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Florence Beitch of Bay Shore recalls meeting her husband, Bill. 
In 1954 I was with a date in Manhattan when I ran into my aunt’s niece and her date, Burt. We chatted, parted ways and later that night saw one another again in a different part of town. It was weird, Manhattan is a big place and the chance of seeing one another again was slim. We all got along so well that we decided to double date, and we met the following week. That evening, when my date was out of earshot, Burt asked me if I wanted to meet his brother, Bill. I said yes, and Bill said, "I’ll have him call you." 
The next week Bill did just that. I suggested we go to a club in Queens that celebrated New Year’s Eve every Saturday. Because the club was loud and Bill spoke quietly, I didn’t hear half the things he said. I felt we didn’t really hit it off, so I said I was busy when Bill called the next week to go out again. The following week he called again, but I was going out of town. When he asked me out a third time, I said yes. 
A month later we were going steady. My mother, who was thrilled, asked, "What’s Bill’s last name?" I was floored because I only knew his first name. So I called him, and instead of asking directly, I said, "How do you spell your last name?" (I thought, "I hope it’s not Smith or Jones because I’ll look like a fool.") Luckily he said B-e-i-t-c-h, Beitch. 
We were engaged about six months after our first date and married that year on Nov. 12, 1955. The next year we moved from Rego Park to Bay Shore though the area was not very developed 67 years ago. In 1957 we started our family, eventually having three children, Debra, Lisa and Charles. 
Bill worked hard supporting our family and making a beautiful home for us. For years he was a design engineer at Grumman; in 1971 we opened Suffolk Printing. At first Bill worked mornings at our store then went to work at Grumman in the afternoon. I ran the store from 9 to 5. We were equal partners in business and in raising our family. Since there were not many women in the workforce at the time, and little in the way of after-care programs, life was a constant juggling act. 
Charles became our partner at Suffolk Printing in the 1990s and in 2020 took over operations. Being semiretired allows Bill and me to maintain an advisory role while affording us long-overdue relaxation. 
As busy as we were when our children were young, we believed in giving back to the community. I received the Mother of the Year Award from Congregation Beth Sholom in Babylon. Bill was the president of the Bay Shore Rotary Club from 1988-1989 and received its Paul Harris Fellow Award. He was also involved in Bay Shore’s Chamber of Commerce and was a founding member of the Business Improvement District. He received the chamber’s Distinguished Citizen of the Year Award in 2002 and the Town of Islip Small Business Award in 2013. 
In 2021 we celebrated 50 years in business and our 66th wedding anniversary; we have so much to be grateful for. We have three great children, a wonderful daughter-in-law and son-in-law, five wonderful grandsons, and a life well-lived. It’s the simple things, the everyday thoughtfulness and consideration shown by my husband, that gives me pause and makes me smile; like when Bill makes me breakfast — he makes the best eggs. 
<h5>— With Caroline Curtin</h5>

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Love Story: Third time was the charm for couple who live in Bay Shore

