This year the American Red Cross in Nassau County honored Renata Maimone of Bayville who died this past year. For many years she had been the "poster-child" of the swim, as the oldest swimmer to take part in the Red Cross Swim-A-Cross. Throughout her life, Renata would swim each day of the summer at Stehli Beach on Long Island Sound. In the winter she swam at the Glen Cove Y.

She crossed Oyster Bay Harbor for the last time in 2004 at age 87 with her son Jeffrey. Last year, she made the decision to swim at the final moment, making sure she felt strong enough for the challenge. The two swam side by side as they took part in the annual event.

Renata's oldest son, Jeffrey Maimone was ready for another one-miler across West Harbor to Centre Island Beach on Friday, Aug. 19, but he said, "This feels weird. We miss you mom, especially at this time." He was standing with Judge Ute Lally, a longtime supporter and co-founder of the race with Bayville resident Joan Imhof. Judge Lally too was missing the late Renata Maimone.

Jeff said he has been coming to Bayville to swim at Stehli Beach for 22 years. He, like his mother, is a dedicated swimmer. She swam as a child growing up in Berlin. "I've been back to Germany with her," he said as he talked about taking part in the Swim-A-Cross. At first, Jeff said that the two just wanted to swim in open water but later, when they saw how the Red Cross helped people after the Nor'easter that hit Bayville in 1992, "we were psyched about the event."

This year, he said the swim went beautifully. Sometimes there are jellyfish in the water, at times there is a strong wind that means they have to fight the current. Last Friday, he said, "Nice cold water dropped on our heads. The water was warmer than the rain." It was a special time for him as he reflected on his mother. "We swam together and would talk. It was a special time. It felt like she was there," he said.

Another aspect of the swim is the cammarderie of the swimmers - people who have gotten to know each other as they meet year after year at the swim. "A man came over and shook my hand. He met mom two years ago, so she was with me all the time," said Jeff.

"This is a part of my life. I'm going to continue in the swim, especially since I'm moving into mom's house in Bayville. An 85-year old gentleman shook my hand. He's now probably the oldest swimmer. It's a special event. I meet these people once a year. I've seen kids grow up here: seen them come at age 9 to 10 and see them now at 16 and 17."

Bayville swimmer Jane Morfis was taking part in her 16th Swim-A-Cross. "I am the only one here of the seven swimmers who took part the first year," she said.

Larry Keller has done the swim for about 15 years and said that he was glad to be there again. He said, "A friend from New Hyde Park told me about the swim in the '80s and I thought, 'I have to do this.' I started swimming sometime around 1987 or '88. I was always a swimmer. The first time we took part in the Swim-A-Cross we had to swim the other way to Centre Island. There were white caps in the water and unbelieveably, it was pouring rain. I got into the water and I was laughing so hard. I'm no chicken and I said to myself, 'Tom [his friend] doesn't know what he's getting into. He swam in a pool. We both laughed. I've never had a bad time here," said Mr. Keller.

"It's been a great day in honor of Renata," said Dave Gugherty, the Majority Council for the Nassau County Legislature. "I miss seeing her over at the Y in the morning. I used to swim with her there." Mr. Gugherty knew Renata too, from his days on the Bayville Village Board meetings that Ms. Maimone wrote about in Bayville Briefs in the Oyster Bay Enterprise Pilot. She was very involved in writing about environmental issues. He had news that would have pleased Renata.

Mr. Gugherty said, "There are exciting laws coming up. There is a tax exemption for solar energy installations. I'm working with Legislature Diane Yatauro on it. The state enacted the legislation and we jumped right on it. It goes into effect on Dec. 1. It will be in the Legislature on Sept. 7." It is a topic Renata Maimone would have enjoyed writing about.