A former Kent State University student is being remembered for his part in a pivotal moment in American history.

John Cleary died on Oct. 25 at his home in Pittsburgh, surrounded by his family. He was 74.

Cleary was one of 13 people shot on the Kent State campus when members of the National Guard opened fire on unarmed anti-war protesters on May 4, 1970. Four students, Allison Krause, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Scheuer and William Schroeder, were killed in the shooting. Cleary and eight others were wounded.

Cleary stood as a reminder of how to persevere through tragedy and find peace, according to Roseann “Chic” Canfora, a May 4 survivor whose brother, Alan (who died in 2020), was among the nine wounded.

“He managed his trauma and his pain far more privately than many of us who turned our

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