BUFFALO, N.Y. — After being buried in an unmarked grave at an American military cemetery in Luxembourg for 79 years, the remains of PFC Bartholomew Loschiavo have returned home to Buffalo.
He was killed in action in Luxembourg on Oct. 1, 1944. Loschiavo served with Company A, 1st Battalion, 329th Infantry Regiment, 83rd Infantry Division.
"He served 65 days before he was killed, " said Donald Loschiavo, one of the many nephews Bartholomew has. "But he served in the National Guard since 1939."
Loschiavo was initially classified as missing in action, according to his family. He was found by locals in Luxembourg and buried in a church cemetery. Eventually, once the Germans retreated from Luxembourg and the allies established a secure footing in Europe, his remains were transferred to the American military cemetery.
According family members, the formal search began in the late 90s, when Bartholomew's nephew, Augustine Loschiavo, began researching his military service.
Augustine's son Donald, Bartholomew's great nephew, continued the research in 2019 and eventually convinced the Department of Defense to conduct a DNA analysis of Loschiavo's remains. The DNA matched his nephews, and other surviving family members.
Efforts were then made to remove the casket from Luxembourg and return it to WNY.
A casket carrying PFC Loschiavo arrived in Buffalo just after 6 p.m. Thursday, with hundreds in the airport terminal looking on.
An honor guard and escort by motorcycle guided Loschiavo and his family to Lakeside Funeral Home in West Seneca, where his casket will be prepared for a formal service.
The Loschiavo family, of which there are hundreds, sees the outpouring of support and the return of their uncle as a moment of closure.
"His death brought the family together," said Bartholomew "Bart" D'Angelo, a nephew. "He died for a reason. That's what I was thinking when I was over there, thinking that there are a lot of Uncle Bart's that gave their lives."
A formal service will be held there on June 1 at 10 a.m., at Lakeside Funeral Home, and Loschiavo will be buried in a family plot at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Buffalo.