John Fasulo

1930 - 2025

John Fasulo, Sr. passed away on January 31, 2025 at the age of 94 in Lake Ridge, Virginia, surrounded by family.

Born October 21, 1930 in Mineola, New York to William and Jenny Fasulo, nee LaMendola, John was the oldest of 6 children-4 brothers and a sister- all of whom he managed to outlive.

As a youth, John spent summer evenings in Brooklyn, New York observing and lending a hand with local fireworks displays. This casual pastime sparked a curiosity and enthusiasm for explosives that became a hallmark of his adult career with the US Marine Corps, where, among numerous other accomplishments, he became an expert on engineering and explosives and continued on to be a respected instructor in those areas at TBS and OCS on Quantico Marine Corps after leaving active duty.

Between October 17, 1950, until his retirement July 1, 1977, John served his country through the conflict in Korea, went to combat engineering school at Camp Lejune, NC, received his commission in 1966, and from there led troops in Vietnam, clearing mines among other bomb-making and diffusing assignments, was promoted to Master Sgt. in 1966, served in the Philippines, and eventually retired from active duty with the rank of major. In addition, John later traveled to Saudia Arabia to remove land mines surrounding oil rigs that were on fire and continued to support the international removal of live mines left from military actions through his partnership with a land mine specialist focused on this area of work.

John left the service highly decorated, receiving the following medals: Korean Service Medal with 3 stars, United Nations Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Presidential Unit Citation, Good Conduct Medal (4th Award), UN Service Ribbon National Defense Service Medal Korean PUC, Sharpshooter Badge (M-14), Purple Heart, Navy Commendation Medal w/combat "V", Viet Nam Service Medal with 2 stars, Viet Nam Campaign Medal with device, Bronze Star with combat "V".

While in Korea, John met and married his wife of 66 years, Si Kyung Hwang Fasulo, whom he described as "the prettiest thing", on August 16, 1956. Together they had two sons and a daughter.

Outside of his notable career, John was a skilled amateur athlete, known for his ability to consistently make successful half-court shots in basketball, despite being all of 5'4" tall, and making a name for himself in Marine softball, where he was known as the "bare-handed pitcher", leading his team to the White League Championship, and winning the MVP award in the baseball league while stationed with the Naval Advisory group in Korea, hitting .542 that season.

John was also fluent in Korean, Italian, Spanish, Tagalog and knew Church Latin.

John Fasulo Sr. is preceded in death by his parents, Pellegrino (William) Fasulo and Jennie LaMendola; his brothers, Joseph, Angelo, Neil, Antonio; his sister, Mary, and his wife, Si Kyung Fasulo, nee Hwang.

John Fasulo Sr. leaves behind his children, Pellegrino Fasulo II, John Fasulo Jr., and Nancy Ann Shannon, nee Fasulo.