Sometime in 1923, a drastic change occurred which eventually affected the lives of each and every one in our family. The change I am referring to was our move from 116th Street to a little unincorporated town called Lakeview, Long Island.

As I was told, our move was indirectly brought about by my oldest sister, Anna. Before I was born in 1917, my sister was the first in our family to marry. She married James Pavia, who was a printer by trade, was a member of the Printers Union, and accordingly received a good salary in that position. After their marriage they rented and lived in an apartment in New York City. Soon after their family began to increase; in those days large families were the rule rather than the exception. I am not certain, but I suspect that due to this increase in family size and their need for extra space, my sister and husband decided to leave the city. After looking at various properties, they arranged to purchase a large two-story 20-year-old frame house in Lakeview. It was situated on a spacious 100′ by 100′ plot of land at the corner of Pinebrook Avenue and Woodfield Road. Later, I will describe this house more fully. The new location was certainly open and quiet, and far different than the noisy congestion of the city.

Accordingly, Anna and James moved into their new house “in the country” and seemed to enjoy the change. However, their residence there lasted only for two or three years, as they decided to sell it and purchase a brand new home which they had seen and liked. The new home was located only a short distance from the Woodfield Road house. Anna was attracted to the new house plan, which contained lots of modern improvements, plenty of closet space, and all the things an active and growing family needs to add to their comfort.

It was at this point in time that my sister and her husband convinced my mother and father, after much discussion, that they should buy the Woodfield Road house. Selling the house to my mother and father would make it financially possible for Anna and James to purchase the new home they very much wanted to buy. Of course, just like a high-pressure saleswoman would do, Anna stressed and enumerated a long list of advantages that our family would realize by making this move from a noisy and congested city. In addition we, as a family, would be in close proximity of one another (about two miles).

Apparently Anna and James were successful in selling the idea for us to leave the city. An agreement of sale was reached with the approval of all concerned. (I do not know what the agreed purchase price was.) At last the respective moves for both families were consummated. A new chapter in our lives was ready to begin. There were nine of us besides my father and mother who would be affected by this move. The unanswered question was, were we ready to accept the changes ahead?

The house in Lakeview, which was now home to us, had a lot of charm, and seemed to reflect strength and durability. On the first floor was a large, bright and sunny kitchen (which, in later years, Dad tiled), a large formal dining room, with a wide opening that led to a living room. The windows in the living room include a spacious bow window facing the enclosed porch. The house had a wide porch that was attached to the front of the house as well as to the side of the house.

The front door of the porch led to a large indoor vestibule and an open stairway going up to the second floor. The second floor contained two large bedrooms and two smaller ones; also a full sized bathroom. Of course, the tub was the old-fashioned kind with legs! In the smallest bedroom there was a door and a stairway that led to a huge attic, which for many years contained trunks full of memorabilia of bygone years.

Lakeview was truly a ghost town – at least that was our first impression. It was a far cry from the busy city we had just left. There was a little grocery store conveniently located lust a short block away from our house. About a half mile away there was a firehouse which was manned only by volunteers. (My brother Johnny was a volunteer fireman for many years until his death.)

In addition, there were several large farms around us, all of which helped to retain the wide-open spaces around us, without any threat of housing developments.

The elementary school where I would soon be enrolled was within walking distance from our home. It was located on Woodfield Road.

The high school that I attended later was about 1½ miles away. There were no available buses, but walking to school never seemed to pose any problems for the majority of students who attended. This high school was known as Malverne High School and was a part of our school district number 12.

The houses around us were neat and amply spaced apart. The incorporated towns that were adjacent to us were known as Malverne, Lynbrook, and Rockville Centre. Each of these towns were carefully zoned, and also had the advantage of rail service and a railroad station. That was the big factor responsible for their steady growth and development.

Before our move to Long Island took place, my oldest brother married Frances Taverno. They set up their new home in an apartment in New York City, just as my sister Anna and James had done.

With two of our family members married and living independently on their own, there remained nine of us, plus my mother and father – eleven newcomers in a new community. We were exposed to a new area, new neighbors with customs and ways which perhaps might seem a bit different for us to understand. Each of us was carrying hidden doubts and fears that we desperately tried not to show.

I was six years old at the time of our move. Considering my young years, the transition for me was fairly easy, since I was about to begin school with beginners like myself. I felt I would not be conspicuous as someone who did not belong. After all, we would all be first graders together.

