WWII Veteran from Queens Turns 107

Mr. Carattelli was surrounded by friends and family, including LaShawn Smith, his care provider from the Home Based Primary Care team based out of the St. Albans Community Living Center, and New York State Assembly Member Nily Rozic who was on hand to present Horace with an official proclamation thanking him for his service. 

Horace Carratelli was born on January 27, 1919, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to Robert and Maria Carratelli. The oldest of three boys, Horace grew up alongside his younger brothers, Nick and Rudy, during the hardship of the Great Depression. After his mother’s death, the boys were raised by their father in a single-parent household, attending New York City public schools and learning early the values of responsibility, perseverance, and family loyalty.

At just 15 years old, Horace left Brooklyn to live with relatives on a farm in Walden, New York, an experience that broadened his world and strengthened his work ethic. He later returned to Brooklyn, moving in with an aunt while balancing full-time work during the day and night classes at St. John’s University, where he studied accounting. It was there that he met Loretta Gatti, and the two began a courtship that would be interrupted—but not ended—by war.

As the world edged closer to World War II, Horace applied to and was accepted into the FBI’s Fraud Division. Before he could begin that work, however, he was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1941. He trained at Fort Dix, New Jersey, and later in Louisville, Kentucky, where he was assigned to the First Armored Division. Horace served overseas in Ireland and England before seeing combat in North Africa under the command of General George S. Patton. Rising to the rank of First Sergeant, he took part in the invasion of Italy at Anzio and the liberation of Rome. Later, he was reassigned to Intelligence in Milan, where he worked with a joint FBI team that captured and helped prosecute Fascist leadership, including the notorious propagandist known as Axis Sally.

When Horace returned home in 1945, he resumed civilian life by working as a salesman in his father’s factory in New York City’s Garment Center on Seventh Avenue. In 1948, he married Loretta, and together they settled in Fresh Meadows, Queens, where they built a home and a life. In 1956, they welcomed their son, Robert. Horace went on to form several business partnerships, eventually co-owning a successful ladies’ outerwear company with Herbert Kenzer, designing and manufacturing clothing for national department and specialty stores.

Beyond his professional life, Horace was deeply committed to his community. He played an active leadership role in the Dwarf-Giraffe Youth Sports League in Whitestone, New York, serving at the team, division, and organizational levels. He was also instrumental in helping to establish the First Armored Division Association, where he later served nationally as both secretary and president, maintaining lifelong bonds with fellow veterans.

Horace took great pride in his son Robert’s achievements—his education at Saint Kevin’s School, Bishop Reilly High School, and New York University—and in Robert’s marriage to Diane Palmieri in 1985. In 1995, Horace became a grandfather to twins, Emily and Robert, a role that brought him immense joy. Tragically, Loretta passed away from cancer in 1991 and never had the chance to meet her grandchildren.

A devoted husband, father, grandfather, and patriot, Horace Carratelli is a proud member of America’s Greatest Generation. He has lived in the same Fresh Meadows home he and Loretta built for more than 70 years.