‘I had always been a fan of professional wrestling growing up. Announcing saved my life.’

Ryan Peterson, Bethpage

“I have two jobs: By day, I’m a technical assistant for account managers at an insurance broker, and by night, I’m a sports announcer for sporting events, including MMA, kickboxing and professional wrestling. I’m basically the gentleman in the suit introducing the fighters coming into the ring or cage. It was a long road to get to this point.

“I grew up in a single-parent home. I had a difficult time because I was bullied in middle school. By the time I got to college, I was still a shy guy, but I loved working on an internet radio show. I had always been a fan of professional wrestling growing up.

I try to get the crowd involved. If the kids are happy, it makes me and the fighters love what we do even more.

“In my 20s, I became friends with people who did professional independent wrestling. In the beginning, I tried wrestling myself. It’s not as easy as people think. I quit after the first two weeks because it wasn’t for me.

“There was a training school that hosted a seminar by WWE Hall of Famer ‘Mouth of the South’ Jimmy Hart. I said to Mr. Hart, ‘I’d like to participate, but I’m not a wrestler. What can I do?’ He said, ‘Why don’t you try being a referee?’ I wasn’t good. The school said, ‘This guy is actually a radio DJ. Why don’t you give him a shot at announcing?’ So, I took the microphone, did what I normally observe, and he said, ‘Son, that is your calling.’ Those four words are near and dear to my heart.

“Two months later, I officially made my announcing debut in front of 300 people. Until that point, I hated public speaking. I was a nervous wreck, but the adrenaline kicked in, and all my fears went away. It has been more than 10 years, and now I’ve done shows all over the U.S.

“I’ve also been featured on global pay-per-view, and I’m a mainstay at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut, which hosts 10,000 people. I’m living my childhood dream in that I’m involved with wrestling but not getting hurt.

“I try to get the crowd involved. If the kids are happy, it makes me and the fighters love what we do even more. It’s all about giving back to the fans. Announcing saved my life. I’ve lost a lot of weight since beginning, and it made me feel good about myself again. I feel more competent in interacting with people. I’m very happy with the person that I am today.”

Interviewed by Iris Wiener

‘My mother wanted me to be a teacher, but school wasn’t my thing so I sought out a job on the railways.’

Bethpage

“I am a locomotive engineer who runs freight trains from Brooklyn to Suffolk. I initially got interested in railroads because of my grandfather, who lived in Huntington. When I was a kid back in the 1970s, I spent weekends with him.

“He used to take me to Greenlawn to see the freight trains being organized. Sometimes he would even take me on train rides on Thanksgiving weekends in Pennsylvania.

“My mother wanted me to be a teacher, but school wasn’t my thing so I sought out a job on the railways. In 1997, the Long Island Rail Road privatized their freight train line and formed the New York & Atlantic Railway.

It’s very rewarding to work with a charity that aims to decrease the occurrences of preventable tragedies.

“I was one of the first people hired in a starting group of 23. Ours is a fairly small operation compared to the LIRR, but we deal exclusively with freight trains and primarily export solid waste, scrap metal and construction debris, much of which ends up getting recycled.

“Although freight trains are big and noisy, they are excellent for the environment since they decrease the number of trucks on the road. Being a freight train conductor is very different from being a passenger line conductor.

“Instead of managing the traveling public and greeting riders, we spend a lot of time outside hitching the cars together and building trains for local routes. It’s hard work but good work for those who don’t mind dealing with rain, snow and heat. I love it because I think it’s wonderful not to be tied down to a desk job.

“Unfortunately, over the years, I have seen quite a few fatalities due to people trespassing on railroad tracks or cars trying to drive through crossing gates. These experiences have led me to volunteer with Operation Lifesaver, which raises public awareness about railroad safety. It’s very rewarding to work with a charity that aims to decrease the occurrences of preventable tragedies.

“Out of those original 23 employees, I am the only one still working for the company. I hold the top spot on the seniority roster for the New York & Atlantic Railroad. I have been able to raise three college-educated kids and buy a house in Bethpage because of this line of work. I’m in no rush to retire because the railroad is a stable career which has been good to me.”

Interviewed by Meagan Meehan

‘Every day before I left the house, no matter where I had to go, I always gave my dad a kiss goodbye and told him I loved him.’

Bethpage

“My dad calls me in from the living room and says, ‘You need to see this.’ He points to the TV screen of a singer who just got the Golden Buzzer and says, ‘See this kid? You’re gonna marry this kid.’ That ‘kid’ and I are now engaged.

“In 2017, a year after my dad showed me that episode of ‘America’s Got Talent,’ I went to SantaCon with a friend. I wasn’t going to go, but my friend convinced me and I’m so thankful she did. We bumped into that same singer, and he happened to know my friend. She introduced me to Sal, and the first thing I told him was that my dad said I was going to marry him. He made a joke that he should probably take me to dinner first.

