Downtown Banners Honor Toms River War Dead

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Toms River has long tradition of honoring those who have served the United States in the military, from parades every Memorial Day and Veterans Day to various memorials around town.

Town officials have added another element to that recently, with banners hung downtown that honor the town's war dead.

The Hometown Heroes banners honor those who were killed or are missing in action, and were unveiled at the Township Council meeting in late October. They were hung in time for the Halloween parade.

Here are the service members honored with banners:

George Howard Glawson Jr.: He was born on Jan. 18, 1950, in Toms River and had two brothers and a sister. George graduated from Toms River High School (now Toms River South) and joined the U.S. Army, where he attained the rank of warrant officer. He was killed in action in Vietnam on June 1, 1971, while flying a UH-1H helicopter with the 128th Assault Helicopter Company. The aircraft exploded in mid-air, possibly because of a malfunction or when hit by artillery round, while performing a nighttime maintenance test-flight. Glawson, who began serving in Vietnam on Feb. 16, 1971, at the Headquarters, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment and was also involved with the INFANT (Iroquois Night Fighter and Night Tracker) system. He was one of four men killed in the crash in Tay Ninh Province, South Vietnam.

Charles Fairchild Godfrey: He was born on March 20, 1945, and was a 1963 graduate of Toms River High School. His high school yearbook, Cedar Chest 63, said Charlie was a college prep student who enjoyed swimming, boating and reading. He participated in the photo, bowling and history clubs and played football in his freshman year. He attended Monmouth College and enlisted in the Army after graduation, attaining the rank of Specialist 4 (SP4). Godfrey was serving as an intelligence analyst with the 5th Infantry Division, 1st Brigade when he was killed in a helicopter crash caused by hostile fire in Quang Tri Province, South Vietnam on Jan. 1, 1970.

Gary Edward Jensen: He was born on April 22, 1949, and moved to Toms River with family and friend after graduating from Rahway High School in 1967. His friends called him "Elvis" because of his remarkable resemblance to the singing star. Jensen enlisted in the Army in March 1969 and attained the rank of Specialist 4. He was killed on Aug. 25, 1970, while serving with Company C, 3rd Battalion, 12th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division, when his helicopter was shot down. Jensen had been awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious action in combat, as well as the Air Medal and Combat Infantryman's Badge. He was also awarded the Army Commendation Medal for Heroism with Oak Leaf Cluster, the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, the Vietnam Campaign Medal, the United States Air Medal and the Purple Heart.

Thomas Edward Lilley: He was born on Jan. 30, 1947, and graduated from Toms River High School in June 1965, and enjoyed bowling, football, golf, drawing, collecting coins and stamps and designing blueprints for homes. He enlisted in the Army on July 13, 1966, where he attained the rank of Specialist 4 (SP4). Lilley was killed in action in Vietnam on Feb. 19, 1968, while service with the Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 25th Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division. He was awarded the Bronze Star, the Vietnam Campaign Ribbon, the Vietnam Military Merit Medal, the Sharpshooter Badge with Rifle Bar, the Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal and the Purple Heart.

Charles Wesley Kelly: He was born on Jan. 11, 1928, in Toms River and later moved to Willingboro. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1946 and attained the rank of Lieutenant. He was serving aboard a Navy repair ship in Vietnam. Kelly was killed in action on Jan. 17, 1967. He is buried at Riverside Cemetery in Toms River.

Peter Gary Scavuzzo: He was born on Oct. 10, 1946, and lived in Toms River. He graduated from Toms River High School and enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps before graduation. Scavuzzo went to boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina, after graduation. He was killed in action on March 4, 1966, in Quang Ngai Province in South Vietnam in an attack on North Vietnamese troops on the first day of Operation Utah. He was an infantryman and attained the rank of lance corporal while serving with H Company, Second Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division.

Richard L. McClain: He was born in Pensacola, Florida, on June 28, 1948, and his family moved to Toms River when he was 8. He was a 1966 graduate of Toms River High School and studied chemistry at Rutgers University, and left college before graduation to work at Toms River Chemical Company. McClain was killed in action in Vietnam on Sept. 30, 1968, while serving with the U.S. Army in C Company, 2nd Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division. He had been drafted and had attained the rank of Private First Class (PFC).

James Harvey II: He was born in Livingston and had lived in Clark before moving to Toms River with his family when he was 19. He was a sergeant in the U.S. Army and was a member of the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade CombatTeam, 1st Infantry Division. He was serving in Ghazni Province, Afghanistan, when he was killed in action on June 20, 2011. He was posthumously awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart for bravery.