WHAT MORE COULD YOU ASK FOR? The weather was a perfect "10" on Labor Day; the view of the Bay was the most beautiful in the area and last but not least, the gourmet food served by Grace and Ed Ricketts was the best ever. The lively group all had a wonderful time - many will be leaving for Florida for the winter in the months to come. Thanks Grace and Ed for a great party.

WE TRY TO KEEP OUR PROMISES, and in our last column we said that we would keep you informed about our good friend Connie Hoernel who had fractured her wrist after a fall, so we're pleased to be able to report that Connie is doing very well and on the road to recovery. Way to go Connie.

OUR AREA WAS VERY-WELL REPRESENTED IN DENVER. Leading local Democrats made the trip. We'll start with our leader, Rich Schaffer. Also on hand were Babylon Town Supervisor Steve Bellone with his wife and baby, who can tell her grandchildren that she was on the convention floor in 2008 and former Suffolk County Executive Pat Halpin, who's always on the scene for important events.

IT'S BIRTHDAY TIME IN BABYLON, AND HERE'S OUR UPDATE ON THE CELEBRANTS: We'll start with Millard (Jug) Warren who celebrated with his family on August 30th, Carmen Accettella (the prettiest girl in Babylon) who celebrated on August 31. And Mary Rinklin marked her special day with her family. Sue Howell had a family celebration with her children and Jane Kane and Mary Ellen Sullivan were also celebrants. Our very best wishes to all of these ladies and of course we send our special love to the guy on the list.

HE COMES BACK TO BABYLON EVERY SUMMER Yes, Bob Baiter who was raised in Babylon, has been teaching in Italy for many years, comes "home" every summer. He enjoys seeing his Babylon friends, and of course they enjoy seeing him.

THERE ARE SO MANY RESTAURANTS IN OUR VILLAGE to choose from, and if you like good seafood, fresh and very well prepared with lots of dishes to choose from, you can't beat The Pier. Went there with friends last week, and had a great meal - everyone loved their choice.

EVERYBODY IS A WINNER ON THIS ONE. Yes, when our Suffolk County Democractic Leader Rich Schaffer endorsed Jennie Henry for the Democratic line in the race for Suffolk County District Court Judge it meant a sure win for Jennie, who already had the Republican and conservative lines. This means that Jennie will win the election which means that the residents of the 2nd District are winners to have such a competent Judge representing them, and of course it means that Rich is a winner of the race because he showed such excellent judgment in his pick. Rich told us: "Jennie collected 700 signatures on her own. The Democratic Party likes hard workers and that's one reason we chose her to run on our ticket." Jennie will do a great job.

DON'T FORGET THE 17TH ANNUAL ENDLESS SUMMER PARTY to be thrown by the Babylon Rotary Club on September 14th at the Long Island Yacht Club. This year there will be a change of venue - in the past the party has been held at La Grange. The party will feature a wide variety of food from the local establishments, as well as live music, and wine from local and international growers. It will start at 2 p.m. The donation is $75 per person ($90 at the door).

OVER FOUR THOUSAND MEALS WERE SERVED TO THE NEEDY IN THE AREA LAST YEAR, and these were the volunteers representing nine different churches at the summer feeding ministry at the First Presbyterian Church. The Ministry reopened on Aug. 21 for the 18th consecutive year. Congratulations to this fine group of residents who do so much for our community.