However, for some of my older brothers who were still young enough to attend school, it meant a drastic change for them. They were forced to change schools and, sadly enough, to leave their friends behind. Now they had to cope with a new school, new teachers, and new friends, while carrying a feeling of hope inside that they would be accepted in this process of transition.

I was told that my older sister Rose, who had just graduated from the eighth grade in the city, prior to our move to Lakeview, refused to enroll at Malverne High School, as she felt very apprehensive about the whole idea. She did not want to run the risk of being objected by the “new kids”. Accordingly, she remained at home giving my mother much needed help in doing the many household tasks that needed to be done daily.

In Italian families, girls were not expected to work outside the home. In this way, they were protected and sheltered from falling into the influence of the wrong crowd or the wrong interests. Generally, young unmarried ladies were kept busy at home learning the arts of serving, embroidery, knitting and cooking. This was to prepare them eventually for marriage ahead.

My brothers, in addition to myself, who were of school age and who had to transfer to our new school were Eddie, Frankie, Johnny and Jimmy. The others were either working or, if not employed, were kept very busy looking for employment or working around the house.

It is gratifying to know, as I look back, how smoothly things went in this transition. We soon began to become involved with many activities, many of which were related to school. Accordingly, we seemed to be making new friends as each day passed by. Our house soon became a hub of activity and a place to meet. Our friends were of a wide variety of nationalities and were of various ages, depending upon whose friend he or she was in relation to each of us. They consisted of those whom we met at school, or at work, or at church, or at the baseball field where my brothers often played. All of them lost no time in dropping in on the Vecchio household as there was always something going on all the time. They liked coming, and we liked seeing them as well. We had the wonderful feeling that we were accepted, and it felt good.

As our friends dropped in to visit, they soon began to recognize the diverse makeup of our personalities, as well as some of our talents.

Among the joys I always remember was the abundance of good humor and camaraderie we all shared with one another. Many times it resembled a three act comedy, all with lots of spontaneity and laughter. A lot of this took place around the dinner table at night. A lot of the humor consisted of accounts which had taken place that particular day, or perhaps some newly learned jokes. We all contributed a fair share.

After supper, my brother Louie would play his banjo and Julie would accompany him on the piano. (He played the piano by ear as I do.) Together with my brother Frank and myself, we would sing the oldies in harmony. Even while the kitchen was being cleared and the dishes removed, it never took long for the rest of the family to join us in song. It was a real community sing.

At times when our family attended Italian weddings, we (Frank, Julie and I) were called upon to sing some of the requests as a trio. While it was far from professional, it was lots of fun, and seemed to be enjoyed by all present.

My brother Julie had a beautiful tenor voice, although he never took voice lessons. I can recall him singing the various arias of certain operas while relaxing at home, particularly the prelude to Pagliacci; that always seemed to be his favorite. His voice was powerful and had such clarity and beauty – it was always a treat to listen to him. I suppose this was the beginning of my interest in classical music; it was my first exposure. Over these past 15 years it has been my friend Theron who has kept my interest in opera and classical music very much alive. He has invited me on a yearly basis as his guest to attend the various operas of Puccini, Verdi, and other composers as well. These operas have been performed by the New York City Opera Company at the Hershey Theater in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Their performances have always earned rave reviews. Often while listening carefully to the musical scores of these various operas, the visions of Julie and the beautiful sounds coming from him as he sang years ago always come to mind – a beautiful memory to savor.

Elaborating a little more on the accommodations we had while living in our home, our one bathroom, which was supposed to take care of the needs of eleven of us, was a scarce commodity much of the time. The one who was lucky enough to occupy the bathroom had to either plead for priority (Famous quote was “I gotta go bad!”) or had to be sneaky and fast enough to get in there first. In a dire emergency, the undeveloped woods directly across the street from our house was always available. The woods were part of the New York State park system – admission free!!! As for the need for a place to shave (and there were many hairy-faced candidates in our house), the kitchen sink often served as the second sink. A large basin was used to catch all the hair and soap which fell from the razor, and its contents were thrown outside – water, hair and soap. Over the kitchen sink was a small mirror, and below it, attached to the wall, was a comb and brush, all of which afforded the finishing touches to both the hair on the head and the face as well.

