Never Forget! September 11^th, 2001

Maybe there was something in the water. For some reason, perhaps a dozen men who came of age during the 1970's and 80's in Deer Park, N.Y., developed an appetite for civic duty. They became New York City police officers and firefighters in their professional lives and volunteer firefighters with Engine Company No. 2 in Deer Park in their personal ones. They called it the Deer Park Connection, and Firefighter John Vigiano and Detective Joseph Vigiano, two of the tightest brothers you could ever find, were among the best-liked and most accomplished members. Both followed the unwritten manual on growing up right in Deer Park, said their father, John Vigiano, a retired captain in the New York City Fire Department. They were active in sports. They became Eagle Scouts. They hatched pranks that were wicked in their creativity but gentle in their impact. "They never embarrassed me," said Captain Vigiano. "They were good fathers, good husbands and they were good men."

John Vigiano, at 36, was older by two years, though his brother never let him forget that he was also four inches shorter and maybe 30 pounds lighter. John was the quieter of the two, and spent as much time as possible with his two young daughters, his father said. He was a terrific hockey player (and rabid Rangers fan) and he would occasionally rent out an entire rink for his family, his brother's family and a few other friends.

Joseph Vigiano, who was known as Joey, "loved to mug for the cameras and played lacrosse on the Police Department team," said his wife, Kathy, a fellow police officer. On the job, he was commended for his bravery: he survived being shot on three different occasions. At home, he taught his two boys how to build derby cars of pine. Eventually, he was going to do the same with his youngest son, then 6 months old.

When Dick Wolf, producer of the NBC series Law & Order, began filming a reality-TV pilot about a New York City police squad, no one could have known that terrorists would claim the lives of fourteen of the men in that unit on September 11, 2001.

Joseph Vigiano, a highly decorated member of the NYPD Emergency Services Squad 2, died in the World Trade Center, along with his older brother, John, Jr., a firefighter with Bedford-Stuyvesant's Ladder 132. They both rushed to the scene as soon as the first building was struck and were still helping people evacuate when the towers collapsed.

The footage that had been shot for Wolf's pilot is the basis for this Academy Award-winning documentary. Twin Towers follows Joe's Harlem-based rescue team as they go on raids and investigate homicides, and includes interviews with their families, news footage and home videos to tell a story of dedication, heroism and the American spirit that defines us, as a people and a nation.

The Constantino Brumidi Lodge Sons of Italy in America is proud to work with the Vigiano Brothers Scholarship Fund awarding academic scholarships to deserving Italian Americans. This scholarship Fund is new and your kind donation will be greatly appreciated.

If you'd like to make a donation to this worthy scholarship in honor of these two America heroes, please send your donation check, payable to Vigiano Brothers Scholarship Fund, in an amount of your choosing to:

Mr. John Vigiano Sr.
Vigiano Brothers Scholarship Fund
Constantino Brumidi Lodge
2075 Deer Park Avenue
Deer Park, NY 11729

Or you can download a Vigiano Brothers Scholarship Fund Donation Form

The Constantino Brumidi Lodge OSIA will be sponsoring a golf outing to raise money for these scholarships. The information is as follows:

Vigiano Brothers Memorial Scholarship Golf Outing
June 10, 2008
Holbrook Country Club
Chairperson: Paul Carosotto

$160 pp (price to be determined) includes: green fees, cart rental, driving range, full breakfast, BBQ lunch, followed by dinner and open bar at our lodge in Deer Park.

Please contact Paul Carosotto at 631-667-1779 for information and sponsorship opportunities

To download a Golf Outing application and
sponsorship form, please click here