A VERY SPECIAL PARTY FOR A VERY SPECIAL LADY. Yes, Rosemary Halpin celebrated her 90th birthday, (you would never believe it when you see her) in January with her children: Suzanne Steinberg and her husband Paul Steinberg of Babylon; her son John and his wife Lynee of California; her son Mark and his wife Minette of upstate New York; her son Patrick of Amityville; her son Paul of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and her daughter “Missy” and her husband Tom of Connecticut. Also attending were her 11 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. The party was held at the home of her grandson Peter Welling and his wife Kara of Bayport. Rosemary looked beautiful and so happy surrounded by her large and beautiful family. We want to wish many many more years to this outstanding lady.

QUESTION? What do Libby Orr, Lucy Trumble, Jane Warren, Fran Pasch and Rosemary Halpin all have in common? Answer: All five gals celebrate their birthdays in January. Each year we’ve written a note in our column to let our readers know. This year is different. Lucy Trumble called all of the gals and invited them to meet at their favorite spot. Guess where? The Parkwood, of course. So, we all got together there at a lovely party hosted by Mohammed. After a delicious lunch, we all joined in blowing out the candles on a very special cake. Many thanks to Lucy for getting us all together and to Mohammed and his crew for doing such a fab job on the luncheon. It was a truly a day to remember for all of us.

THIS JUST IN: Mark your calendar now for the first Village concert to be held at the Gazebo on July 2 with our own Joel Sikowitz conducting his band. Also, the Conklin House awardee will receive his or her award on that evening. As we speak, the committee, composed of winners from previous year, are voting for their selection. It promises to be a very exciting evening, so plan ahead and come to the Gazebo on July 2.

AND TWO MORE APRIL EVENTS ON THE CALENDAR. You won’t want to miss the April 18 celebration of the founding of the Babylon Business and Professional Women’s Organization – the first women’s organization in our Village. It’s the 75th anniversary, so it’s very important to the whole community. We’ll have more info later.

ALSO ON APRIL 18, there will be a celebration of the founding of the first professional black baseball team right here in Babylon at the Old Argyle Hotel. Their playing field was located northwest of the old hotel, where a plaque with a marker will be placed. Mayor Scordino and Alice Zaruka have already started work on the project and have some surprises in store for those who attend. P.S. Way back then the team was called “The Cubans.” Following the ceremony, refreshments will be served at the Historical Society.

SEND BEST WISHES TO ANITA NORTH who is recovering from surgery at the Affinity Skilled Living Home located at 305 Locust Ave., Oakdale, or if you prefer you may drop by her home, 4 Magoun Rd., West Islip, NY 11795. Anita was, and still is one of the hardest workers in our community. You name it, she’s given of her time and talents to make it work. What’s more, everybody loves her with her gentle ways as she still gets the job done in a timely and efficient manner. Get well real soon Anita. Your friends need you.

THIS JUST IN. A sign of spring. Every year Southward Ho closes for the month of January and half of February. Then on Valentine’s Day it re-opens, and what a happy occasion it is. Everyone is always so glad to get together after the long, cold and snowy time off.

AND SPEAKING OF VACATIONS FROM THE COLD, we’re all so glad to have Treme Morris back from her Florida trip to Deerfield Beach where she visited friends and had a great time. Unfortunately Irene came home with an illness of some kind – she’s feeling much better now, and we hope that she’ll be as good as new by the time you read this column.