As for entertainment, we seldom had the money for movies or paid entertainment. Radio was a vital part of our entertainment, besides what we created among ourselves as I have explained. With the radio on, we all sat in the living room together and enjoyed many of the popular shows of that era, such as Fibber McGee and Molly, Burns and Allen, the Fred Allen Show, Amos ‘n’ Andy, and many others. We often closed our eyes and concentrated very closely on the sounds and voices that were a part of the comedic situations being transmitted over the air waves. It certainly stretched one’s imagination, to the point where we imagined it was all happening in our very own living room.

Because of the cost factor, we had no telephone for many years. (In later years my mother and father consented.) In a way, this proved to be an ideal way for my parents to keep tabs on us, as our friends had to come to our house to get clearance, from my mother mostly, as to whatever the plan might involve. Naturally we all had to abide by whatever limitations my mother and father insisted on before final approval was given. We were not always happy with the conditions that were set, but by and large, we were satisfied and happy to be able to get out. By comparison, today’s teenagers have an entirely different life style, with much more independence and mobility.

And so, despite any anxiety we might have had concerning the move from New York City to Lakeview, we all seemed to have adjusted to it very well. We had a mother and father on whom we could count for guidance and support. We also, as a family growing up, had each other. We confided in each other, worked and played together, and yes, many times we argued with one another as well. But despite our differences of personality, we were a unit of one – a very happy, proud and close family.

As each of my brothers completed their eighth grade (their final year of education), they immediately began to look for employment in order to earn money. The custom of most Italian families was for sons to contribute a large portion of their wages to the household in order to help with the high cost of living incurred to support a large family. Our family was no exception to this rule.

1. My oldest single brother, Tony, was a truck driver whose area to drive was in the confines of New York City. We lived about 30 miles from the outskirts of the city. Because of Tony’s early hours to report to work, he found it more convenient to stay at my brother Charlie’s house during the week. On weekends he would ride the train home, getting off at Rockville Centre. This would give him time to spend with us. He was very attached to my parents as well as to all of us. He never hesitated to pitch in to do the various chores around the house that always seemed to accumulate. In his very generous ways, he often would give my mother extra money to pay for some unforeseen bill that might have surfaced at the time. Marriage did not seem to interest him, and he accordingly postponed it for many years. He eventually married in his early 40’s, to Helen Foglia.
2. My brother Julie worked odd jobs sporadically, until the day that he finally made the decision to go to college. This was a big order for my mother and father to fulfill, inasmuch as the expense of a college education was really out of reach. (While we still lived in New York City, Julie had earned his high school diploma by attending a preparatory school.) With pride and admiration, my parents encouraged him to continue his education. All of my brothers pitched in financially and contributed to the family fund so that Julie could attend Boston University. He worked odd jobs in the summertime to earn some money which he could use toward his college costs. He obtained his BS degree in secondary education, and later obtained his Master’s degree in education from Columbia University in New York City. We were extremely proud, as he was the first Vecchio to have received a college diploma. He eventually obtained a permanent teaching position at Malverne High School a year or two after I had graduated from there. He taught Social Studies, and was well-liked by faculty and students as well. He taught there for quite a few years, but then transferred his teaching to the Elmont High School, where he remained until retirement. When Julie was still at home before his marriage to Carrie, he enjoyed working on the outside grounds of our home. He did a lot of attractive landscaping using a wide variety of beautiful flowers and bushes and trees. Our neighbors were always complimentary concerning the attractive display Julie had designed and arranged.
3. My brother Louie was extremely gifted with his hands, and enjoyed making handmade models of most anything that would be challenge for him to undertake. He worked in wood mostly, making wishing wells, models of churches, clocks, sewing boxes, etc. He obtained useful experience working as a designer in a jewelry store. Later he obtained a position with the Sperry Gyroscope Corporation, working on very delicate instrument parts. He held this position until his retirement. While single and living at home, he always contributed much of his time doing things around our house, especially painting and hanging wallpaper. He, like by brother Tony, delayed marriage for a long time. He married Rose in 1949.
4. My brother Jimmy was successful in getting a job with the Knickerbocker Ice Company in New York City, which he held for many years. The salary he received was considered very lucrative compared to the average wage at that particular time. His work schedule, however, was not too pleasant, inasmuch as it changed every week. One week it was 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., the next week it was 3 p.m. to 11 p.m., and the third week it was 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. He never complained, but instead felt fortunate knowing that he had a secure job. He, like all my brothers, was generous in his ways. I especially remember him giving me 50 cents a week during my senior year in high school. It was such a wonderful feeling having coins in my pocketbook. Indeed, I felt very fortunate. Jimmy married Jenny Cass in 1934.
5. My brother Johnny was born with many wonderful qualities, including a wonderful sense of humor and a hearty laugh that was extremely contagious. He had a warm outgoing personality that earned him a multitude of friends. I always remember him and my brother Louie to be very dependable, and you could always count on them to fulfill whatever promises they might have made to you. Johnny was extremely interested in scouting, which he pursued for many years. He secured his first job driving a truck for Abraham and Strauss, one of the better known department stores, delivering merchandise. His truck route was mostly the suburbs adjacent to New York City. Eventually this position led to a transfer of employment to United Parcel Service, which is today one of the largest delivery enterprises and known the world over. Johnny remained with UPS until his retirement. He married Marie Genovese in 1936.
6. My brother Frank, while attending eighth grade, arranged to work part time at a nearby gas station. It was at this time that his interest in cars began. After graduation he found a permanent job in a fairly large garage where his natural aptitudes and abilities in the area of automobile mechanics seemed to grow. After his marriage to Helen Caparelli, they lived in Lynbrook. Soon he was able to save enough money to open up his own gas station and repair shop. Business flourished, but unfortunately, as time went by, their marriage fell apart and eventually ended in divorce. He resorted to alcohol and died at the early age of 57. A sad ending.

