Little Silver Sixth Graders Learn About Fallen U.S. Army Soldier

LITTLE SILVER, NJ — This May, students at Markham Place Middle School in Little Silver learned about the life and death of Lt. Dennis W. Zilinski, II, a U.S. Army soldier from Middletown who was killed in Iraq in 2005.

Zilinski is a graduate of Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft, where he competed on the varsity swim team. From there, he graduated from West Point with distinction and then joined the U.S. Army; he was killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was 23 years old.

Zilinski grew up in Middletown and his parents and brother still live in the area. His parents are very active in teaching their son's legacy and educating others about the ultimate sacrifice their son made for this country.

Dennis’ brother, Matthew Zilinski, is an Army Major in the National Guard who has also been deployed to the Middle East. He's also a Howell police officer.

He and his parents, Marion and Dennis Zilinski, spoke to the sixth-grade students about Dennis and how his own deployments where he leaves his wife and three daughters behind in New Jersey.

“Like my mom said, freedom is not free. We are apart from our families when we serve and miss important days, like birthdays of our children, anniversaries and holidays. It’s hard on us, and it’s hard on our spouses and children,” said Matthew Zilinski to the students during his presentation.

The Little Silver tweens also prepared care packages for deployed U.S. troops abroad, into which they packed soups, crackers, pretzels, cookies, candy and handmade thank-you cards.

“This is how we share the responsibilities of ensuring freedom,” said Tamara Pellien, a sixth grade science teacher at Markham Place School.

“I think participating in this collection is very important because it helps the soldiers and it makes them feel remembered and cared for,” said Ben Weaver, a Markham Place School sixth grader.

“I hope that they (deployed service members) realize people back home care about what they’re doing out there protecting our country,” said Wyatt Curley, 12.

This was part of Markham Place School's 12th annual Markham CARES Day, where sixth graders learn about members of their community who made a positive impact. The Lt. Dennis W. Zilinski, II Memorial Fund has been involved with the program for the past 12 years.

One of the main accomplishments of The Lt. Dennis W. Zilinski, II Memorial Fund is sponsoring service dogs for disabled American veterans suffering PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). To date, the Zilinski Memorial Fund has sponsored more than 100 service dogs.

Additionally, the Zilinski Memorial Fund provides scholarships to students at Lt. Zilinski’s alma mater, Christian Brothers Academy. By providing these scholarships, the Zilinski Memorial Fund invests in the future of high school students who embody the leadership qualities and community spirit of Lt. Zilinski.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. Contact this Patch reporter: Carly.Baldwin@patch.com