Isabel Freeman and William E. Vogelson III. For anyone still wondering about the identity of the bride who was left waiting at the door by a trolley hired to bring the bridesmaids and bride to St. Joseph’s Church, it was Isabel Freeman. Despite the fact that Isabel and the bridesmaids had to walk, the wedding went off on time and was wonderful. Isabel married William E. Vogelson III on May 29th, 2009. After the ceremony at St. Joseph’s in Babylon, the reception took place at Timber Point Country Club. Isabel is the daughter of Isabel and Richard Freeman and granddaughter of Isabel Gallagher. Billy is the son of Cecile Mattingly and William E. Vogelson Jr. and stepson of Elizabeth Paine. The bride is a Finance Manger at First Data Corporation in Melville, and Billy is a campus minister at St. Francis Prep in Queens. Both are graduates of St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. The Vogelsons reside in Glean Oaks.

Pick-up lines. Between personal experience, movies, and television, most of us have heard a hundred of them. Some pick-up lines are great, some make us smile, some make us wince, and others can make you want to punch the person who uttered them. On a rating scale, “I’m looking for a mother for my five kids” would have to rate pretty low. Nonetheless, that was what Ron Campi told a vivacious young woman at a Parents Without Partners mixer back in the early sixties. Dot Romano’s response was short and to the point, “Well, don’t look at me!”

The young divorcee was supporting herself and her young daughter by running the local Sears catalogue sales. She had recognized the plumber as the Good Humor man from Babylon High when she was still a student there and had no interest in dating him. But Ron and his five children somehow managed to cut through her defenses. In 1963, Dot and Ron were married and began raising a blended family of six children. In the years that followed, three more children joined the Campi clan in a house on Siegel Boulevard. With just one bathroom, the house was small, but filled with love and laughter.

During this time, Dot was an avid follower of Babylon High’s football team. Together with her friend, Arlene Kalpin, Dot attended hundreds of games. Their presence was an integral part of each football season. Several times, the school made a special point to recognize their constant support with awards for their school spirit.

Inevitably, the Campi children grew up and left the home on Siegel Boulevard. In February 1999, Ron died after a long bout with cancer. A memorial tree was planted near the main firehouse on Montauk Highway to recognize his decades of service as a volunteer fireman. Dot stayed on in the house for a few years, but suffering from lung problems, she eventually found it necessary to move to Arizona to live with daughter Robin and her family. Dot’s family and friends mourned her departure but were delighted when she decided to return to Babylon for six weeks each summer.

One of Dot’s greatest regrets was the fact that she had been unable to finish her studies and graduate from Babylon High School. Although she would have been a member of the Class of 1949, hard economic times in post-World War II America forced her to drop out of Babylon and go to work prior to graduation. In the following years Dot, married and busy with children, never had the chance to receive her diploma.

Sixty years later, on Saturday, August 15th, Dot was able to fulfill that dream of becoming a BHS graduate. A special diploma, presented by Darrell Conway on behalf of the Babylon School Board, made Dorothy Campi an official graduate of Babylon High School’s Class of 2009.

Thepresentation, complete with mortarboard and 2009 tassel, was made at the lovely home of Joseph and Margaret Campi in Hauppauge. Thegraduate, surrounded by a large group of family and close friends, was celebrating her upcoming 80th birthday. A week later, Dot returned to her new home in New River, Arizona. Her family and friends are already counting the days until she returns to Babylon next summer.

For the chefs and wouldbe chefs out there, you may want to check out a special class on cooking with herbs at the Conklin House on September 2nd at 7:00 p.m. Michael O’Connell, head chef of the Venetian Yacht Club, will demonstrate how to make oil-infused herbs and how to use herbs in basic sauces. All attendees will have an opportunity to taste each dish and will be given a bouquet of herbs for their own use. Theclass costs $15.00 and the proceeds will go to The Conklin House restoration Fund. Call 669-8164 for information and to register.

TheDirty Sock Run was held recently. The10k race, organized by Hapi and Chrissy Auer, runs from Park Avenue up through the woods and around Belmont Lake and back. Thisyear there were over six hundred runners wending their way around the course. Fortunately, after a series of very hot and humid days, Sunday dawned cooler and drier with a slight cloud cover…ideal conditions for the race. The Village spent several days working on the course to make certain that it was dry and safe. Funds raised through the race are used by the Babylon Clergy Cluster to provide food for local residents in need.

When you read this, there will be only ten days left in season for the Babylon Village Pool. Sitting at the Bay end of Fire Island Avenue, the pool was built by Frank Lipp and opened in 1924 as a private enterprise. It was the largest pool on the East Coast, with particularly beautiful tile. In 1949, Mayor Erastus Munson and the Village Board proposed a public referendum to purchase the pool for $45,000 from then-owner Cadman H. Frederick. The measure was passed by a margin of five-toone and included a total of seven acres of land. A large-scale renovation was undertaken in 1972 with a beautiful new pavilion. At some point in the 1950’s, Mayor Gilbert C. Hanse escorted the legendary Robert Moses on a tour of the property, boasting that it was the largest saltwater pool in the world. Moses promptly returned to Jones Beach and enlarged that salt-water pool to ensure that it was larger! In 1982, in recognition of Gil’s outstanding service to Babylon Village, the pool was named after Mayor Gilbert C. Hanse.

A wonderful site, the pool sits at the tip of land that extends into the Great South Bay. For decades, the pool was a sailor’s landmark, easy to spot because of its flamingo pink exterior.

In 1986, the pool closed for renovations under the watchful eye of then-Trustee Ralph Scordino, reopening the following year with a slightly smaller pool constructed inside the old pool. The original pool was 80x200 feet in size, and the reconstructed pool measures 60x164 feet. Thenew pool was deepened to 11 feet to create a safe diving area, and incorporated a 15x65 foot tee to allow competitive swimming events. A larger sundeck was added as well. Thebath house facility was renovated to provide for accessibility for the handicapped at the same time.

The current Village Pool is well-utilized and provides swimming lessons for Village residents, as well as arts and crafts and special story hours by the Babylon Public Library for Village children. With a wonderful bay breeze, the pool is the source of refuge on hot, humid days for many Babylon families. Thank you to Marie Bohrer and the Babylon Historical Society for the background information on the pool.