   Frank, like my brother Johnny, was full of wit and fun to be around. He was soft spoken and had lots of charisma. Everybody loved Frank, especially Dad and I. The deep friendship the three of us enjoyed will be explained further in this journal.

   As I review my years of growing up, I can vividly recall the closeness which Frankie, Johnny and I shared. We were three peas in a pod, alike in so many ways. We were easygoing, outgoing in our ways, had a great sense of humor, always ready to pull off harmless jokes whenever and wherever we could. To illustrate more fully, one of the plots Frankie, Johnny and I engineered one night involved my brother Jimmy.

   Because my mother retired early for bed each evening (and rightfully so after her very strenuous and long days working in the house, cooking, shopping, etc.), those of us who happened to be at home were delegated to awaken my brother Jimmy in time for him to get to work for the 11 to 7 shift a Knickerbocker Ice. Jimmy was known to be a deep sleeper and not the easiest person to arouse.

   On this particular very cold evening in January, Frankie, Johnny and I happened to be on “wake-up” patrol. At the appointed time, we went upstairs together to fulfill our obligations. Upon arriving at the top landing and looking through the small window located there, we discovered a huge, long, perfectly formed icicle hanging from the eaves of the roof. Without any spoken words, we looked at each other with broad grins and, in silent agreement of the same idea, we quietly opened the window to carefully remove and detach the jeweled icicle!!!

   Without hesitation, Frank delegated himself to be the one to carry out the task ahead. As we neared Jimmy’s bedroom, we began to call out in unison, “Jim, time to get up. Get up, Jim, it’s 8 o’clock. You don’t want to miss your train.” By the time our opening remarks were already said, we opened the door and approached his bed. We found him comfortably asleep, under warm covers, showing no immediate signs of waking up. At this point we repeated our message, to no avail. Seconds later the opportune time had arrived, and sadly for Jimmy, Frankie very swiftly placed the icicle under the covers in the area of Jimmy’s private parts!! Needless to say, Jimmy was quickly and angrily aroused, reached for a shoe on the floor near his side of the bed, and with a quick aim fired the shoe at us. By that time, the three of us were out of his reach, as we quickly closed the door behind us, and in seconds we were at the bottom landing. The shoe did hit the closet door with much force, and caused a wide crack in one of its panels, which remained for many years. Well-awakened by this time and standing at the top landing, Jimmy angrily admonished us, using a bit of French in between. With all the commotion, my mother was soon awakened. She lost no time in reprimanding each of us, but my father slept through it all!! At that point, we were smart enough to get out of Jimmy’s way, and decided it was safer and wiser to retire for the night. At least our mission was accomplished – Jimmy was awake, he didn’t miss his train, and he arrived at work on time!!! By the next day, all was forgiven.

