One last journey: Langhorn family backs plan to bring Riverhead hero to Calverton
Nearly six decades after his death in Vietnam, Riverhead’s only Medal of Honor recipient may soon receive one final tribute — a place among fellow veterans at Calverton National Cemetery.
Army Pfc. Garfield Langhorn was 20 years old when he threw himself onto a grenade during a recovery mission on Jan. 15, 1969, sacrificing his life to save wounded soldiers. He was posthumously awarded the nation’s highest military honor the following year.
Pfc. Langhorn has been buried at Riverhead Cemetery since 1969, where his family chose a local resting place so his father could personally care for the plot.
Now, with the blessing of his surviving sisters, retired U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 and Master Aviator Timothy Dahlen is working to make that move happen.
“We are getting older now, and this may be the last time we get to see him honored like this,” said an emotional April Armstead, the youngest sister of Pfc. Langhorn.
Mr. Dahlen, a fellow Vietnam veteran and former helicopter pilot, said the effort is in the “final stretch,” pending final legal authorizations and required consents under state law.
Those remaining steps include an exhumation order from Riverhead Justice Court, notarized letters signed by Pfc. Langhorn’s sisters and approval from the cemeteries division of the state Health Department. Once the proper permit is secured, Tuthill-Mangano Funeral Home in Riverhead is expected to handle the disinterment and reburial free of charge.
When Mr. Dahlen first heard about Garfield Langhorn’s sacrifice, he could not stop thinking about his heroism. To him, Pfc. Langhorn’s story had gone largely unrecognized by the broader community, overshadowed by the political climate and anti-war movement of the era.
Over the years, Mr. Dahlen got to know members of the Langhorn family, including cousins of the late young veteran.
“I just started to get more of the story of Garfield Langhorn,” Mr. Dahlen said. “He was just a young kid, growing up into that war and didn’t think twice about what he did.”
Pfc. Langhorn is the only Vietnam War Medal of Honor recipient in Suffolk County. His legacy lives on throughout Riverhead Town through multiple tributes, including a bronze bust at Riverhead Town Hall, a dedicated post office, memorials at the Pulaski Street School library and a Veterans Wall of Honor at Riverhead High School named in his memory. Riverhead Town designated the second Friday in October as “Pfc. Garfield M. Langhorn Day” in 2022.
But Mr. Dahlen kept thinking about one honor still left undone: placing Pfc. Langhorn among other service members at the national cemetery in Calverton.
The hallowed burial ground did not exist when Pfc. Langhorn was laid to rest. At the time, Long Island National Cemetery in East Farmingdale was the closest, but it was more than 50 miles from Riverhead.
Out of respect for the Langhorns, Mr. Dahlen said he never pressed them about a possible move.
“I knew his mother, but I would never ask the question of her — that was off limits,” said Mr. Dahlen, referring to Mary Langhorn.
After the matriarch passed away in May 2019 at 94, Mr. Dahlen thought maybe he could raise the possibility with the family again. He recalled getting new glasses one day at Cohen’s Optical when one of Pfc. Langhorn’s cousins happened to be helping him. After he mentioned it, she immediately agreed.
“She just looked at me, and said, ‘you got to work on that,’” Mr. Dahlen said.
He also got one of Pfc. Langhorn’s nieces, Tanya Marshall, on board. The green light from Pfc. Langhorn’s sisters — Ms. Armstead, Yvonne Reid and Anna Mack — soon followed.
Ms. Armstead, 74, remembered her hesitation at first. After some thought, she decided now was the time to go through with it, she told the Riverhead News-Review.
“[My father’s] gone, mom’s gone, and no one’s there to do it anymore,” Ms. Armstead said. “When my brother passed, my father bought four plots, because I was the only child still home at the time, but I think we need to do a new thing now, as far as moving him — I want him to be with the rest of the soldiers.”
She remembered the days leading up to his Medal of Honor ceremony and the excitement she felt for her late brother. Reflecting on their childhood, she described Garfield as a kid who never did “anything bad.” It brings her comfort to know people still want to remember him, through tributes and stories.
“He really cared about people. I remember one of the soldiers that was with him…he said that Garfield always used to read the Bible all the time,” Ms. Armstead said. “It’s so wonderful they still think about him — most times, people may think about somebody for a few years and then they move on, but it reminds me of this saying ‘keep hope alive,’ keep Garfield alive in people’s minds.”
Disinterments and reburials can typically cost upward of $8,000, said Thomas James, funeral director of Tuthill-Mangano Funeral Home. He said the business was eager to donate its services to help move the effort forward.
“One of the things that I love about Riverhead is its great sense of community,” Mr. James said. “I think he has touched so many other people’s lives, and so many people know about him because of that community, so I really look forward to honoring him and laying him to rest with his fellow veterans.”
The hope is to set the reburial for late June or early July. Mr. Dahlen said any funds raised will help cover cemetery fees, the cost of the burial vault for the disinterment, transportation and other arrangements.
For the ceremony itself, he plans to invite all contributors and community members to attend. Mr. Dahlen said he hopes to donate any leftover funds to the Riverhead Central School District to create a scholarship in Pfc. Langhorn’s name.
“I just want to see this happen,” the veteran said. “It’s long overdue.”
Individuals or organizations who wish to contribute can donate to the GoFundMe at tinyurl.com/GarfieldLanghorn or make checks out to:
VFW Post 5350
101 Old Riverhead Rd.
Westhampton Beach, NY 11978
Attn. Garfield Langhorn account
