Matthew Buono

Matthew Joseph “Giggy” Buono (28 June 1942 - 4 April 1968) was the 39th Staten Island resident to be killed in the Vietnam War. A graduate of New Dorp High School, Buono lived with his wife Patricia at 172 Hickory Avenue in South Beach. Buono was a licensed barber, and hoped someday to establish a business with his uncle. In 1967, however, he was drafted into the war. He served with the First Air Cavalry Division for four months before falling to mortar fire while attempting to relieve a besieged Marine outpost at Khe Sanh. Buono Beach, a public park in his native Staten Island was dedicated in his honor in 1988.