CRISIS IN THE PERSIAN GULF : Body of First U.S. Casualty Returned to California
The body of Air Force Staff Sgt. John Campisi, the first U.S. serviceman killed in Saudi Arabia since U.S. forces began moving in last week, has been returned to his family in West Covina.
Campisi, 31, was hit by a truck Sunday on a darkened airport runway. An aircraft maintenance technician, he had been in Saudi Arabia for four days.
Members of Campisi’s family described him as a “wonderful father.” His father, Salvatore, said the serviceman’s wife, Charlene, was “in shock.” He said the death will be very difficult for the couple’s four children, Anna-Marie, 9; John Jr., 8; Christopher, 7, and Jennifer, 4.
The body will be on view today from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the chapel of Custer Christiansen Mortuary, 114 S. Glendora Ave., West Covina. A funeral Mass is scheduled at 9 a.m. Saturday at St. Christopher Catholic Church in West Covina. A fund for the children is being formed. The address is the Campisi Memorial Fund, care of Neva Hash, Bank of Bellevue, 100 American, Bellevue, Neb. 68005.
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