THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, NOVEmBEr 6, 2026 Page 3 Saugus to honor veterans at Nov. 11 ceremony A By Alex Burns t 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 11, Saugus residents are encouraged to gather at Veterans Park to honor the men and women who served in the military. Retired U.S. Army Colonel Joseph Connell, who is the town’s full-time veterans service officer, will deliver the keynote address. Connell served 30 years on active duty, with combat deployments to Somalia, Iraq, and Afghanistan. He commanded an artillery battalion of about 500 soldiers in northern Iraq beginning in 2004, then served in Afghanistan from 2007, including as the first chief of staff of the U.S. Forces in Afghanistan beginning in 2008. Connell plans to use his time to not only thank veterans but also their families and caregivers. “They really have got a tough time, too,” he said. When he left for Iraq for the first time, his daughter was not yet four months old, he said. She was 20 months old when he came home. “Tough on wives, tough on kids when their dads or moms are fully deployed.” Steve Castinetti, commander of the Saugus Veterans Council and a retired Navy captain, organizes the annual ceremony and said the program follows the same format each year, “I want the people that the veterans protected and defended to come out and remember us,” he said. The lack of participation is one of the reasons the town’s Veterans Day Parade was discontinued several years ago, he said. “Walking through the streets of Saugus and nobody’s out to see it is disgraceful,” Castinetti said. Earned recognition One person who is workA collection of historic photographs, letters, and newspaper articles documenting the stories of Saugus veterans has been carefully preserved by Janice Jarosz and her family. (Photo to The Saugus Advocate by Alex Burns) centered on recognizing those who served. It also features other speakers and performances. For instance, the Lynn English Marine Corps Junior ROTC is expected to present a color guard demonstration, he said. The event is free and open to the public. The ceremony starts at 11 a.m. on Nov. 11 to mark the moment the armistice took effect in 1918, which then ended fighting in World War I. “We celebrate Veterans Day at 11 o’clock on the 11th day of the 11th month,” Castinetti said. For older veterans who cannot make it to the park, Castinetti will speak at a Veterans Day ceremony at the Senior Center on Nov. 10. Castinetti, a Vietnam-era veteran, said the day matters to him because many veterans never received recognition. “When people came home from Vietnam in those days, they did not get the reception that they get today,” he said. “We miss holidays, birthdays, anniversaries,” he said. “But it’s nice to get that recognition for the sacrifices that a lot of folks have made.” What Castinetti is hoping for this year is a big crowd. He believes Saugus has more than 1,200 veterans, but veteran attendance is usually under 50. ing to recognize veterans’ stories is lifelong Saugus resident and former editor and owner of The Saugonian newspaper Janice Jarosz. A member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Jarosz has spent years collecting and recording veterans’ stories, drawing on old newspapers, including a 1950 Saugus Herald “service man special” left to her by a great aunt. She hopes to turn them into a book. “I look at this, and I’m saying these guys and women all want me to tell their stories,” she said. “I just feel so obligated to do this.” She said the story she most wants told is that of Staff Sgt. Arthur F. DeFranzo, a Saugus native awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Normandy campaign in June 1944. According to his citation, DeFranzo, of the 1st Infantry Division’s 18th Infantry, left cover to rescue a wounded scout under machine-gun fire and got injured in the proLawrence A. Simeone Jr. ~ Since 1989 ~ * Corporate Litigation * Criminal/Civil * MCAD * Zoning/Land Court * Wetlands Litigation * Workmen’s Compensation * Landlord/Tenant Litigation * Real Estate Law * Construction Litigation * Tax Lien * Personal Injury * Bankruptcy * Wrongful Death * Zoning/Permitting Litigation 300 Broadway, Suite 1, Revere * 781-286-1560 lsimeonejr@simeonelaw.net Attorney-at-Law VETERANS | SEE PAGE 8 NEW BRANCH. EXCLUSIVE RATE. MORE FOR YOU. Earn 4.75% APY* with our exclusive 7-month CD! Available only at our new Medford branch. Visit us at 501 High Street to take advantage of this special offer. New money only. We make it easy. Because here, easy means more. This is a new-money-only offer.
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