By Mary Malloy
"I had no idea about the brutal conditions in the war," said Stephanie, an East Rockaway resident who attends Kellenberg High School. "Hearing it from him was much different than learning it from a book. "
The pair were matched up when Stephanie called the East Rockaway VFW Post #3350 to find a subject for her history class. Roggio, 73, was available and eager to talk with her and share his stories.
"I was 20 years old when I was drafted into the Army," Stephanie quoted Roggio as saying. "I wasn't really surprised when I was drafted. War was part of our lifestyle back then. Kids today prepare for college, we prepared for war." He lived in Brooklyn at the time, and was sent to Camp Chaffy, Arkansas to train for four months. His parents, Italian immigrants, were proud to have one of their own children serving his country. "I spent most of my day with my face in the mud, crawling around under barbed wire," he said of boot camp. "I was scared - most guys wouldn't tell you that because they thought it would weaken their image - and I can assure you they were lying about it."
Roggio describes living with four other soldiers "in a hole" for nine months. "We called them bunkers. One of us would stand outside for four hours at a time, and report if we saw anything suspicious. Other than the bath we got every two weeks, we were stuck with each other, and there wasn't another bunker for 10 miles."
Roggio told Stephanie that he never got hurt in the war, nor did any of his friends. "I almost got shot once though," he said. "I was walking across the frontline in my underwear, and the Koreans thought I was going to attack. "They told the head of their artillery division, and they told the head of my division that they were going to shoot me...they said it was a waste to shoot just one guy." From then on, Roggio said, he used to walk around in his "skivvies" because he knew they wouldn't shoot. "It was like a big joke between me and those Koreans."
"It used to get quiet during the night," Roggio added. "You'd think that it would be loud, but it wasn't. I think that's what got me most scared. We only got to look out of a small window, and we had to rely on the guy on the outside to tell us if they saw anything so we could shoot up a flare. I only shot up a flare once. A Korean tank was coming down from one of the hills. I really didn't know what to think, but we took it down."
Roggio said that they were never told much about the situation, just that they were sent there as a police action. "That is," he said, "that we were sent there to depress the enemy and free the people." He does remember something about germ warfare. "The Koreans thought we were releasing germs and bacteria in the air as a means of attack. It was silly, really."
He described the Koreans living in shacks that couldn't have been more than 10 feet by 10 feet. "They were very intelligent people, but very unhygienic."
They call it the Forgotten War, but I will never forget what happened," Roggio said. "You can't forget something like that. It changes your life and makes you appreciate the country that we live in, and the life you were able to live. We should pray for our soldiers because what they are going through will be the best, worst and maybe even the last experience they'll ever have."
Roggio is now an active member of the VFW. He and his wife, Ann Marie, like to travel - and Stephanie not only got a good mark on her project, but made a new friend in the process.
Comments about this story? MMalloy@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 202.
