Westborough – David Andrew Fay and Edward C. Wong have been chosen as this year’s co-grand marshals for the Westborough Memorial Day Parade, Monday, May 25.
Edward C. Wong was born and raised in Boston’s Chinatown. The son of immigrants, he went to Boston Technical High School – today known as the John D. O’ Bryant School of Mathematics and Science. There, he earned a scholarship to Boston University, where he studied and earned a degree in aeronautical engineering.
Upon graduating B.U. in 1961, Wong received a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant through ROTC and entered the U.S. Air Force. His first assignment was as an aircraft maintenance officer with the 354th Tactical Air Command (TAC) fighter squadron at Myrtle Beach Air Force Base in South Carolina.
The following year, he was sent to be trained as a weapons controller at Tyndal Air Force Base in Florida, before returning to Myrtle Beach as a member of the 727th Aircraft Control & Warning (ACW) Squadron of the 507th Communications and Control Group, also part of TAC. Wong participated in several Army-Air Force exercises throughout the U.S., including deployments to Key West Naval Air Station during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Later, during the Vietnam War, he was deployed to Don Muang Royal Air Force Base in Thailand, where he and his group helped train the Thai Air Force and supported the U.S. Air Force aircraft operating in Thailand and Southeast Asia in combat against the Viet Cong.
In 1964, Wong was reassigned to 3245th Air Base Wing Electronics Division of the AFSC at Hanscom Air Force Base.
In 1965, he was promoted to captain and married his wife, Katherine. A year later, he decided to leave the Air Force and pursue a civilian career as an aerospace engineer. In 1974, he and his wife moved to Westborough with their three young children all of whom grew up in Westborough and graduated from Westborough High School. The family belongs to the Congregational Church of Westborough and he and his wife have served on various church committees over the years. He and his wife are members of the Friends of Westborough, Inc., and Worcester Institute for Senior Education (WISE). Wong has also been a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Tax Counselor for AARP since his retirement. During his civilian career, Wong worked as an aerospace engineer for several defense companies in Massachusetts including Itek, Lockheed and Raytheon – finally retiring from Raytheon in 2006.
David Andrew Fay was born in Boston on May 3, 1938, and raised in Needham. He is a graduate of Boston College High School and the University of Notre Dame where he achieved a BBA in marketing.
Following up on the Notre Dame ROTC program, he joined the Navy Officer’s Candidate School in Newport, R.I, in 1960. After graduating as an ensign, he was assigned to Coronado Island, San Diego, Calif., where he received cryptography training.
In 1961, Fay was assigned to USS Union (AKA 106) to supply St. Paul and St. George Islands in the Bering Sea above the Aleutian Islands. With stops along the way in Seattle and Bremerton, the Union patrolled and “resupplied” the islands before returning to San Diego.
The USS Uvalde (AKA 88) was one of 12 recommissioned ships in Stockton, Calif., and Fay’s next assignment. Cruising to Mazatlán, through the Panama Canal, and to Guantanamo Bay it was part of Comphibron Atlantic, an amphibious assault group. Promoted to LTJG, David was the assistant communications officer as the Uvalde executed training missions to Haiti, Dominican Republic, Barbados, Jamaica, and Bermuda leading up to the Cuban missile crisis. He completed his service as the communications officer with Comphibgroup Atlantic 2.
After his discharge, Fay gained his MBA at Babson College and started on his 50-year career in the paper distribution business. He started with Kimberly-Clark at retail, before joining H.J. Dowd Co., Butler Paper, and finally H.T. Berry in 1994.
Married on St. Patrick’s Day in 1966 to Anne McQueeny, Fay and his wife had three children (Sheila, Andy, and Megan) and eight grandchildren. After a wonderful career as wife, mother, and educator, Anne succumbed to Alzheimer’s in 2013.
Fay has been an active member of the Westborough community: he is a Eucharistic minister at St. Luke’s; a Knights of Columbus #85 and American Legion #163 member; served on the Dismiss House Board of Directors; has coached Youth Hockey, Little League and Pony League baseball; and was Booster of the Year in 1987.
Photos/Submitted