John Patrick Byrne was born on March 27, 1949, at Camp Kilmer, NJ. His home of record is Sayreville, NJ. He had three sisters, Dolores, Donna and Denise. He attended St. Mary’s Grammar School and Sayreville High School, but graduated from Hoffman High School in South Amboy, NJ, in June 1967. John was a parishioner of St. Bernadette’s Roman Catholic Church in Parlin, NJ. During high school, John liked math, science, drafting, history and auto sports. He was an average student but excelled in sports, especially football.

Byrne enlisted in the US Marine Corps and attained the rank of Private First Class (PFC/E2). He enlisted in the US Marine Corps because he was eager to go to war and defend his country.

Byrne was wounded in January of 1969, and was in the hospital at Marble Mountain in South Vietnam. He was then sent back into combat and was killed in action on April 30, 1969. He was in Vietnam for only 5½ months, from November 16, 1968, to April 30, 1969.

He is buried in Long Island National Cemetery in Farmingdale, NY. There is a baseball field in Sayreville dedicated to John Byrne. He is also honored on the Sayreville Veterans Memorial and a plaque in Sayreville High School.

While in Vietnam, Byrne sent letters home to let his family know what was going on. This is how his best friend, Martin O’Grady, knew what was happening to him. O’Grady was serving in Vietnam as a helicopter crew chief. Byrne and O’Grady discussed their life after Vietnam and they were both worried about coming home alive. They did not have any plans to attend college. O’Grady was fortunate enough to be the last person from Sayreville to see his friend, shortly before he was killed in Quang Nam, South Vietnam.

Sources: Martin O’Grady (Vietnam Veteran), Gerry Sacher (friend), Rod Timmons (friend), John F. Kennedy Memorial High School and NJVVMF.
12/17/2024