Just over 30 years ago, Farmingdale resident Dominique Cattone, a longtime resident of Oakdale Boulevard in Farmingdale, decided to do something about a barren little grass-filled island in front of his home, on the corner of Oakdale Blvd. and Balcom Road in Farmingdale. The strip of land, at that time uncurbed and empty, soon turned into a memorial of sorts when Cattone, with the help of his friends and neighbors, put up a flagpole for the whole neighborhood to enjoy. Curbs were placed around the island when the sewer system was later redone. Cattone, a WWII navy veteran and retired employee of LILCO, bought the flagpole in 1971 from LILCO and members of the American Legion helped him put it in the island. That was in October of 1971, and Cattone has been taking the flag out every morning and bringing it in every night ever since.

Following the events of Sept. 11, Cattone and some of his neighbors, particularly Marlayne Mammone, who lives down the street, decided it would be nice to put up some sort of memorial honoring all those who were affected by the events of the attacks on America. Mammone asked Cattone if she could place a Freedom Rose, bright and vibrant red in color, and some other flowers for World Trade Center victims in front of the flagpole and soon the small island in the middle of the road became a memorial ground for those affected by the tragedy. Mammone planted small flowers, shrubbery and little trees around the existing flagpole and placed bricks in a circular manner around the base of the pole.

"It started out really small," Mammone explained, noting that she just wanted to plant a few flowers. Mammone said that when she first wanted to place flowers around the area, she wasn't sure if the village would allow it, so she wanted to place them in a pot that would be easy to remove. She said that she went to Picone and Sons in Farmingdale looking for a pot to place the foliage in, and when they found out what she needed the pot for, the company donated both a ceramic pot and a stone for the memorial site. In addition, Mammone's friends and neighbors who own a nearby farm stand donated mums to place at the site. The stone, which will be placed at the site in the near future, will bear a "National Prayer" that Mammone came across which she felt perfectly suited the occasion.

"I don't remember where I found it," she said of the prayer, adding that she went over to her neighbor and friend Marti's house and asked her, a graphic artist, if she would help in the project and figure out a way to have the prayer placed on the stone. "Marti's great with this kind of stuff," Mammone explained, noting that the stone will be raised for all who visit the memorial to be able to read the engraving. She added that her neighbor Marti played a large role in the project, since she was the one who went around to various printing and trophy stores to see what would be the best way to have the stone done.

This tight-knit community found within the streets of Oakdale and Balcom all came together to help in the project. Cattone, who never took credit for the inception of the project, even in 1971, said that it was wonderful to see the community become so involved. He explained that back in 1971, he went door to door and collected nickels and dimes to help install the flagpole at the site. Throughout the last three decades, whenever the flag would begin to fray and need replacement, Cattone would again turn to his neighbors. Now, 30 years later, he went door to door again and raised money to help the project get going. Despite the fact that many of the neighbors he had in the '70s moved out of the area and many of the homes are occupied by new families, they have all been warm and supportive, providing and contributing what they could to the cause.

For example, Mammone noted one family, in which the husband, Sean Michael, is a firefighter, donated a "God Bless America" sign to place in front of the flagpole after Sept. 11. The sign was later laminated and placed on two wooden poles for support.

"Everybody really just came together," Mammone said, adding that Cattone deserves much credit since it was his idea in the first place.

"This is not an overnight deal," Cattone explained. "This will be ongoing." The residents on the two neighboring blocks were happy to see that something had been done to the barren island back in 1971 and are just as happy now to be able to do their part in recognizing the victims of Sept. 11. The best part is, no one person has taken the credit for the project, always pointing their finger at another neighbor who contributed. The memorial will surely stand as an attestation to a caring surrounding community for many years to come.