Dennis Scauso, H.M. 1 Dennis Scauso, 46, of Dix Hills, was with the New York City Fire Department’s Hazardous Materials Company No. 1 in Maspeth. He died in the south tower. Only his helmet was recovered. Dennis Scauso was the third of Rose and Salvatore Scauso’s four children and the only son. He kept in close touch, often stopping by for lunch, or calling to check on them. So in the days after 9/11, when his parents had not heard from him, they knew they were hoping for a miracle. If he’d survived, “he definitely would have called,” said Rose, 84, a full-time secretary for United Cerebral Palsy. “A few months later they finally found his helmet,” she said. “It was very painful, especially the condition it was in. It was completely crushed.” Working keeps her busy, which helps her cope. “It’s not been easy, you just don’t ever forget,” she said. She likes going to the ceremonies at Ground Zero. “I find it very consoling to be with people who feel like I feel,” she said. Scauso, a pilot and animal lover, grew up in Commack, where future wife Janlyn was a neighbor. His parents remain close to her. The couple had four children, Juliette, now 14, Gabrielle, 16, Donny, 21, and Darcie, 23. On Sept. 9, Darcie gave birth to a boy who would have been Scauso’s first grandchild. Janlyn Scauso, who lives in Melville, said the children have “a different sensitivity and insightfulness that makes me proud, and I know he would have been very proud. But this walk for the last 10 years has been beyond words.” Said Gabrielle Scauso: “My dad was murdered. It’s not like you wake up one day and suddenly that void is filled … You don’t move on: you have to go to sleep, wake up and go on living.” – Carol Polsky
