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so, while Anthony went to work for a few hours at a time, Anna didn’t need to leave her son’s side.
There were exceptions. None of Anthony’s team was able to apply concrete to a pool, a difficult task only he could do. The day Anthony had to fill a pool with con- crete was the first full day he left his son’s side at the hospital. Anthony was fearful his son would take a turn for the worse when he was gone. “He was semi-out-of- the-woods, but not really,” Anthony says. Anthony spent the whole day thinking about his son, but the necessity of keeping the business operational compelled him to remain focused on the task at hand. Still, there are limits to one’s concentration and composure. “I came back to the office when Anthony Junior was in the hospital, and everyone was asking how he was. I just broke down cry- ing,” Anthony says.
After three weeks, Anthony, Jr.’s condition stabilized, and he was sent home. “Maria Fareri saved his life,” Anna says. Both Anna and Anthony went back to work full-time,
and Anna’s recently retired mother stayed with Anthony, Jr. Still, Anna says, “It was hard. You don’t want to leave your kid at home if he possibly might need you.” Anthony adds, “Every night when we came home from work, we were waiting for the other shoe to drop. It’s like when he
was a baby, going into his room every hour.”
Today, Anthony, Jr., has fully recovered from the acci- dent. In fact, just two months after the accident, he ran a blood drive at their home because he'd learned that hospi- tals have blood shortages over the summer, when a lot of accidents happen but fewer people are available to donate blood. Daniella decided to study nursing as a result of seeing
her brother’s recovery.
Looking back, the Torchias are grateful that their staff
helped to keep Coral Sea Pools running in a time of crisis. “I couldn’t be any more thankful or appreciative,” Anna says. “We have their backs as well. When your family needs you, you need to be there. Your family should always come first.”
Diana Scholl, a Brooklyn-based writer and Ossining native, is a regular contributor to 914INC.
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