Veterans honored for service, sacrifice

Family and friends of about 30 North Jersey veterans filled the Belleville Public Library yesterday as the state honored them for their wartime service to their country.

Veterans who fought in World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam and operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom received service medals -- some posthumously -- in a ceremony hosted by the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.

"You survived horrendous heat, torrential storms, swarming dust storms and bitter cold," said Gary Englert, the director of the Division of Veterans Services, during the ceremony. "It didn't kill you, but it made you stronger, and it earned you your titles."

The ceremony was part of the department's monthly campaign to honor veterans statewide. Award applicants had to serve during wartime, and have to be residents of New Jersey.

Among the honorees Thursday was Belleville's Stephen Kochbarski Jr., 85, who was a boatswain's mate second class in the U.S. Navy during World War II.

"I'm so proud of all the boys who fought," said Kochbarski, who was stationed in Japan during the war. "But my mother deserves an award. She had three young boys in combat."

Other veterans came from Bloomfield, Nutley, Essex Fells and elsewhere in Essex and Passaic counties. Retired Army Col. Stephen G. Abel, the deputy commissioner for Veterans Affairs, presented the awards. He also encouraged the honorees to apply for financial compensation for injuries and salary losses while in combat.

"These counties (Essex and Passaic) have a fairly dense veterans population," Abel said before the ceremony. "And only half of them apply for compensation. We're here honor them for their sacrifices and to let them know what kind of services are available."

Next week, on Veterans Day, the state will hold a similar ceremony in Tinton Falls in Monmouth County.

Halley Bondy is a reporter with the New Jersey Local News Service. She may be reached at (908) 243-6211 or hbondy@njlns.com.