Larry Weathers R.I.P.

Cardinal Foley R.I.P.

Cardinal Foley R.I.P.  — Cardinal John Patrick Foley died 3:15 yesterday morning at St. Joseph in Darby, a residence for retired Archdiocesan priests.

He was 76.

Cardinal , who  headed the Pontifical Commission (now Pontifical Council) for Social Communications at the Vatican from 1984 until 2007 when he was made a Cardinal grew up in Sharon Hill, Pa.

As head of the Commission, he was responsible for all the Vatican’s print
and electronic communications and ministries and was responsible for the historic NBC Today Show
week-long broadcast from the Vatican. He also served as a special
commentator for the NBC broadcasts of Christmas Midnight Mass from the
Vatican for a quarter of a century.

He was co-producer and co-host of the Philadelphia Catholic Hour on
WFIL Radio in the 1960s. He co-produced 20 television episodes of “The Making of a
Priest,” for Group W.

He was this year’s Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia “Person of the Year”, and was honored at the organization’s Hall of Fame Banquet on Nov. 18.

R.I.P. Dottie Reynolds

I was just informed that Dottie Reynolds has died.

Dottie was a wonderful writer who worked for the Delaware County Daily Times and the Press Newspapers of Delaware County.

She was one of the founders of the Delaware County Press Club.

She had been living in Florida.

R.I.P. Dottie.

 

R.I.P. Dottie Reynolds

Smokin’ Joe R.I.P.

Smokin’ Joe R.I.P. — Joe Frazier, one-time heavyweight champion of the world, died last night, Nov. 7. He was 67 and had liver cancer.

Here is my personal remembrance.

Sometime around the turn of the millennium I was a participant in the Haverford Township Day Parade and I had brought my dog with me to join me on the float. Well, she got loose at the staging ground and as I chased her around the Manoa Shopping Center, I heard myself being serenaded with “Who Let The Dogs Out.”

I looked to see who was doing the singing and lo and behold it was The Champ himself who was also part of the parade.

Somewhere, there is a picture of me and The Champ who graciously consented to pose and had a big grin.

R.I.P. Joe.

 

Smokin’ Joe R.I.P.

Joey Vento R.I.P.

Joey Vento R.I.P. — Joey Vento, the owner of Geno’s Steaks in South Philadelphia and a Tea Party supporter, died yesterday, Aug. 23, at his Shamong, N. J., home of a heart attack. He was 71.

Mr. Vento opened Geno’s Steaks at 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue in 1966 and began what became a nationally famous competition with the long-established Pat’s King of Steaks across the street.

Mr. Vento became a political figure when Mumia Abu Jamal, who murdered Philadelphia police officer Danny Faulkner n 1981,  became a pet cause of the mindless yet fashion-conscience leftist establishment that tried to convince the world that Jamal was a innocent victim of a police frame. Mr. Vento helped keep the memory of Officer Faulkner alive and helped keep the focus on the overwhelming evidence of Jamal’s guilt.

Mr. Vento became a national figure after placing a sign in his window saying “This is America: When ordering please speak English” which prompted a discrimination complaint from the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations in 2006.

Unlike most business owners, Mr. Vento stood up to the bullies and the Commission caved two years later with a finding that the restaurant was not in violation of the city’s laws.

An irony rarely mentioned is that Geno’s is adjacent to a Mexican restaurant that is covered in signs in the Spanish language.

Mr. Vento became active in the Tea Party movement and produced popular radio advertisements criticizing  Sen. Arlen Specter and non-enforcement of immigration laws.

“Joey was a great supporter of our Tea Party group and the Tea Party movement,” said Teri Adams, president of the Independence Hall Tea Party Association. “He was the most beloved conservative figure regionally and was well known and well respected nationally. We lost a one-of-kind hero who told it like it was and leaves a tremendous void. He was such a good man. Our hearts are broken!”

Mr. Vento practically died on the job. He had gone to the restaurant  yesterday morning as he normally did and phoned in a bread order from his home at 6 p.m. He told his wife, Eileen, he wasn’t feeling well then went to lie down in the bedroom, where he was found.

Mr. Vento is also survived by a son, Geno, for whom the restaurant is named.

 Joey Vento R.I.P.

 

Joey Vento R.I.P.