Love Story: His brother was the matchmaker

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Angela Garrett of Port Washington (nee McGeady) recalls the day that her husband, Jack, danced his way into her life. 
In 1955, I met Jack at a Catholic Youth Organization dance in Manhattan where we danced the fox trot. I was 24, and he was 27. I grew up on eastern Long Island and was living in Jamaica, Queens. He lived in Flushing, where he had grown up. 
I was attracted to Jack because he really enjoyed life and could tell a good story. He said that he saw me from across the dance floor and was smitten. At first, we were joking around, and for the fun of it, we both lied to each other about what we did for a living. I was a nurse, but I told him I was a secretary. He was a firefighter, but he told me he was a travel agent — which I soon realized was not true because he didn’t even know where Yosemite Park was. We both laughed when I called him out on that! 
He called me the day after we met. He had gotten my number from my friend June. Our first date was two weeks later, when he took me to a French restaurant on Hillside Avenue in Jamaica. 
We dated for a while, and in the fall I took a trip to Europe with three friends. When Jack came to see us off, he panicked because he saw four handsome sailors standing beside me and my friends at the ship's bon voyage party. He said he thought he’d never see me again. While we were dating, Jack kept telling me that I should "join his team." When I returned from my trip, I told him, "I think I’ll join your team" — and that’s how we decided to marry. 
Jack proposed to me in December 1955 at the Rockefeller Center Observatory. Once he slipped the ring on my finger, he was nervous I’d drop it from that height, way above Manhattan. 
We were married on Sept. 29, 1956, at Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Roman Catholic Church in Jamaica. Our reception was at Delmonico’s in Manhattan. We lucked out with beautiful weather — the next day it poured. 
Our honeymoon was at Eden Roc Hotel in Miami Beach. We had rented a very small car, and we stood out from the "fancy crowd" at the hotel. The bellhops loved getting our small car first, before the big Cadillacs for the women in their furs, much to the chagrin of the other guests. 
We settled first in Jamaica, then moved in 1963 to New Hyde Park, where we raised our five wonderful children. We now live at Harborside in Port Washington. 
I am a retired nurse/teacher from the Sewanhaka School District. Jack was with the New York City Fire Department for 27 years, retiring as a battalion chief. He then spent 10 years working in fire safety for the U.S. Post Office. 
Jack has a great sense of humor and many stories of his days in the fire department — the fires, the guys in the department and the pranks they’d pull on one another. He is a wonderful father to our five children and six grandchildren. As a couple, we were known for our Lindy Hop dancing at weddings and special events. If I could talk to my younger self, I would say, "Even though you weren't looking for marriage, it could be a great move." 
For our 65th anniversary, our children threw a surprise celebratory luncheon at The Grill Room at Harbor Links Golf Course where we were surrounded by family on a beautifully sunny day. 
<h5>— With Laura Mann</h5>

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Love Story: She said 'yes' to the winning team

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Marcia Friedman (nee Hauben) of West Babylon remembers the blind date that led her to meet her husband, Mel. 
In September 1970, I was 23 and living in Forest Hills, Queens, with my parents when neighbors suggested that I meet a man they knew who was 26 and lived in Floral Park, Queens. These neighbors knew his parents and thought we’d be a good match. 
I wasn’t a big fan of blind dates, but I agreed to a date with Mel after he called me from a phone booth in a crowded subway station, introduced himself and asked me to dinner and a movie over the roar of trains. 
Mel drove to my parents' apartment house to pick me up, and when I opened the door to their apartment, there he was, all dressed in black, looking like Johnny Cash. The date went well, although at first I thought that Mel could have been more talkative. 
As we dated more and got to know each other, Mel became more talkative. We found that we had a lot in common, like our interest in restaurants, movies and books. We also had Judaism in common, and our religion was very important to us both. 
After five months of dating, on Feb. 5, 1971, Mel proposed to me after a date by asking, "Do you want to go to the Holy Land on our honeymoon?" 
We got married on Nov. 21, 1971, at the Garden Jewish Center in Flushing, Queens, on a beautiful, sunny day. 
Our wedding was on a Sunday, the same day there was a football game in Pittsburgh between the New York Giants and the Pittsburgh Steelers. During the reception, we kept announcing the football score, and our guests enjoyed these updates, even though the final score was the Giants 13, Steelers 17. 
Afterward, we spent two weeks in Israel on our honeymoon. 
After getting married, we had our first apartment in Rego Park. We later moved to a house in North Bellmore, where we lived for 30 years before moving to West Babylon. 
We’re both retired now. I worked as an administrative assistant for 18 years at the Merrick Jewish Centre, and Mel worked in advertising in Plainview. 
Mel and I raised three wonderful children, a daughter, Aileen, and our sons, Marc and Todd. We adore our seven grandchildren and love spending time with them. We also enjoy going to movies, playing Scrabble, spending time at the beach and local parks, and getting together with friends. 
On Nov. 5, 2021, I celebrated my 75th birthday. The following day, on Nov. 6, our children surprised us with a combined birthday party for me and 50th anniversary party for both of us. They had invited all of our family and closest friends to McQuade’s Neighborhood Grill in Lynbrook, and had decorated the room with photos of my childhood and from our married life through the years. It was beautiful. 
Mel is my best friend, and we’ve come through our share of ups and downs, but we’ve always communicated with each other and knew we could get through anything together. As Mel always says, laughter is the best medicine. 
<h5>— With Laura Mann</h5>