“So, we made plans to get dinner on Tuesday. I went home and immediately told my dad who I ran into. He honestly wasn’t even that surprised. He thought it was meant to be. He was giving himself all the credit, of course.

“The day before the date, I told my dad how nervous I was. He told me to just be myself, and if it doesn’t work out, then it doesn’t work out. The next morning, I woke up and went to work like any typical Tuesday.

“Every day before I left the house, no matter where I had to go, I always gave my dad a kiss goodbye and told him I loved him. That was a big thing in our family. You could never go to bed or hang up the phone without saying, ‘I love you,’ because you never knew what tomorrow was going to be like. I really learned this lesson.

‘I don’t know if he knew something, but he turned to me and said, “Maybe it’s better that I’m just watching you walk down the aisle.”’

“I told my dad goodbye, and that I loved him, like usual, and he asked me, ‘What time is this character coming over tonight to pick you up? I want to touch up my hair before I meet him.’ I was so excited for the date, and I even asked my boss to leave early to get ready.

“I got home, and it was about 3:30, and something just felt weird when I walked in the door. I had two German shepherds at the time, and usually they were always at the door when I came home. But on that day, they weren’t. We lived with my mom, aunt and cousins, and so my mom was upstairs with my aunt.

“I went downstairs and walked past my dad’s room. I saw him sleeping on the bed and the dogs were with him. I didn’t want to wake him up until my date arrived, so I went into my room to get ready.

“As I was in my room, I heard a blood-curdling scream from my mom that I don’t think I’ll ever forget. To this today, if I’m in a different room than somebody else, I still get that anxious feeling. My dad passed in his sleep. He was super afraid of death. He was overweight and had an enlarged heart.

“He drove me to work and back every day for two years. Just a week before he passed, we were in the car, and I noticed he was very out of breath. I said to him, ‘Daddy, I want you to walk me down the aisle. I don’t want you to be in a wheelchair.’

“I don’t know if he knew something, but he turned to me and said, ‘Maybe it’s better that I’m just watching you walk down the aisle.’ I went to work and started crying because it hurt. My dad and I were really close – I’m an only child.

“Before he passed, he was hallucinating in his sleep, which we now know is a big part of heart failure. At the time, we didn’t realize it because he always talked in his sleep. We used to take videos because it was funny, so we had no idea that this was any different than his usual sleep. The hallucinations started happening the week before he passed.”

‘He took every emotion, whether it was anger or sadness or happiness, and he stayed with me. And four years later, he proposed on Christmas.’

“When my dad passed, I was trying to get into the room. I was a medical assistant at the time and had a CPR certification. My aunt pushed me to the side and that’s when I knew he was gone.

“My friend was on her way to do my makeup, and I called her screaming to call the cops. I collapsed in the street. It’s a day I really will never ever, ever forget. “My friend called Sal and explained what happened. He didn’t know me at all. We had just met at a random bar, but he sent food to my family’s house that night. He even drove all the way to Lemon Ice King of Corona in Queens to get me a big tub because he knew how much it meant to me.

“My dad was from Corona, Queens, and he was very proud of being from there. He used to drive there every Saturday to bring back tubs of ice for my family. We buried my father two nights before Christmas, and on Christmas Eve, Sal reached out to me. He ended up going to the same midnight Mass as my family. He sat with us and just held my hand. He told me that when he was praying, he told my dad that he promised he’ll take care of me. He wanted to help me through this time.

“He was living in Florida at the time and asked me to spend time with him there. I took a leave from work and for two months, I lived with him. It was rough. My emotions were all over the place, but he stood right there.

“He took every emotion, whether it was anger or sadness or happiness, and he stayed with me. And four years later, he proposed on Christmas.

“I’m a big believer in signs, and my dad gives me signs all the time that he’s with me. That’s what gets me through every day. I’m currently planning a wedding, and to think he’s not going to be there breaks my heart, but at the same time, I do know he is watching me and with me more than ever.”

‘I feel a safeness with Sal. He has that same love that my dad always had for me.’

“My dad was a very interesting person. He actually won the lottery years ago. He would always play these certain numbers, and one day, he won. He didn’t even check the ticket until he heard there was a winner in Corona. His life changed at that point.

“He was a big believer in the power of your subconscious mind, so it doesn’t surprise me that he pointed out Sal and said I would marry him. He was spiritual with the mind and believed we have the ability to manifest what we want. He had books on the subconscious mind, and there was one book that was very important to him.

“Every page had notes. One page in particular had something highlighted. It showed how to make the perfect family, and he put a check mark next to it with my photo.

