Albert Skorubski Sr., 90, fought at Guadalcanal

Among U.S. Marines, Guadalcanal is spoken of reverently: a place of fierce endurance, of heart-rending sacrifice and of ultimate triumph.

For Albert Skorubski Sr., who joined the Marines just before World War II's outbreak, and who died of natural causes Tuesday at his North Babylon home, his participation in the pivotal 1942 Pacific battle shaped much of his 90-year life.

"Nothing would ever shake him," said a son, Thomas, also of North Babylon. "I think it's because he saw so much over there. He never showed any fear. I guess it just hardened him."

Thomas Skorubski said his father was fiercely proud of his service at Guadalcanal, but did not speak of the battle's bloody toll until the last decade of his life.

"He would tell me about different guys who he knew wouldn't make it, and that he would hold them and tell them they would be all right," Thomas Skorubski said. "I don't know how he kept it together. My mom said for seven years after he came home they couldn't keep ketchup in the house because it reminded him of what he saw."

After returning from the war, Skorubski recounted a battle he joined in the Palau Islands, where he encountered Japanese soldiers who refused to surrender despite taking devastating losses.

"We were on top of a ridge when they attacked," he later told The Daily News. "The officers were waving their swords and the [Japanese] were screaming "Banzai! Banzai. They ran right into our positions, and machine gun and rifle fire cut them down one after another."

Known as "Scrubby," he reached the rank of corporal before his October 1945 honorable discharge. He returned to the Bronx, and married his high school sweetheart, Catherine Carr on Sept. 18, 1949, at St. Patrick's Cathedral. The couple moved to North Babylon in 1959, where they raised seven children. He worked as a building maintenance supervisor in Manhattan before retiring in 1982.

In addition to Thomas Skorubski, survivors include sons Albert and Stanley, both of North Babylon, Matthew, of Ronkonkoma, daughters Marie Skorubski, of West Babylon, and Therisa Maigin, of Holtsville. His wife died in 1996.

A funeral is planned for 9:15 a.m. at St. Cyril of Methodius church, in Deer Park, followed by a burial at Calverton National Cemetery, in Calverton.