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Love Story: She said yes to a blind date, then to the Holy Land

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Edward Mutchnick of Lindenhurst talks about how he met his wife, Ilse. 
I had been collecting pen pals since I was in the Boy Scouts in the late 1950s. I was in a friend's apartment, also in Arverne, Queens, when I noticed he had a letter from Germany. It turned out it was from a pen pal. I asked if he could get me a pen pal in Germany. I soon received my first letter from Ilse Moik. It was 1961, and I was 15 years old. 
I was not a very enthusiastic letter writer, more of a procrastinator. There were times in our 10 years as pen pals that Ilse wondered why I sought a pen pal at all. Our letters were always polite and friendly, and never more than platonic. 
In 1968, I took my first-ever vacation. While in Munich, Germany, I went by train to Augsburg, where Ilse lived. She had booked a room for me in a bed-and-breakfast for two nights near her family's apartment. 
After our brief encounter, I continued on my trip through Europe and eventually flew home and returned to my job and school. Still, the nature of our letters did not change; our in-person visit had no effect on either of us. 
In January 1970, I was inducted into the U.S. Army. Being in Fort Jackson, South Carolina, I had a lot of time to reflect. By December, I often remembered my visit to Augsburg — and Ilse. Still, I wrote nothing of my growing feelings toward her. 
By March 1971, I had orders to report to Fort Dix, New Jersey, and from there to Vietnam. But first, I was scheduled to take a two-week leave. My leave coincided with Ilse's own break between jobs. I scheduled a trip to Germany, my objective being to propose to Ilse — though she didn't have a clue what was in my heart. As far as she knew, I was just having a vacation. 
After a couple days in Augsburg, I traveled with Ilse’s family to visit their relatives in Austria. I proposed with help from a German dictionary. Ilse asked if I knew what I had said. I told her I knew perfectly well. You can imagine her surprise and shock. I asked her again and again, until she agreed, while we were at Schloss Kapfenberg in Austria. We returned to Augsburg and informed her family we intended to marry. 
According to military regulations, I needed permission from my captain to marry someone in a foreign country. It felt strange to do this as I was 25 and my captain was 19 or 20. I explained that Ilse and I had known each other about 10 years, and he signed off on it. 
I flew back for our wedding, on Aug. 19, 1971, in Augsburg, and a weekend honeymoon in Germany. I returned to Fort Dix while Ilse remained in Germany to arrange emigration to the United States. 
I was discharged early, in October 1971, because of the U.S. troop reduction in Southeast Asia. I returned to Ilse and we toured Europe for six weeks, "our second honeymoon," before relocating to the United States. 
In December 1971, we moved to Rockville Centre; later we lived in Oceanside. In February 1973, our twin sons, Ernst and Stefan, were born. I told everyone, "We have been married 18 months and already have two children." A year later we moved to Lindenhurst. 
We plan to celebrate our anniversary with our family this fall. Ilse and I had a quiet celebration at LakeHouse Restaurant, in Bay Shore, in September. 
<h5>— With Judy Weinberg</h5>

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Love Story: It all began with getting a pen pal in Germany