7. My youngest brother, Eddie, worked at a nearby gas station after school as did Frank. He joined Frank and Johnny, playing baseball with the Lakeview Ramblers. Our family always attended the games, on Sunday afternoons most of the time, and we did our share of cheering. Of these three brothers, it was Eddie who was the star. He was a natural hitter, had a high batting average, and was an excellent first baseman.

   He was one of the few in our family who attended high school. As you have already read, the majority of our brothers and sisters had only eight grades of schooling. Eddie, Julie and I were the exceptions.

   While in high school, he played on the Malverne High School baseball team, and continued to add better and better statistics to his records. For some unknown reason, he chose to leave school after his junior year. He continued working at the gas station, and continued to play baseball as well. Fortunately, he was approached one day by one of New York University’s athletic scouts. Together with the help of Eddie’s baseball coach at school, he was awarded a four year paid athletic scholarship to N.Y.U. The requirement, of course, was that he had to complete his senior year of high school, which he did. He successfully completed his four years at N.Y.U. and obtained a BS in Physical Education.

   It was his intention to teach, but World War II interrupted his plans. He enlisted in the Navy, earning a commission as Chief Petty Officer, and was assigned to Camp Le Jeune, North Carolina. He married Doris Skahill and they lived together at the base near Camp Le Jeune. They remained there even after Eddie was discharged from the Navy and continued to make Jacksonville, North Carolina their home. Eddie and Doris had four children, half of whom are still residents of North Carolina. My brother Eddie recently passed away (June 2, 1994). I am the sole survivor of the Vecchio family and although they are all gone, I still enjoy the many happy memories of all of us as we grew up together, as one big happy family.

8. My sister Rose always had a special place in my heart. Perhaps it is because she was the only sister I grew up with. My oldest sister Anna was married before I was born, and very much occupied with her husband and their seven children.

   As I related earlier, Rose remained for many years at home to assist my mother. Later on, however, my mother eventually agreed to allow her to go to work in the city. She obtained a job in a very exclusive dress factory that catered to women who were of the social register, as well as those of the theater crowd. Rose was often fortunate enough to own and wear some of these exclusive designs. Meantime, she was at last out of the house, and now a businesswoman. Nevertheless, my parents still kept a watchful eye, making sure she did not get involved with the wrong company.

   Interestingly, there was a gap of eleven years between each of the girls in our family. With such a wide difference of age between me and Rose, I sometimes felt like she was my surrogate mother. I say this because my mother was already beginning to show signs of fatigue at the time of my growing up, with the added tasks and demands of running a busy household. Accordingly, she delegated Rose to take care of all the details concerning my grooming, my wardrobe, haircuts when necessary, etc. This relieved my mother and gave her much needed time for other demands. Rose did a great job, with much love and patience. She always made sure that my shoes were well-polished, that my socks were securely held at the knee and not falling down, that my hair was clean and well-styled; she wanted me to be her well-dressed sister in every sense of the word. No wonder I loved her dearly.

   We shared a three-quarter bed in one of the smaller bedrooms of our house, which was sparsely furnished. But this did not seem to bother us in any way. While getting ourselves dressed in the morning, or retiring for the night, we always openly confided with one another, sometimes going over problems either one of us might have encountered, which all seemed to relieve any anxiety that may have been hiding within us. We enjoyed sharing any funny incidents of the day which always seemed to crop up from time to time. And of course I related the activities that took place at school, as she always seemed to show much interest in what I was involved in. All in all we had a very close relationship and enjoyed much in common.

   Several years after Dad and I were already married, my sister Rose married Tony Pagliuca. She was in her thirties at the time. Before her marriage, she went to school and became a beautician. She obtained her first job as a beautician working for a very busy hair salon in Hempstead, Long Island. Years later she opened up her own beauty shop in Queens Village, and did very well. She eventually sold it, as both she and Tony wanted to retire. Their plans were fulfilled, and they moved to Holiday, Florida and remained there until their deaths. They never had children.

I have listed in the above paragraphs a short resume concerning each of my brothers and sister who were single and living at home at the time. The purpose is to show how each of their personalities and their interests were diversified. It is a combination of all these differences that makes a family so unique and so interesting. The Vecchios could be identified as just such a family.