Tony Lonero feels obligated to give back to the American soldiers who liberated Italy during World War II.
Lonero, 57, a 1977 Penn Hills High School graduate, has lived in Italy since 1982. He played baseball professionally there and for the Italian Olympic team and said those opportunities would not have been possible if more than 10,000 American troops had not sacrificed their lives when they stormed into southwest Italy in 1944.
After completing his baseball career at Louisiana State University, Lonero moved to Italy to play on a pro team there. The first day of practice changed Lonero’s perspective of both the war and the sport. Italian teammates and others bragged about the U.S. soldiers bringing baseball to Italy, along with chocolates and gum — but most of all, freedom.
“If the landing wouldn’t have happened, I would never have been here. No baseball, no wife, no Olympics,” Lonero said.
To show his appreciation, Lonero, with four friends, will embark on “Ride to Finish” — a 72-hour, 683-mile bike ride from Sicily to Nettuno on May 4, culminating at the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery. The ride will raise money to purchase 480 Christmas wreaths for each of the crosses marking tombs of unknown soldiers killed during the invasion and interred at the cemetery.
The riders hope to raise approximately $8,600 to purchase the wreaths and install them on Christmas Eve this year. As of Jan. 27, the effort had raised $1,585, enough to purchase 91 wreaths, with most donations coming from his classmates from Penn Hills, Lonero said.
“That’s my way of saying thanks,” Lonero said. “Historians don’t talk too much about the landing here. I got to know the relatives of folks who didn’t make it home. They died for a country full of people they didn’t know fighting against the Nazis and fascism. Where would we be today if they hadn’t?”
What makes the bike ride even more moving is that Lonero has multiple sclerosis. He was diagnosed in 2001 and one year later discovered that he could only exercise through low-impact calisthenics.
“I can ride a bike for 36 hours straight, but I can’t run 100 yards,” he said.
Despite the disease’s progression since its diagnosis, Lonero said he feels good and is happy he can stay fit and maintains a hopeful spirit.
“Luckily, since I found out I can ride a bike, it helped me maintain my health. I’m positive. I believe in the man upstairs and I’m trying to live a good life,” he said. “It’s not easy.”
Fellow Penn Hills graduate, Paul Dougherty of Plum has worked with Lonero on fundraising projects in the past. Last year, the pair designed and sold T-shirts, golf hats and drawstring backpacks with the phrase “Non mollare” — Italian for “Never give up” — to sell to raise money for a $500 scholarship for a Penn Hills student.
This year, they’ve made enough money to give two scholarships, which are awarded to students who, similar to Lonero, have overcome serious obstacles, Dougherty said.
Dougherty, a hard-core biker himself, said he wanted to join in the ride for the soldiers in the cemetery, but the distance deterred him.
“I can’t ride (700) miles, but I want to support him in spirit,” he said.
Lonero and his crew will be greeted by officials from Nettuno, the American and Italian embassies, and some 300 schoolchildren when they arrive at the cemetery to complete their ride, Lonero said.
Not forgetting his roots, the cyclist plans on returning to Penn Hills for his high school’s 40-year reunion this year and to visit his mother, JoAnn Bary, 76, of Plum, who bikes daily.
“If someday I wake up and can’t move my legs, I’ll be OK with that because I’ve done some good things — things that I wouldn’t have done had I not had MS. It’s pushed me to try to live my life sooner,” he said.