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John Fonte of Lake Ronkonkoma remembers how an old friend's invitation led to a chance meeting with his future wife, Janice. 
In 1984, the week before Christmas, my friend and former co-worker Steve called to invite me to a party at his home in Bethpage. We had worked together at Sears in Hicksville during our college years, and he had invited several other friends from Sears as well as his classmates from the University at Albany. I already had plans for that Saturday, but I gladly accepted his invitation because it had been four years since I had seen many of those people. 
I arrived at Steve’s party early, intending to stay a while and meet up with my friends afterward. There weren't many people there when I arrived, but I noticed an attractive, smartly dressed woman about my age sitting by herself. Steve introduced her to me as Janice Kappus, a suite-mate from his dorm at Albany. 
Janice and I started a conversation, and I had her undivided attention for a short while. I learned that she taught at Lindenhurst High School and lived with her parents in Bay Shore while working toward her master’s degree at LIU Post. I told her I lived with my folks in East Meadow, had graduated from Hofstra University and was accounting manager for a large tour operator based in Manhattan. 
As more guests arrived, Janice and I drifted apart to catch up with others, but I was already smitten by her. I made it a point to wander back to her from time to time for a friendly word or two. When it was time for me to leave, I wanted to ask for her telephone number, but she was in a conversation with a group of people. I didn’t interrupt, but made sure to ask Steve for her number the next day. After getting the OK from Janice, Steve gave me her contact information. 
We had our first date on the first Saturday in 1985 at the Wine Barrel, a restaurant in Babylon Village. Once there, we talked without a lull in the conversation, and time seemed to fly by. I learned about her likes and values, including her love of family and her pets. I found her quirky sense of humor endearing. By the end of the date, I knew she was the one for me. I proposed to her in the very same place 10 months later. 
We were married on Oct. 25, 1986, at St. Patrick Roman Catholic Church in Bay Shore. Mets fans may remember the infamous Mookie Wilson ground ball that trickled through Bill Buckner’s legs and gave the Mets the Game 6 win over the Red Sox. We'd caught a few innings of the game, while the Mets were still losing, at a bar during our after-party. On the 27th, while on our flight to Hawaii for our honeymoon, everyone cheered when the pilot announced the Mets had won Game 7 and the series. 
After our honeymoon, we moved to an apartment in Farmingdale. Two years later, we purchased our home in Lake Ronkonkoma. 
Our daughter, Kaitlyn, was born in 1989, followed by our son, Brendan, in 1993. Janice left teaching for 10 years to be a stay-at-home mom. After that, she taught in private schools, finishing her career in 2015 at Ivy League School in Smithtown. I am currently vice president of finance for a Manhattan luxury retailer. 
We love to travel, having visited more than half of the United States and made five trips to Europe. I look forward to continuing this wonderful journey of discovery with the woman I love and unexpectedly met so long ago. 
<h5>— With Laura Mann</h5>

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Love Story: He went to see old work pals, and met his future

