“He was always a hustler, always worked hard,” Carlo Casoria said. “People used to call him to shovel snow in their driveways.”
It was the same hustle,…
By Alexander Dworkowitz
Carlo Casoria remembers his son Thomas as a boy who would never hesitate to do a little extra work.
“He was always a hustler, always worked hard,” Carlo Casoria said. “People used to call him to shovel snow in their driveways.”
It was the same hustle, Carlo Casoria said, that carried his firefighter son up the steps of 1 World Trade Center on Sept. 11.
Carlo Casoria as well as many other friends and family will gather to mourn Thomas Casoria at his funeral at St. Luke’s Roman Catholic Church in Whitestone on Aug. 9.
Thomas Casoria, 29, died just a month before the date of his wedding to a woman named Terry.
The firefighter at Manhattan’s Engine Co. 22 spoke on his radio minutes before the building collapsed on Sept. 11 after a commercial jetliner slammed into the upper floors.
“They were carrying down a paraplegic,” Carlo Casoria said, speaking of his son and other firefighters. “He went down with a safety officer or chief to help a mayday, when a firefighter calls for assistance. Moments later the building came down.”
Like all families of World Trade Center victims, Thomas Casoria’s relatives initially prayed he would be found alive. As the rescue effort shifted toward recovery, the family hoped his body would be found.
On Thanksgiving Day, the remains of several of firefighters who were with Thomas Casoria on Sept. 11 were found.
“His buddies were found on Thanksgiving, and we expected to find him shortly afterwards,” Carlo Casoria said.
But Thomas Casoria’s body was not discovered until April 9, near the end of the recovery effort.
“We had almost given up,” Carlo Casoria said.
Thomas Casoria’s brother, who is named Carlo Casoria and a firefighter with the FDNY, and a cousin were called as soon as the lost firefighter’s remains were found. The three men rushed to ground zero and carried Thomas Casoria’s body out of the rubble.
The discovery was a relief to all members of Thomas Casoria’s family, including a close cousin, Suzanne Bonelli.
Bonelli remembered spending her summers as a child visiting the Casoria home in Whitestone.
“He was the one we always picked on,” Bonelli said. “He had a good sense of humor. He did a lot of Frank Sinatra impersonations.”
Years later Bonelli moved to Whitestone with her husband.
With her husband working long hours, Bonelli said she was often left alone as she took care of her children, and Thomas Casoria would come to visit.
“He knew I was alone with the kids, and he would stop by with pastries and say hello,” she said. “He just really cared about everybody.”
Thomas Casoria, an all-around athlete and star of the FDNY softball team, found his calling in the Fire Department, his father said.
For years, Thomas had emulated his older brother Carlo.
In 1994, the two passed the test to join the FDNY but had to wait five years before spots opened up in the department, their father said.
During that time, the brothers worked as carpenters.
“Carlo was kind of happy with himself,” the elder Casoria said. “He was a full-fledged carpenter, making good money. Thomas, because he was only an apprentice, wasn’t making that much money.”
Thomas Casoria changed in 1999 when he became a firefighter, his father said.
“Once he became a firefighter, he knew he had a career. His attitude changed. He was much happier in life.”
Reach reporter Alexander Dworkowitz by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 141.
