Anthony Joseph Borrego was born on March 25, 1942, to Dominic and Mary Borrego. His home of record is West Paterson, NJ. His older sister, Sally, died at age 13. Anthony graduated from Passaic Valley High School in 1959. He had a brown belt in judo, sang in the Cadet Glee Club at West Point and the Catholic Chapel Choirs. He was an accomplished piano player, played jazz to classical, always injecting “Happy Birthday” in the middle of the songs and played Santa Claus every Christmas.

Borrego graduated from West Point Military Academy in 1965. He completed training at Fort Benning, GA, and attained the rank of First Lieutenant (1LT). He was posted to the Panama Canal Zone in 1965.

He went to Vietnam on December 5, 1966, and was assigned to Advisory Team 23 (2nd Battalion, 42nd ARVN Regiment) Military Assistance Command Vietnam Advisors. On June 28, 1967, Borrego was wounded while advising a Vietnamese Army Unit in Kontum Province, South Vietnam. He succumbed to his injuries on July 5, 1967. He is buried in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Totowa, NJ.

Sources: Aprile Penhall (cousin), vvmf.org and NJVVMF.
12/17/2024