hmTv at HMTC Podcasts Ep 718: The Fog of War and Humanity with Rich Acritelli and guests Rena Sylvester & Tony Nassisi P2 on hmTv
The Fog of War and Humanity | Ep. 718: Tony Nassisi, Building a Life After the Navy, Part 2 | HMTC
Tony Nassisi left the Navy in 1960 ready to build a family, a career, and a home on Long Island. The work ethic guiding him began with immigrant grandparents who helped build America.
In Part 2 of The Fog of War and Humanity, host Rich Acritelli continues his conversation with Tony and Rena Sylvester. Tony recalls his final Cold War service aboard a destroyer escort, watching for Soviet submarines, Caribbean swim calls, and returning home to his wife and newborn daughter.
He traces his family from Turin and Sicily, including a grandfather who worked on the Empire State Building. After the Navy, Tony delivered milk to Queens apartments, hauled lumber, and found a 24-year career maintaining Hicksville schools.
That work carried hidden costs. Tony describes cleaning boilers and working around asbestos without modern protective equipment, followed years later by serious health problems. His story honors a generation whose service continued after military life through family, labor, community, and quiet perseverance.
The Fog of War and Humanity on hmTv | Host: Rich Acritelli | Guests: Rena Sylvester and Tony Nassisi
A production of the Holocaust Memorial & Tolerance Center of Nassau County
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CHAPTERS
0:00 Introduction
1:14 Tony’s Final Day in the Navy
1:41 Cold War Service on a Destroyer Escort
2:51 Caribbean Swim Call
5:01 Building a Home on Long Island
6:35 An Immigrant Family Helps Build America
8:37 Family Roots in Sicily
9:47 Life as a Milkman
11:18 Working at the Lumberyard
13:03 Joining the Hicksville School District
14:29 Groundskeeping and School Maintenance
15:41 A 24-Year Career
16:28 Boilers, Asbestos, and Health Consequences
18:14 Closing
HASHTAGS
#TheFogOfWarAndHumanity #TonyNassisi #NavyVeteran #LongIslandHistory #HMTC