Three U.S. Armed Forces veterans who served during the Vietnam era between 1955 and 1975 received pins from U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Highland Park, during a delayed Veterans Day event honoring their service.
Like many who fought in Vietnam, Ross Franke of Tower Lake did not receive a warm welcome when he came home. It took several years before the now-retired CTA motorman was no longer ridiculed by the people he encountered.
“It was not very welcoming when I got home,” he said. “They called us ‘baby killers.’ Finally, there was a parade for us in downtown Chicago. I marched it in and (finally) felt welcomed.”
John Gerend of Lake Villa went to college in the early 1970s, graduated, was drafted into the U.S. Army and decided to go to officer candidate school. Commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1971, he led a signal corps unit near Chu Lai, Vietnam. The war was all around him.
“I went to work for Corning Glass,” Gerend said. “They hired me because of my (military) leadership. I had a lot of support and didn’t experience what a lot of the others did.”
Veteran Genevieve Petruzelli of Gurnee served in the U.S. Air Force from 1973 to 1977, specializing in cyber security. She said the military was in her blood, from a great-grandfather who fought in the Spanish-American War to a father and uncles who served in World War II.
Vietnam veteran Ross Franke, center, of Tower Lake, receives a Vietnam era service pin from U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Highland Park, right, and Andrew Tangen at Schneider’s rescheduled Veterans Day celebration Monday in Grayslake. (Steve Sadin/For the Lake County News-Sun).
“For me, it was easy,” Petruzelli said, referring to how she was treated when she left the service as a Vietnam-era veteran. “As a woman, I blended right into society, so it was an easy transition.”
Petruzelli, Gerend and Franke were among 28 veterans to receive Vietnam Era pins at Schneider’s eighth annual Veterans Day breakfast rescheduled for Monday at the College of Lake County in Grayslake because he had to return to Washington on Nov. 11 to help reopen the government.
Since the U.S. Congress established the Vietnam pin program in 2012 with a sunset date of Nov. 11, 2025, Schneider said rescheduling the Veterans Day breakfast was a necessity. He wanted all Vietnam-era vets who wanted a pin to receive one.
“From the time I presented the first Vietnam pins in 2013, this is the most important act I have done,” Schneider said after the event. “There was no question about rescheduling the event. The way these men and women were treated was a disgrace.”
U.S. Air Force veteran Genevieve Petruzelli of Gurnee, second from right, was one of 28 people to receive a Vietnam veterans pin at U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider’s rescheduled Veterans Day celebration Monday in Grayslake. (Steve Sadin/For the Lake County News-Sun).
Of the approximately 500 Vietnam pins Schneider has presented since 2013, he said everyone has their unique story, but the “common thread” is their “answering the call to service.”
“They all have an important story, and they’re interconnected,” Schneider said, referring to Petruzelli, Gerend and Franke. “Some people were able to brush it aside, and others had a heavy impact. It’s important to recognize them all and welcome them home.”
Many of the more than 125 people at the event were veterans who served after the Vietnam era. For example, Sara Davis of Lake in the Hills, who served in the U.S. Navy from 1993 to 1997, went to get to know other veterans and enjoy their company.
“I got to know some great people,” Davis said of her time in the military. “There is no other kind of camaraderie like that.”
A crowd of more than 125 people stand for the National Anthem at U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider’s rescheduled Veterans Day celebration Monday in Grayslake. (Steve Sadin/For the Lake County News-Sun)
Lalena Zoe Magnetta, a Grayslake village trustee, served in the Navy from 2002 to 2012. She said she came because it was an opportunity “to talk to my brothers and sisters.” She welcomed the chance to see the Vietnam-era veterans honored.
“I’ve heard stories about how people were not very nice to them,” Magnetta said. “Many of them were the people next door. It is nice to welcome them home.”
Andrew Tangen, the executive director of the Veterans Assistance Commission of Lake County, is a Navy veteran who devotes himself now to making sure all veterans receive the services they earned and deserve.
Tangen said at the breakfast that the Army, Navy and U.S. Marine Corps all celebrated their 250th birthdays this year, but the state of Illinois did not establish veterans’ assistance until 1874. Their mission is an important one.
“These benefits are free of charge to veterans,” he said. “Many of the veterans need them.”
Navy Capt. Steve Yargosz, the commanding officer of Naval Station Great Lakes, said at the breakfast that every Navy recruit does basic training at Great Lakes, where they learn the values of honor, courage and commitment. Those attributes do not go away when they leave the service.
“Veterans carry them into every corner of our nation, into our schools, our businesses, our hospitals and our neighborhoods,” Yargosz said. They remind us, through quiet strength and daily example, what it means to serve something greater than ourselves.”
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/24/brad-schneider-veterans-day/