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Mary Bilello talks about how she met her husband, Larry. 
I first noticed Aurelio in the early '50s when he was roughhousing with other boys in the front yard of our grammar school, the former St. Sylvester in Brooklyn. He caught my eye and someone pointed out his name, unique because it contained every vowel. His given name is Aurelio, but he is known as Larry. I was 10 and he was 11 when I first saw him. We were in different grades and didn't have much contact. 
After grammar school, I became best friends with Angela Rizzuto, and we both attended the former St. Michael's Commercial High School. On a visit to Angela’s house, I again saw Larry, who it turned out was Angela’s cousin and lived in the same three-family home. Because we knew each other from grammar school, Larry and I would acknowledge each other when I visited, but our relationship remained cordial. 
As time went on, we would see each other more frequently, and Larry asked me out. I was 17 and he was 18, and we went to see the 1962 movie "Diamond Head," starring Charlton Heston, at the Fox Theatre in Downtown Brooklyn. We dated on and off for about 10 years. I liked him very much, but wasn’t sure of my true feelings for him, and finally he stopped pursuing me. One day, I realized Larry had not called me in a long time. I became upset, fearing I had lost him. As fate and good luck would have it, he called me at my secretarial job in Manhattan that day to touch base and asked if I would like to go out to the Rainbow Grill in Manhattan. I said yes immediately! 
After that call, I realized Larry was the man I wanted to spend my life with. Not hearing from him and thinking that I had lost him had opened my eyes to my true feelings. To this day, I thank the Lord for his call. 
We began dating exclusively, and on New Year’s Eve 1969 at his parent's house in Ozone Park, he proposed to me. The next Memorial Day, we became engaged and had a party at Regency House in Jamaica, Queens. We had a fairy-tale wedding on Oct. 3, 1971, at Terrace on the Park in Queens. 
In 1972 we had our first daughter, Jane, and in 1974 our daughter Carrie Anne arrived. We moved our growing family to Lake Grove in 1973, buying the house where we still live. 
I worked as a secretary in Manhattan for 10 years, and Larry worked as an air traffic controller at the New York Air Route Traffic Control Center in Ronkonkoma as well as in other professions. I stayed home for a time to raise our children and then returned to work at Katharine Gibbs School, the National Education Association of New York and, most recently, New York State United Teachers. I retired in 2017. Larry retired from Home Depot in 2013. 
We plan to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary with our daughters, sons-in-law and three beautiful grandchildren, Lauren, Arianne and Thomas. 
When Larry and I were dating, we were at my mother’s house when she started pulling out old pictures of me and my family. Larry noticed that in one picture of me standing at my grammar school graduation, there were two people standing behind me — his mother and father. If that wasn’t fate mapping out my destiny, I don’t know what was. I surely made the right choice: My life has been blessed with Larry from the start because he's the man of my dreams. 
<h5>— With Lynn Petry</h5>

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Love Story: Fate brought them together in grammar school

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Louise Mangieri talks about how she met her husband, Mario. 
I met my husband, Mario, in 1951 at a Newman Club meeting. I was 17, a freshman at Barnard College; Mario was 19, a junior at Columbia University. I heard him speaking in a group and walked up to join the conversation about being kissed. I said I’d never been kissed; he replied that he didn’t believe it. Little did he know, I was only joking. 
When the club hosted a dance for Columbia's graduating seniors, Mario and I volunteered for the social committee — which turned out to be just us. While working together our relationship remained platonic. The night of the dance, a waltz made us realize we were attracted to each other. We were very compatible: We worked well together, danced well together and were the right height — I could wear my heels. 
That night, he invited me to a club picnic at Sunken Meadow State Park, and I said I’d be there. He said, no, he wanted me to be his date. So I accepted his invitation. After that first date, we became a couple. 
I lived in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, near where the Verrazzano Bridge would be built, so we would take 5-cent ferry rides to Staten Island and back. Sometimes, we’d stop for pizza in Brooklyn, and I insisted on eating the same number of slices as Mario. I always insisted on doing everything equally; woman had to be equal to men since I lived by the Barnard philosophy of woman’s equality. 
After Mario graduated from Columbia in 1952, he left for medical school in Bologna, Italy. Our relationship continued through the mail, regular letters and pictures. Mario would came home for summer break to work construction and then returned to school in the fall. 
During the summer of 1953, Mario proposed on bended knee in Bryant Park, behind the New York Public Library on 42nd Street. A long engagement followed because of medical school. We married on Aug. 25, 1956, at St. Joseph’s Church in Kings Park followed by a sit-down lunch reception at Linck’s Log Cabin in Centerport with 100 guests. 
We spent a few nights in New York City and then left by ship, a 10-day Atlantic crossing, to Bologna so Mario could get back to his studies. Mario’s mother, recently widowed, accompanied us because she was returning for a visit with her family in Italy. 
Our first child was born in Italy. Mario graduated in 1958, and we returned to the states for his internship and residency at Long Island College of Medicine in Brooklyn. After that, he started his practice at North Fork Radiology as a radiologist. 
We made our home in Riverhead and began to raise our family, another son in 1962 and then a daughter in 1963. 
I was a kindergarten teacher in Northport. Mario also started Central Suffolk X-Ray Technician School in Riverhead and was director of radiology at Central Suffolk Hospital in Riverhead for more than 35 years. 
Mario, who loves helping people, was dedicated to his profession, and I was right by his side all the way, helping him be the best person he could be. 
Both retired, we now live at The Bristal in Lake Gove. On Aug. 25, we celebrated our 65th wedding anniversary with our two sons and daughter-in-law, the staff and other residents. We renewed our vows, officiated by the Rev. Nick Montanino, then had a party with a singer and a cake, which was copied from our original wedding cake design. 
Since I lived in Brooklyn and Mario lived in the South Bronx, I think it was fate that brought us together in Manhattan. 
<h5>— With Lynn Petry</h5>

