Ossining Remembers one of its Own on 34th Anniversary of Bombing

Lance Cpl. Craig Wyche, who graduated Ossining High School in 1­­­­982, was one of 241 members of the U.S. military who lost their lives in the 1983 terrorist attack at Beirut International Airport.

On Oct. 23, the 34th anniversary of the bombing, members of Mr. Wyche’s family, veterans and OHS students gathered on the front lawn to commemorate the fallen marine and his ultimate sacrifice. Glenn Wyche, Craig Wyche’s brother, traveled from Valley Stream, Nassau County, to attend the ceremony. Cousins Kijafa Alston and Shayla Wyche were also at the event.

Craig Wyche was one of six siblings. He was a bright and gifted athlete who could have done anything he wanted in life, said his brother Glenn Wyche. His greatest memory of his brother is “fooling around in the backyard playing football,” he said.

Glenn Wyche thinks of his fallen brother all the time, saying “He’s in my heart,” and believes it’s important for others not to forget veterans’ sacrifices.

“As soon as we forget something like this, these things come back to haunt us in other ways,” he said. “We should always remember those who fought for this country and gave their lives for this country, all the servicemen.”

Members of the Marine Corps League-Westchester County Detachment; American Legion Post 506; and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1041 participated in the memorial service. They laid a wreath in front of a maple tree that was planted in his honor many years ago and a plaque in the ground. Patrick Wheeler, an OHS social studies teacher and a graduate, played “Taps.”

“May light perpetually shine upon him,” Edmund Cook, chaplain of Post 506, said during the ceremony. “May the good work of seeking justice for the oppressed and peace for all mankind be rewarded with success, that his sacrifice shall not have been in vain.”

Craig Wyche was fiercely proud of being accepted into the Marines, said Michael G. O’Connor, chairman of the Central Committee of Organized War Veterans in the town of Ossining. He learned that from speaking with people who knew and went to school with Mr. Wyche.

“We just want everybody to remember the sacrifices of the men and women that have chosen to put on that uniform and enter into harm’s way to protect our way of life, our republic and to protect what this country stands for,” Mr. O’Connor said.

Of the 241 service members who lost their lives, 220 were marines. The incident was the deadliest single-day death toll for the U.S. Marine Corps since the World War II Battle of Iwo Jima.

Each year, the Marine Corps League—Westchester County Department gives a $500 scholarship to a graduating OHS student in Craig Wyche’s honor.