SGT Donald W. Tinney Jr. Street (Staten Island)
Present name:None
Location:At the intersection of Main Street and Utah Street
Honoree: Donald Tinney Jr. (1949-1970), a native Staten Islander, grew up in Tottenville and attended Monsignor Farrell High School. There he excelled in football. He was a member of the school’s Varsity Team for three years and an Advance All Star defensive tackle in his senior year when the team went undefeated. He graduated from Monsignor Farrell in 1967. The following year he enlisted in the U.S. Army and was deployed to Vietnam as a member of the 25th Infantry Division, Fox Company, 75th Airborne Rangers whose duty was long range reconnaissance. On the morning of April 2, 1970, then Specialist 4th Class Tinney and 14 other Fox Company men were helicoptered into Tay Nin Province, a known Viet Cong stronghold. They immediately found themselves under withering machinegun fire. They beat back the assault with hand grenades, but not before Don was hit. He was immediately evacuated to a field hospital at Long Binh, where he died of his injuries 12 days later. For his heroic actions that day in repelling a superior enemy force, he was awarded the Silver Star, a Bronze Star for merit, and a Purple Heart. He was posthumously promoted to Sergeant. (Borelli)
LL:2022/54