Boston Post Cane awarded to 103-year-old Abington man

Amelian Pastuszak wasn’t born when the publisher of the Boston Post sent out gold-tipped ebony canes to boards of selectmen across New England.

But the 103-year-old World Was II veteran is now the honorary “owner” of the venerable cane recognizing his status as Abington’s oldest living resident.

Selectmen Chairman Kevin Donovan awarded Pastuszak the cane on behalf of the board at his longtime Wales Street home. It was the first time Abington’s cane had been awarded in more than a decade, according to Donovan.

“I’ve known Skinny all of my life and it was an honor to present the Cane to him as the oldest resident,” Donovan said. “The jewel for me was actually seeing him smile on the presentation, which anyone who knows him realizes that smile is handed out sparingly.”

Pastuszak, who’s better known as Skinny, served in the U.S. Marine Corps 13th Replacement Battalion, which was shipped to the Russell Islands, 25 miles north of the Guadalcanal Canal. He helped coordinate supplies for invasions and battles in the South Pacific during the war, according to Veterans Services Director Adam Gunn.

Pastuszak married his wife, Veronica, in 1948, and built his Wales Street home in 1951. A trained carpenter, Pastuszak spent 15 years teaching at the Southeastern Regional Vocational Technical High School. Gunn says Pastuszak still has half a grapefruit every morning, as he has since exiting the Marine Corps in 1945. He split the grapefuit with his wife for the 75 years they were married. Veronica Pastuszak passed away this past December at the age of 99.

Skinny was active with the Abington Senior Center up until recently. And he still regularly sees his younger brother, Walter Paster, who recently turned 101.

Pastuszak’s secret to making it to 103 years old?

“I had to have one drink every night,” he told Gunn. “I had my last beer yesterday. That’s what you gotta have. One drink. One beer. It could be anything, but one drink!”

Boston Post Publisher Edwin A. Grozier in 1909 sent bespoke canes to 700 boards of selectmen across New England with the instructions that it be presented to the oldest male resident of the Town. (It was later awarded to women as well.) The canes belong to the town and not the person who receives it.

The ebony canes were made by J.F. Fradley and Co., a New York manufacturer, according to bostonpostcane.org. It has a 14-carat gold head engraved with the inscription “Presented by the Boston Post to the oldest citizen of Abington.”

The cane awarded to Pastuszak is actually a replica; Abington’s original Boston Post Cane is on display at Town Hall next to the Town Clerk’s Office.