“My dad was a very powerful presence. If he walked into a room, everybody knew him. Tracksuits were my dad’s thing. We buried him in a tracksuit with a cigar in his hand. He was very Italian and very loud. He had slicked back hair and if even a piece was messed up, he had to go home and touch up his hair.

“He was a heavy guy and would always say that God made him heavy because if he was skinny, then everyone’s wives would leave them and marry him. He was very confident.

“We have the same face. He would call me Joey Jr., like his clone. Sal is very similar to my dad, and maybe that’s why I chose him. My dad probably didn’t remember this, but he and Sal met at a cigar lounge. Sal told me that he saw my dad in a tracksuit and glasses and he didn’t know he was my dad at the time, but it’s a comforting feeling knowing they actually did meet.

“They both love cars, both proud Italians, and their personality in general, like their charisma, is the same. My dad must have chosen Sal because even their annoying qualities are the same. I guess he was letting me know that I couldn’t fully escape him.

“If my dad was here, I know him and Sal would be inseparable. I really do. They just have so much in common. I feel a safeness with Sal. He has that same love that my dad always had for me. My dad always treated me like I was the greatest gift on Earth, and Sal does a pretty good job at keeping that up. I guess my dad was right all along.”

Interviewed by Melanie Gulbas

‘I thought about how both of my parents had died by suicide and how great it would be to save a life since my parents were unable to live.’

Mindy Davidson, Bethpage

“About a year and a half ago, a former work colleague asked me to watch a video presentation about her cousin who was in need of a kidney. I was very moved, and I contacted the organization he was working with for more information. However, my daughter was a year and half away from completing her doctor of physical therapy program, and I didn’t want to add more stress to her life.

“Over the year that followed, stories and articles kept popping up about those in need of donors. I mentioned this to my daughter as ‘I just saw another sign.’ This past fall, I asked her if she would be OK if I started to pursue an altruistic donation. She said, ‘Yes, I’m fully on board.’

“I reached out to find out if my former colleague’s cousin was still in need of a kidney, but it turned out he had just been approved for one. Through an article my daughter sent me, I began the process of finding out how to donate to a stranger. I went through the testing, and the committee met and deemed me a candidate.

“While going through this process, I thought about my parents, who had died by suicide — my mom in 1990, after a very long battle with clinical depression, and my dad in 2016 — and how wonderful it would be to save a life and give that person more time with their family.

They say you’re not just saving one person’s life, you’re really saving two, because you’re saving the person you donate to and then the person next on the list can be matched.

“Once I was cleared to donate, they went to the national list and found someone who was a match with me. I was told that the recipient responded by saying he didn’t even realize a living donor was a thing and couldn’t believe someone would want to donate their kidney to a stranger.

“I haven’t met him yet, but they tell me that he is doing well, and they will try to arrange a meeting between us about three months after surgery. At four and a half weeks post-surgery, all the discomfort was gone.

“I was able to reintroduce running into my walks and began to cycle again, hoping to do my first post-donation triathlon by season’s end. I hope by [my] going public with this story, people realize you can live with just one kidney and you could truly be a lifesaver.

“They say you’re not just saving one person’s life, you’re really saving two, because you’re saving the person you donate to and then the person next on the list can be matched.”

‘Climbing took me all over the world. It took me to Europe. I packed up my bags and spent a whole summer climbing in Céüse, France.’

Bethpage

“Climbing is way harder than people think. These big, strong, muscle guys show up and can barely climb to the top. It can take years of practice and training. I started climbing in high school with a friend. During senior year, my gymnastics coach would take me climbing. My coach was a 5.13 climber, which meant he could climb some of the hardest climbs in the world at that time. There weren’t many rock-climbing gyms back then so, it was all outdoors.

“Sometimes, instead of gymnastics practice, we’d go climbing. I lived in Colorado, and he would drag me out to these intense routes, and I would get mad at him because I thought they were too hard for me. I was following him on these hard climbs, and I learned so much. He would tell me how to clip, how to turn, how to move and use my feet. The higher the number, the harder the climb. I went from being a 5.8 to a 5.12 climber in one year. I took a break from it once I got to college to do gymnastics, and when that ended, I started climbing again. I was five years older and a lot stronger. The longest multi-pitch route I’ve climbed is somewhere between 500 to 700 feet.

“Climbing took me all over the world. It took me to Europe. I packed up my bags and spent a whole summer climbing in Céüse, France. I was with a friend and my high school gymnastics coach. All we did was climb for the entire summer. Most rock climbing has natural features. Sometimes people will chip or drill holes into the rocks. You look at the rocks and go, ‘I wonder if I can climb it?’

