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Pittsfield Remembers Those Lost at Pearl Harbor 82 Years Ago

Ron Rousseau speaks at the Pearl Harbor Day ceremony at the Veterans Memorial Park in Pittsfield.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Around 50 community members gathered at Veterans Memorial Park on Thursday morning to mark Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.

Eighty-two years ago, Japanese planes struck the naval base and airfield at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii and sparked the nation's entrance into World War II. Every year, the Berkshire Veterans Coalition and the city pay tribute to those who lost their lives during the attack with a ceremony and tree lighting.

"Today's observance is for those men and women who made the supreme sacrifice on Dec. 7, 1941," veteran Ron Rousseau said.

"Approximately 80 service personnel from Berkshire County were stationed at Pearl Harbor on that day. During this horrific battle, two men were killed from Berkshire County."

The attack claimed the lives of more than 2,400 Americans including two Pittsfield residents: Petty Officer 3rd Class Roman Sadlowski and Army Air Forces 1st Sgt. Edward Burns.

The 18-year-old Sadlowski was an electrician's mate when he died on the USS Oklahoma, which was struck by multiple Japanese torpedoes and sunk. He is immortalized with an honorary plaque at the South Street park.

His unidentified remains were interred for decades in the Punchbowl, which is the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Hawaii, until four years ago when they were identified through DNA comparisons with extended family members. Last year, he was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

Burns, also a Pittsfield native, was 24 years old when he was severely wounded in the attack and died several days later. He was attached to a squadron that had arrived in Hawaii only two days before the attack and was the first soldier killed from his station at Wheeler Field on Oahu. He is interred at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

"As the number of our greatest generation dwindles, there are fewer and fewer World War Two veterans living among us," Rousseau said.

"Yet stories of their service and commitment to our nation hold values that outlive flesh and blood. That is if we carry on with stories for future generations."

John Harding was the master of ceremonies, George Moran read the speech that President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 8, 1941, Richard Kurek did the opening prayer, and Joseph Difilippo played taps. All the men are veterans.

The park's tree was illuminated by veteran Robert "Doc" Miller and the rifle volley was conducted by the Dalton American Legion Post 155 Honor Guard.

Below are the names of county residents who were present or killed at Pearl Harbor:

Michael Baranuk
Louis D.Barnes
Joseph Baroli
Harold Bence
Gladys Beniel
Charles Berry
John J. Bilodeau
Joseph Bulwinkle
Edward Burns
Robert C. Burt
Woodfordr Chapman
John Curley

Pittsfield City Council Weighs in on 'Crisis' in Public Schools

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
08:59PM / Monday, December 23, 2024

A half-dozen people addressed the City Council from the floor of Monday's meeting, including Valerie Anderson, right.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — After expressing anger and outrage and making numerous calls for accountability and transparency, the 11 members of the City Council on Monday voted to support the School Committee in seeking an independent investigation into allegations of misconduct by staff members at Pittsfield High School that have come to light in recent weeks.

 

At the close of a month that has seen three PHS administrators put on administrative leave, including one who was arrested on drug trafficking charges, the revelation that the district is facing a civil lawsuit over inappropriate conduct by a former teacher and that a staff member who left earlier in the year is also under investigation at his current workplace, the majority of the council felt compelled to speak up about the situation.

 

"While the City Council does not have jurisdiction over the schools … we have a duty to raise our voices and amplify your concerns and ensure this crisis is met with the urgency it demands," Ward 5 Councilor Patrick Kavey said.

 

About two dozen community members attended the special meeting of the council, which had a single agenda item.

 

Four of the councilors precipitated the meeting with a motion that the council join the School Committee in its search for an investigation and that the council, "be included in the delivery of any disclosures, interim reports or findings submitted to the city."

 

Last week, the School Committee decided to launch that investigation. On Monday, City Council President Peter White said the School Committee has a meeting scheduled for Dec. 30 to authorize its chair to enter negotiations with the Springfield law firm of Bulkley, Richardson and Gelinas to conduct that probe.

 

Ward 7 Councilor Rhonda Serre, the principal author of the motion of support, was one of several members who noted that the investigation process will take time, and she, like Kavey, acknowledged that the council has no power over the public schools beyond its approval of the annual district budget.