After five months of negotiations and subsequent proposals, the Private Joseph F. Merrell Jr. - Father Vincent Capdoanno American Legion Post No. 1368, Staten Island, N.Y., was born. The new name became official on the afternoon of Feb. 27 during a solemn ceremony in the banquet room of Jody’s Club Forest in West Brighton — where more than 30 members witnessed the heartfelt moment in time.

“Jack Furnari proposed the merging of a post with the two names,” said retired New York State Supreme Court Justice Michael Brennan, who’s also Judge Advocate Emeritus for the Post. The Sons of Italy Fr. Vincent R. Capodanno Lodge is named in Capodanno’s honor, but there wasn’t an American Legion Post named for him.