Vet to return cross that buoyed his faith

He kept the crucifix for the remainder of the war as a reminder of God's presence as he fought in battle. The cross has since remained with him in his Gloversville home and wherever he and his wife Dorothy have traveled.

Now, more than 50 years after finding it, the parishioner of St. Mary of Mount Carmel Church is planning to return the cross that has meant so much to him during his years as a soldier and veteran.

"I'd like to give the cross back to the family that lived there or their descendants, and maybe they could find God's love," Mr. Cirillo told The Evangelist.

Off to war

On D-Day, June 6, 1944, Mr. Cirillo was in the English Channel when he heard news that invasion of Normandy had begun. "There were hundreds of ships, so many you couldn't see the end of them," he said.

He landed on Omaha Beach four days later "and the first night, we dug foxholes as much as we could. The sky was lit up like the Fourth of July," he said.

Under fire

"I couldn't stand sitting in that foxhole, but no one wanted the job. It was dangerous," he said.

At one point, Mr. Cirillo was separated from his company when they were hit with a barrage of artillery by German soldiers for 15 minutes. He was reported missing in action but had located a command post and stayed there for two weeks.

Cross of faith

"It stood out like a ray of light," he said. "It was unbelievable. I just looked at it for a second, and it gave me such faith. That's when God's love came right through me."

Mr. Cirillo picked up the crucifix, made the Sign of the Cross with it, and recited the Lord's Prayer before putting the cross in his pocket. It remained with him for the rest of the war and provided a much-needed boost.

"It just gave me the lift I needed, that extra faith and support, because there was a lot to go through," he said. He continued as a front-line soldier until the war ended, and he returned to Gloversville with the crucifix still in his pocket.

Post-war years

He and Dorothy plan to visit St. Lo this year, return to the home where he found God's love and present its residents with the cross. Despite the passage of 50 years, Mr. Cirillo remembers the setting well enough that he's confident he'll find the house.

The rightful owner of the crucifix may be long gone, but Mr. Cirillo hopes that the family's descendants still live in the house; if not, he'll tell St. Lo officials his story and see if they can track down family members.

It may be an emotional visit for Mr. Cirillo, but he believes it's time to return the crucifix that helped him so much when he fought as a soldier in St. Lo more than 50 years ago, no matter who eventually gets the cross.

"I'm sure there will be flashbacks of some kind. It may be a sad or joyous visit," he said. "I'll tell them how much the cross meant to me, that it was my surest sign of God's love and hope they have also found God's love."

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