Thomas A. Casoria: On the Verge of
Marriage
Thomas
A. Casoria waited almost five years, after taking his
exam, to be called to his job at the Fire Department.
After almost three years on the job he was with Engine 22
on East 85th Street.
Firefighter Casoria was last heard from, according to
his father, Carlo, when he radioed his captain to say
that he and two other firefighters were helping a
paraplegic down the stairs from the fifth floor of 1
World Trade Center and, a little later, when he radioed
that a fireman was down.
Firefighter Casoria, 29, grew up in Whitestone,
Queens. At Holy Cross High School in Flushing, Queens, he
played second base and was captain of his baseball team
and was an all-city football player. Once in the Fire
Department, he switched to softball and played second
base on the department team. He "made plays they can't
believe he made," his father said.
Tommy's brother, Carlo, who is also a firefighter, was
in the same class at the academy. "He was my go-to guy,"
Carlo said. "He would be there for me."
With his firefighting career under way, Thomas Casoria
had time to think of his future and make his mother,
Judy, happy. He was engaged on Oct. 22 a year ago and was
set to be married on Oct. 13.
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