SAUGUS — For the Historical Society’s April meeting, Laura Eisener and Bill Stewart spoke on the Revolutionary War and World War II. Eisener specifically highlighted two notable Saugus World War II figures, Walter S. Kasabuski and John A. Kasabuski.
The last name is a recognizable one for the town. Kasabuski Rink, which was named in honor of the two men, sits at 201 Forest St. Inside is a case including their photos, medals, and burial flags memorializing them for their service. The brothers were buried side-by-side at Riverside Cemetery.
“Walter and John were two brothers, from a family of eight brothers,” Eisener said. “Four of them went off to World War II.”
Eisener explained that Walter Kasabuski and John Kasabuski both died 80 years ago on April 15, 1945.
“Walter and John Kasabuski fought in 1942. They were training in Colorado. They already knew how to ski and were expert skiers. From 1943 to early 1945, they served against the Japanese in the Battle of Kiska Island,” she said.
Eisener continued that the brothers chose to fight in the same regiment, partly because they had the skills needed for it.
“A lot of their activity was in very cold or very mountainous areas,” she said.
While the brothers lived in Saugus, they resided on Collins Avenue, behind where Essex Landing now is.
“They were good at golf… They were both president of the ski club at different times in high school and they both arranged to be assigned to Company E of the 87th Regiment of the 10th Mountain Division,” Eisener said.
The group was occasionally called ski soldiers due to their expertise in it, and were considered an elite mountain fighting group specializing in winter operations.
“In spring of 1945, they were sent to the Italian Alps to help drive the Germans out of northern Italy. So first, they were fighting the Japanese in Alaska, and then the Germans (in Italy),” she said.
Eisener continued that John Kasabuski was fatally wounded by a grenade on April 15, but lived long enough for his older brother to reach his side.
“Walter’s birthday was the next day, April 16, and 12 days later, 11 days after his birthday, Walter was shot and killed immediately by a sniper. That was April 27.
According to Eisener, monuments sit in various places around the town, but Kasabuski Rink is their chief memorial. She said the rink was dedicated to them on June 6, 1965 and that a bronze plaque is on the wall inside reading, “In honored memory of Walter and John Kasabuski both of Saugus, who were killed while serving in the armed forces of the United States during World War II.”
“Their name is on everything inside of the rink… It’s sometimes called the Kasabuski Memorial Arena,” she said.
The brothers memories have been set in stone in Saugus continuing their legacies every day.
