By James DeWeese
The 60 or so firefighters who make up Engine Co. 289 and Ladder Co. 138 – known as the “Corona Tigers” – pitched in to help Savino's widow, Leah, renovate her Northport, L.I. home and began collecting funds for the couple's 2-year-old son, Josh. In times of tragedy, few places – if any – offer the same kind of close-knit, family-style backing that firehouses do. But the outpouring of support for her husband's family took even Leah Savino by surprise. “You have touched my life,” a teary Leah Savino told the firefighters during an emotional ceremony at the Corona firehouse on 43rd Avenue last week. Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta and other Fire Department dignitaries unveiled a plaque in honor of Vincent Savino, who died in February 2004 when the ATV he was riding collided with a car on Long Island. And firefighters presented Leah Savino with a check for $13,500, money members of the firehouse had assembled through a golf outing and a dollar-by-dollar contribution drive during mealtimes over the course of the year. “Josh will grow to know how very much you have touched his life,” Leah Savino continued. “In essence, you have touched Vinny's soul in a way that is unexplainable and for that I thank you.” Vincent Savino's parents, Vincent and Brenda, said they were humbled by the show of support for their son, a former police officer who joined the engine and ladder company just two years before his death. “It just unbelievable how a group of guys can band together the way you do,” said Savino's father Vincent. “We never expected this kind of support. I've never seen this kind of bonding in any other group.” Firefighters Dennis Siry and John Debenedittis, who presented Leah Savino with the check, said they could not agree more. “When you become a firefighter (and) you walk into the firehouse, they tell you you become a member of a family,” DeBenedittis said. Reach reporter James DeWeese by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 157.
