Honoring Troy’s veterans
Every Sunday through Veteran’s Day, The Record will publish brief profiles of the brave men and women honored by their family and friends with banners hung around Troy through the work of the Troy Military Banner Committee. To honor a veteran, contact the committee by email at troybanners@gmail.com or on Facebook at www. facebook.com.
William J. Styles
Styles was a 1938graduate of LaSalle Institute who enlisted in the U. S. Army Air Corps after Pearl Harbor and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in February 1943after completing advanced pilot training. As a co-pilot on the B-17 known as “Alice from Dallas,” he belonged to the 100th Bombardment Group, 350th Squadron, stationed near Norwich, England.
On July 25, 1943, during his eighth mission, Bill was flying in a different plane, “Duration Plus Six,” which met intense anti-aircraft fire and was so badly damaged that it crashlanded in the North Sea. Bill and two other crew members were rescued by a Danish fishing boat, but were forced to be turned over to the Germans and spent two years as a prisoner of war, first in Stalag III and later Stalag VIIA, from which he was liberated in April 1945. After returning home, he married the former Jane Coleman of Watervilet and had four daughters. After receiving his embalming and funeral director license, Bill joined the family business at the Styles Funeral Home and lived in South Troy until his death March 22, 1975.
Edward Verrillo Sr.
Verrillo was a native of Troy and spent his younger days at the Troy Boys Club. He loved going to Camp Barker in the summer and playing in the drum and bugle corp with his friends. He was an all-around athlete at Troy High School, playing baseball, football and basketball, before entering the U. S. Navy as a teenager.
He served overseas and was trained as an electrician, a trade he practiced after returning home. He worked as a Troy firefighter
for nearly 40years while also running an electrical contracting business. His interest in sports continued, as he played softball for the Italian Community Center team and also was a basketball and football officials for more than 30years. He was a wonderful husband and father to his wife, Mary, and their three children, Jo Ann, Eddie Jr. and Joey, even while working three jobs. He was always there for his children, coaching the boys in Little League Baseball and doing whatever it took to provide whatever they needed. In his later years, he was best known around Troy for helping organize the annual Troy Flag Day Parade, something he was very passionate about as a proud and patriotic veteran who loved his hometown.