COMMISSIONING OF USS JOHN BASILONE (DDG 122)
COMMISSIONING OF USS JOHN BASILONE (DDG 122)
On Saturday, November 9, 2024, the second ship named for World War II hero and Medal of Honor Recipient, the USS JOHN BASILONE (DDG122), was placed into commission in New York City. The platform guests were led by the 78th Secretary of the Navy, Carlos Del Toro, himself a New York City native. Commanding Officer, Commander Carne Livingston and his crew of plank owners saw the transition from their roles of Pre-commissioning Unit in Bath, Maine to the ship’s introduction to the fleet in the waters of the Hudson River. The newest Arleigh Burke class destroyer will report to Mayport in Florida to begin its career as a combatant ship, carrying the legacy of its namesake as a fierce warrior and imbued with the spirit of its co-sponsors, Gold Star Family members Ryan Manion and Amy Looney Heffernan.
John Basilone who was born in Buffalo, New York, and grew up in Raritan, New Jersey where his memory continues to be honored by an annual parade. He answered the call to duty first in the US Army where he enlisted and served in Manilla, Philippines where the young solider competed as an amateur boxer. He returned to the US following his army enlistment and worked as a truck driver before enlisting several months later in the Marine Corps to return to the Philippines. Gunnery Sargent Basilone was instrumental in the Battle for Henderson Field at Guadalcanal. On October 24, 1942, Henderson Field came under a frontal attack by Japanese forces. Basilone commanded fifteen marines who used heavy machine guns to fend off the assault. After two full days of heavy fighting, Basilone, without food, water or sleep, and seriously depleted of ammunition was left surviving with only two other Marines but having annihilated the attacking Japanese force. He was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Roosevelt, the first Marine to receive the honor in World War II.
The popular hero then was asked to tour the United States as a spokesman for the war effort and to help sell War Bonds. Basilone requested to be returned to the front to join his comrades in battle, but he was turned down with the rationale that he was needed on the home front to support the war effort. He was offered a commission and a position as an instructor, but he refused both. He reenlisted in the marines and returned to Camp Pendleton for training, where he met his future wife Marine Sargent Lena Mae Riggi. Two nieces of John Basilone, Ms. Diane Hawkins and Ms. Kin Van Note were long glass presenters at the ceremony. In her remarks, Diane Hawkins said that “at least Uncle John found love”. She gifted DDG 122 an original handwritten letter John had sent to his parents asking for a copy of his birth certificate so he could marry Lena. In the letter, he expressed a sense of urgency as he expected to be shipped out soon and reassured his parents that she, like he, was Italian and knew how to cook. They did marry on July 14, 1944. Gunnery Sargent Basilone then rejoined the fleet and was a machine gun section leader during the first day of the invasion of Iwo Jima. He again fought with extraordinary valor attacking a blockhouse after his unit was pinned down by machine gun fire destroying the garrison and allowing the marines to proceed with their assault. He then moved to the airfield where he aided a marine tank which was under heavy assault. He guided the tank off the field and was killed on the edge of the airfield by enemy gunfire. Gunnery Sargent Basilone was awarded the Navy Cross posthumously for his actions on Iwo Jima. He was the only Marine awarded both the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross during World War II. His widow, Lena Riggi Basilone, sponsored the first USS Basilone, DDE-824, a Gearing class destroyer, commissioned in 1949. Marine Lt. General Roberta Kelly, in her Commissioning remarks, stated that John Basilone sets the standard by which each Marine is measured and that each private in the Corps learns of Gunnery Sargent John Basilone’s heroism during boot camp as drill instructors read his Medal of Honor Citation as the Marines recruits battle the “Crucible”, the culminating 52-hour test which each marine must conquer to qualify as a US Marine.
Contributed by Ann Zumwalt
Author: Martha Hill
website admin & member
