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District resident Mary Ann Salerno honors four family members who served in the U.S. military
Summary
Mary Ann Salerno used a public comment to salute four relatives — her husband, two fathers and a brother — recounting deployments to Vietnam and Iraq, a Purple Heart and a 23‑year Air Force career that ended as a colonel at McGuire Air Force Base.
Mary Ann Salerno said during a public comment that she came to salute four members of her family for their military service.
Salerno, who said she has been a member of the district for more than 37 years, began by describing her husband, Charles J. Salerno. "He was drafted in 1968 after he graduated from high school," she said, and served in Vietnam as a squad leader in the infantry. Salerno said he was later promoted to sergeant in what she described as the "fifth" battalion, was wounded in battle and "received a Purple Heart, 'Accommodation Medal,' and a Certificate of Achievement."
She also said her father, John Belace, and her father‑in‑law, Charles P. Salerno, served in World War II, noting that military service spans generations in her family.
Salerno devoted most of her remarks to her brother, Louis Belice, saying he "was a Ridley graduate [and] enlisted the day before Sept. 11, 2001." She said he deployed to Iraq twice as an Air Force flight nurse, served for 23 years and became a colonel stationed at McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey. "He saved a lot of lives and he helped the wounded," she said.
She closed by thanking "all the veterans who have done and served our country well to keep everyone safe" and wishing those present a good day. There was no formal action tied to the remarks; Salerno's remarks were recorded as a public comment.
