Memorial Day 2025
The Gilroy American Legion Post 217 will host Memorial Day 2025 at 10:00 AM on May 26th at Gavilan Hills Cemetery. For more information, contact Post 217 Commander William Dunmyer at (408) 590-0575.
Why do we celebrate Memorial Day?
The national holiday was created to honor those who lost their lives in American wars. Originally known as Decoration Day, Memorial Day began after the Civil War, when citizens would decorate the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers. Below is a list of Gilroy’s fallen heroes.
Charles C. Crews
Benjamin Garcia
Arthur Mooney
John Sturla
Edward S. Ahren
Joe Altamirano
Ernest Avila
John A. Berri
Charles Blanchard
Joseph Briscejn
Curtis E. Chappell
Francis E. Chick
Earl Coates
Louis E. Cohn Cole
Gene S. Collumber
Rueben Compton
Joseph Cordich
Jack DeVine
Clarence Dishman
Donald E. Ferguson
Jerome H. Ferguson
Donald F. Gage
Salver G. Gagliardi
Frank C. Galvan
Pete M. Hernandez
Santos Hernandez
William James
Leroy Johnson
Warren M. Kannely
Walter E. Kannely
Edwin F. Kellog
Ted Laskowski
Walter J. Lass
Leland E. Leonard
Lawrence L. Manzo
Merlin Martin
Frank Masoni
Adolph S. Montoya
Keith B. Munro
Joseph P. Nelson
Joe Nunez
Eugene T. Parra
Carl E. Peterson
Melvin L. Pruett
Donald Ray
Julian Rizzi
John Rodriquez
Ernest R. Rossi
Arnold Settrini
Oswald O. Southworth
Earl Stout
Harvey T. Taylor
Vernon W. Taylor
Shichizo Toyota
Arthur Villa
Wesley G. Weeks
Charles Whitehurst
Richard White
Gerald Whyte
Joe Baldonado*
Reginald Desiderio*
William Faddis
John P. Langwell
Crescencio Mirelez
Alvin Painter
Frank R. Rosas
Alvin Seifert
*Medal of Honor Recipient
Joseph Lopez Bedolla
Charles Manuel Centeno
James Wilbur Ervin
Richard Garcia
Lee Attilio Greco
Wolfgang Werner Karasch
Jack William Marlowe
Juan Rodriguez Pequeño
Moses Placeres
Alfred Valdez
John V. Wentworth
Jeramy Ailes
David Gutierrez
Gilroy's Fallen Heroes
A Fallen Hero is one who gave the ultimate sacrifice, his or her life, while serving our country.