Born and raised in Mineola, a graduate of Mineola High School's Class of 1939, John DaVanzo never left Mineola because, to him, the village is home. Perhaps that's why DaVanzo is maybe the community's best known citizen and his legacy has come to symbolize the village's rich history.

Just two days after D-Day, the Navy Destroyer the U.S.S. Glennon, which had been hurling shells upon the shore of Normandy in support of troops advancing North toward Quineville, struck a mine not far from the shore. On June 9, salvage equipment was assembled, and some 60 officers and men of the Glennon came back on board. The following morning, just as Comdr. Clifford A. Johnson was preparing to resume efforts to save his ship, a German battery near Quinneville found her range. A second salvo hit Glennon and cut off all power. After a third hit, Commander Johnson ordered abandon ship and the men were taken off in a landing craft. Glennon floated until 9:45 p.m., June 10, 1944, then rolled over and sank. She suffered 25 lost and 38 wounded.

DaVanzo was a Naval officer on the U.S.S. Glennon. He survived the ordeal and returned to Mineola, his hometown. He married and had five children. He remembers Mineola way back when there was a lot of empty land and has seen the changes the community has undergone.

At the time DaVanzo came out of the service, there was a lot of vacant land in Mineola, particularly west of Marcellus Road and west of Memorial Park. Where the library is now was actually a pond. There were lots for sale as families started to develop the land and build houses. "You could actually be on Marcellus Road and just look west and see vacant land," DaVanzo said.

In 1955, DaVanzo got involved in politics when he became a village trustee, filling a vacancy on the board that came due to the death of Mayor Thomas Wilson.

In those days, residents were concerned with taxes. People wanted parks. The library was in the process of being built in its current location. The East End Civic Association pushed for curbs on the east end of the village, which, around Sheridan Avenue, was comprised of new homes following the war. "Up where the bowling alley is, there was nothing in the old days. I can remember the Caprice family, an old family in Mineola, built the San Su San. Everybody said Caprice was nuts. You could look down Jericho Turnpike and see empty lots and there was this restaurant," he said, pointing out that the San Su San drew such stars as Frank Sinatra.

In 1956, the village would celebrate its golden jubilee, marking 50 years since its incorporation. DaVanzo would design the village logo that you see today.

Having served on the board for 10 years (1955-1965), five of which were spent as the village's deputy mayor and 54-year member of the Mineola Fire Department, DaVanzo has been as much a part of Mineola as any one citizen could be in his community.

He perhaps can recall the changes in the community as well as anyone, as he recalled a time when Mineola was more rural than it was urban. He remembers a time when there were at least five hotels in Mineola, which was a prime location because of its railroad stop. "It gave people an opportunity to come out to the country and this was the country," DaVanzo said.

In the old days, instead of Jericho Turnpike, Main Street was the main drag, with the firehouse, the post office, a theatre known as the "Monkey House" and a live chicken market.

During his time on the board, DaVanzo oversaw the construction of the Mineola Pool for the board. As chairman of the pool board, DaVanzo helped sell the subscriptions to the pool to offset the cost for using the land ($10,000 a year) and the maintenance.

The biggest change DaVanzo has witnessed though was the development of Mineola. From apartment houses (The President Apartments on Mineola Boulevard was the first, DaVanzo says) to office buildings, and the commercial development the village encouraged to increase its tax base, Mineola became more of the community it is today, offering commercial developments while maintaining a suburban quality.

Through it all, from Mineola High School where DaVanzo lettered in football, baseball, basketball and track to service in the Navy and back, DaVanzo has stuck with Mineola, the community that has always been home.

(Information for U.S. Glennon came from www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Base/1250/glennon.html)