19 Veterans Honored With Distinguished Service Medals

Donald Burns can still remember arriving in San Francisco after his tour of duty in Vietnam, where it was the opposite of a warm homecoming after a difficult time abroad.

"We weren't greeted very well," he said. "They were booing us, and some people actually spat at us."

Tuesday morning, Burns and nine other Vietnam veterans—along with veterans of Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom—got the reception they believed they deserved, when they received the state's Distinguished Service Medal and other awards during a ceremony at the Cherry Hill Mall.

"The Vietnam War was a very unpopular war, so to be recognized all these years means a lot to me and my fellow veterans," Burns said, reflecting on the cheers and applause he and his fellow veterans received as they marched up to receive their medals. "I think the trend now is everybody can appreciate the military and veterans."

Burns and his fellow Vietnam veterans received the state's Vietnam Service Medal, along with the Distinguished Service Medal, which is awarded to military members who served in combat while on active duty and who have received an honorable discharge.

In all, 19 veterans were honored at the event, which also included the promotion ceremony for Brigadier General Robert C. Bolton, the commander of the New Jersey Air National Guard.

Receiving medals were:

• Donald Burns, Marine Corps, Vietnam War
• Shane Daly, Army, Iraqi Freedom
• Robert DeLaurentiis, Army, Vietnam War
• Raymond DiLeo, Navy, Iraqi Freedom
• Michael Huelsenbeck, Air Force, Desert Storm
• Barry Lennon, Air Force, Desert Storm
• David Lodge, Army, Vietnam War
• Joseph Merimonde, Navy, Vietnam War
• Thomas Miles, Navy, Vietnam War
• David Miller, Navy, Vietnam War
• Edward Perez, Army, Vietnam War
• Nicholas Petruzzi, Army, Vietnam War
• Thomas Raio, Marine Corps, Enduring Freedom
• Richard Ramos, Army, Iraqi Freedom
• Peter Rodriguez, Marine Corps, Enduring Freedom
• Glenn Ross, Air Force, Desert Storm
• Michael Sullivan, Navy, Vietnam War
• James Wheeling, Army, Vietnam War
• David Zielinski, Army, Enduring Freedom