Brownsville man finally to be laid to rest after World War II death
Submitted
Cpl. Peter Helisek Jr.’s obituary ends with three words: “Candy, Candy, Candy.”
The sweet reference is a callback by his younger brother John to the years before Helisek left for World War II.
“Every day he would come home from work, he would bring me this little candy bar,” John Helisek Sr. said. “When I saw him coming down the hill, I’d start hollering, ‘candy, candy, candy.'”
John said his brother would hand over the candy (called Ice Cubes), pick him up and carry him inside.
By the time John was around 7 years old, his brother had shipped off to war, where he was killed on the beaches of Sicily, Italy on July 10, 1943 at age 25. According to his obituary, Helisek was taking part in the Allied invasion of Sicily at Gela Beach off the Sicilian shoreline.
There were few details regarding his death at the time, other than he was declared missing in action that day, his brother said.
“When they first told us he was missing in action, I remember my mom crying,” John Helisek said. “After one year, they had to put him among the dead.”
Eighty-two years after his death, Helisek’s remains were returned home to Brownsville, where he will be laid to rest today.
“It’s a big relief for me,” said John Helisek, 90. “I know my mom and dad would be real happy about it.”
John Helisek said his brother’s remains were in a civilian cemetery in Sicily, where they were exhumed and brought back to the United States. They were identified through investigation by the U.S. Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, along with intense testing and research.
Peter Helisek’s remains were in Omaha, Neb., until they were flown to Pittsburgh International Airport on June 18. There he received plane-side funeral honors from the U.S. Army 316th Headquarters Command.
On Wednesday, John Helisek recalled the last time he saw his brother. Peter Helisek and a buddy were home for a weekend after being stationed at Indiantown Gap. The family dropped them off at the New Stanton exit of the Turnpike.
“Just before he got in a car, he turned around and he waved to us,” John Helisek said. “That’s the last memory I have of him.”
Visitation for Peter Helisek will be held from 8:30-9:30 a.m. today at The Skirpan Funeral Home, 135 Park St., Brownsville. A Funeral Mass will be held at 10 a.m. the Historic Church of St. Peter in Brownsville, and interment will follow at St. Mary’s Cemetery where full military honors will be accorded by The United States Army and The American Legion Posts #940, #838, and #275.