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Love Story: Kissing conversation brought them together

Manny Felouzis of Medford celebrates 50 years of marriage to his wife, Peggy Felouzis (nee Cohen). 
I first saw Peggy in the fall of 1967 as she was walking to school with her sister. It was our junior year at what's now Patchogue-Medford High School, where she had recently transferred. I knew right away that I needed to find out her name and ask her out — and did, in the spring of 1968. When we met, Peggy seemed to me like a "big city girl." Her family had moved to Medford from lower Manhattan in the summer of 1967. I was from Elmont, and my family moved to Patchogue in 1964 when my father opened the original Island Grill Diner. 
Our first date was a school dance, where we listened to the music of The Rascals, The Temptations and other popular groups of the era. Love was in the air. We continued our courtship, going to the senior prom together in June 1969. In July 1971, I proposed to Peggy at Southaven Park in Yaphank. 
We were married at St. Sylvester Roman Catholic Church in Medford on Aug. 28, 1971, and our reception was at Mickey Felice’s of Patchogue (now Lombardi’s on the Bay). 
Our relationship faced challenges, yet we moved through troubled waters. For example, the day before our wedding, Long Island was hit with heavy winds and rains from tropical storm Doria. We learned that the catering hall had lost power, and we weren’t sure we would have a reception at all. My home also had lost power, and I had to go to a relative’s home to get ready for our big day. All this played on our nerves, our determination prevailed: the power was restored by 3 p.m. and the reception began at 7 p.m. 
Afterward, we set off for Montauk Point for a short honeymoon. Then, we settled in Medford, where we have lived for 49 years. 
Both Peggy and I are retired educators. I taught special-education secondary social studies for 33 years for Eastern Suffolk BOCES and then spent another 10 years at Patchogue-Medford Schools as a substitute teacher and proctor, continuing in retirement to proctor SAT, ACT and AP exams. 
Peggy worked for Patchogue-Medford Schools as a kindergarten aide for 15 years, and then Eastern Suffolk BOCES as an individual aide for special-needs secondary students for 14 years. She served on the Patchogue-Medford Board of Education for six years, two as president. 
Peggy and I were honored by the Patchogue-Medford School District in 1997 as Volunteers of the Year, and in 2019 we were recognized as 50-year honorees during the Patchogue-Medford High School graduation. This recognition is bestowed on graduates who remain active in the community and school district through volunteerism and dedication to the students in the community. 
My wife is a woman who does not let adversity stop her from achieving her goals and enjoying life. She has been a devoted wife, outstanding educator, community leader and mom to three very special children, not to mention "Nanny" to four loving and talented grandchildren. 
Marrying each other has given us much happiness and success; we’ve learned by observing others and were able to avoid pitfalls that other young couples run into. We listen to each other and respect each other’s opinions. 
We will be celebrating our 50th anniversary at home with family and friends, since the COVID-19 crisis has limited what we can do and where we can go. Once life returns to normal, trips to Ireland (where Peggy’s mother was born) and Greece (where my father was born) are being planned. 
<h5>— With Laura Mann</h5>

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Love Story: It all started with a high school dance

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