A 102-year-old American World War II veteran who witnessed the raising of the American flag on Iwo Jima has tragically died while en route to France to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings.
Robert Persichitti, of Fairport, New York, died last Friday after undergoing emergency medical treatment at a hospital in Germany, a veterans’ group said.
The Navy veteran, who was flying overseas with a group associated with the National WWII Museum, was on a ship sailing off the coast of Normandy ahead of Thursday’s Normandy landings when he suddenly became ill and had to be airlifted to a hospital.
He was among a dwindling number of surviving U.S. veterans making a pilgrimage to the Normandy beaches this week to mark the anniversary of the June 6, 1944, Normandy landings that led to the end of World War II.
“I’m really looking forward to going,” said Persichitti, who has a history of heart disease. WROC Television The day before departure.
In his final moments, Persichitti was listening to his favorite singer, Frank Sinatra, said his friend and traveling companion, Al DeCarlo. 13 Wham.
“The doctor was with him. He was not alone and he was at peace and comfort,” DeCarlo said. “She typed the name of his favorite singer, Frank Sinatra, into her phone and he left us in peace.”
During World War II, Mr. Persichitti served as a radio operator second class aboard the USS El Dorado, serving on Iwo Jima, Okinawa and Guam.
He was among the US soldiers who witnessed the raising of the Stars and Stripes atop Iwo Jima’s Mount Suribachi on February 19, 1945, a moment that became one of the most famous photographs taken during the war.
“I was on deck,” Persichitti said. Stars and Stripes “When I got to the island today, I just broke down in tears,” he said in an interview upon returning to the area in 2019.
In an interview, he recalled some of the horrific events he witnessed aboard the El Dorado, including wounded Marines being carried aboard the ship and countless burials at sea.
“When they landed, they all started falling over,” Persichitti said at the time. “It wasn’t a pretty sight.”
Persichitti previously said in an interview that he pays tribute to fallen comrades every Friday, not just on Memorial Day.
“I have a red sleeveless T-shirt and every Friday I wear the red to symbolize the blood that was shed during World War II,” he said.
After the war, Persichitti became a teacher in the Rochester public schools, and even after he retired he continued to visit school children and speak to them about the war.
“It was an honor to know him and I will miss him. He had a true passion for life,” said the Rev. William Leone, who was a friend of Persichitti’s for 40 years.
“He would visit students at elementary schools and talk to them about his experiences growing up and his experiences during World War II.”
Persichitti was inducted into the New York State Senate Veterans Hall of Fame in 2020.
