One-hundred-year-old Mahlon Conaway of Perry was honored Friday night as the Perry High School football team celebrated Military Appreciation Night at Dewey Field.
At the start of the game, the PHS football team rushed the field, carrying U.S. flags provided by the Perry Lions Club. Other local veterans will also be recognized for their service to the country, with Conaway serving as honorary team captain of the Bluejay squad, which lost 42-28 in a high-scoring contest against the Woodward-Granger High School hawks..
“This night is about more than football,” said Perry High School Activities Director Tina Lutterman. “It’s about coming together as a community to show our appreciation for the men and women who have served and to honor a true hometown hero in Mr. Conaway.”
Conaway is a member of the Greatest Generation and served in World War II. He was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1944 and received infantry training at what is now called Fort Hood, Texas. He shipped out overseas, landing at Omaha Beach in September 1944 and serving as a rifleman and driver in the 36th Infantry Division, 142nd Infantry Regiment, Company G, in France.
For his service fighting fascism in the European theater, Conaway was awarded a Bronze Star for heroic or meritorious achievement or service, with three Battle Stars. In 2015 he received the National Order of the Legion of Honor, the highest military distinction awarded by the government of France. In 2024 he was named the Iowa VFW Veteran of the Year, the highest annual award bestowed by the Iowa Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Nowadays Conaway is a regular attendee at the Saturday afternoon protest rallies at the Big Bike in downtown Perry.
“Mahlon probably little expected, when he was fighting fascism in Europe 80 years ago, that he’d have to stand up against it here at home today,” said one admiring attendee at the game.
