Love Story: Janet and Rich Boziwick, Northport

Janet Boziwick of Northport recalls a prediction from her mother and how she met her husband, Rich, at work.

I was 21 in 1978 when I began working in the personnel department at Gibbs & Hill, an engineering firm located above Penn Station in Manhattan. I remember my mom telling me that I would meet someone nice at my new job. I told her that they were all very old men and not at all interesting.

One day, a woman came into the department and was inquiring about me. My colleagues told me she was the secretary to Rich Boziwick, one of the mechanical engineers. He sent her over to find out how I pronounced my last name, Magoolaghan. They thought it cute that I had an admirer. I had seen Rich a couple of times in the elevator, but we only exchanged greetings.

He soon approached me and asked me to dinner at a nearby restaurant. On that first date, we got to know each other and enjoyed our conversation, which lasted for a few hours. He was 27, had grown up in Great Neck but was then living in New Jersey. He told me he was not just an engineer but also a musician and played piano in a band.

Our next date was to a Yankees game. Rich told me it would be fun, but he was very serious during the game, busy keeping score. He started teaching me how to keep score, and I, too, became a Yankees fan.

We continued dating and spent time with his family at their summer home in Sag Harbor. He came to my house in Broad Channel, Queens, where the oldest of my three brothers taught him about sailing. I sometimes went to hear Rich perform with his band.

During Christmastime in 1982, we got engaged at The Milleridge Inn in Jericho. We were married on Oct. 29, 1983. Our reception was at The Stewart Manor Country Club. We moved to Northport, where we raised our three wonderful children, who are our true blessings.

Rich took over his dad's business, RP Luce & Company Inc. in Northport, designing high-tech packaging solutions for the military and the broadcast industry. I work with Rich every day.

Rich serves as Northport Village chairman of the planning board, is director of the Great Cow Harbor 10k Run, a member of the Northport Historical Society Board and was recently elected rear commodore of the Northport Yacht Club. I belong to the Northport chapter of the St. Charles Hospital Auxiliary Board, which raises money for the pediatric unit. I'm also a member of the Asharoken Garden Club and recently enrolled in a Cornell Cooperative Extension Master Gardener program.

In 2013 we renewed our vows in celebration of our 30th anniversary. Love and respect have always been our central focus. Our love has only grown stronger and deeper over the years.