“A lot of climbs are just big caves. The steeper it is and the more overhanging it is, the harder it is. The hardest one I was able to climb was a 5.13 in France. It took me the whole summer. You can work a route for months; sometimes people work them for years to get to the top. When you work a route for a long time, you know every move. You know where your foot should go, how you’re going to turn your body, if it’s a good sharp edge to grab, where the rests are and where the hard parts are. It’s all about getting through those moves as efficiently as possible so you can get to the top without falling, but you do fall when you’re bouldering. You fall a lot.”

It goes through your head, the “What if?” His life was in my hands.

“I always climb with ropes, but I don’t wear a helmet. I mainly did sport climbing. This is when you’re climbing hard routes that have bolts in the rock to clip in protection devices. The routes are clean, meaning all the rock has been tested, so if there’s any loose rock, it’s usually pulled off by whoever put the route up. The few close calls I’ve had were from traditional climbing in high school. I was learning to lead climb, which is when you’re climbing above your equipment. You can either clip into the rock or attach your own protection device to do it, which is either a camming device or a wall nut. If you don’t put it in right, it comes out. As you climb up and clip in, the further you space them out, the longer you fall.

“We were climbing in Boulder Canyon, and I was at the end of a 300-foot climb, so the hard part was over. There was a 25-foot section of pretty easy climbing, and I put a wall nut in, but not very well. I’m at the very end, and I grab a rock, and it pops off in my hand. I fall. I’m flying through the air. I’m waiting for my protection to catch me, but my last piece came out. I fell about 60 feet down before my rope caught me. I stopped climbing for a bit after that. I was so freaked out. I was only 17.

“Another time, we were climbing at the Garden of the Gods in Colorado, which were sandstones, brittle rock. We were doing a mix of sport and traditional climbing. I was belaying for my coach, so he was above me. All of a sudden, a rock the size of a basketball flies towards me. I ducked, while still belaying him, and he fell below me until his equipment caught him. I threw myself forward into a rock, and my chest was scraped and bloody. It was a hard fall because when he fell, there was a lot of extra rope, so it created more distance. It’s a lot about trust. It goes through your head, the ‘What if?’ His life was in my hands.

“We shook it off and kept climbing. We’re at the very top, and I’m traversing. A rock comes loose and tumbles down. It’s the size of a car. We’re freaking out and yelling, ‘Rock!’ in case there’s somebody below us. This was a popular climbing place, so we thought we killed somebody. Luckily, nobody got hurt, but we were shaking.”

As a climber, you get to go to locations that you would never typically experience. You wouldn’t even look for some of these spots unless you were a climber.

“I’ve done some competitions in the past. There’s bouldering and rock-climbing contests. I did a couple of them, but I never pursued it much. I liked climbing for my own personal experiences and hanging with my friends, not to win something. Climbing is a community. People are friendly and willing to help. I’ve met people from England, France, Spain, people from all over the world. You just hang out and climb all day. I miss it, and I would love to get back to that lifestyle, but I’m older now. I can’t climb at that level anymore. It would take at least a year to get in shape to climb as I used to, and then I would have to pray I don’t get any injuries because as you get older, things break more easily.

“I look at photos of all the really hard climbs I’ve done and think it’s so cool, but I’m not going to do that again. Both my kids started climbing right away at 5 years old. They climb with me at Life Time gym, where I’ve worked the rock wall for a few years. My daughter is 9 years old now and has really stuck with it. She’s only climbed indoors, but I’m debating on getting her outside on the rock someday. I would love to take her. I’m glad I had all these climbing experiences, and I was able to climb at such a high level. I got to travel the world. As a climber, you get to go to locations that you would never typically experience. You wouldn’t even look for some of these spots unless you were a climber.”

‘I could write an 88,000-page book of everything that went wrong. It’s all about staying focused and being determined to rise!’

Bethpage

“I was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when I was 18 months old. I wasn’t hitting my milestones physically, and it prompted an evaluation. After the diagnosis, my mom began to enroll me in early intervention services. I had physical, occupational and speech therapy at home multiple times a week. There came a time when my mom and uncle were realizing that my developmental disability was not intellectual, only physical. This realization was first happening when I was being taught how to communicate with a speech device. Before the speech device, I only communicated through my own version of sign language.

“As I became proficient with the communication device, my intellect started to be much more pronounced to my family and school officials. As a child, I don’t ever remember getting down about my physical limitations. Being disabled was my normal. I pretty much did everything that other kids did — but in a modified way. I don’t consider myself having challenges. When I think about challenges, I think of overwhelming struggles. I don’t have that. Mainly because whenever I want to do something, I give it all of my focus until I am done.

You can do anything that you put your mind to. You simply have to eat dirt sometimes and have the determination to push forward.

“On December 7th, 2019, I participated in a ceremony where I was one of the people who received their blue belt from a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy. This promotion has to be one of the best highlights of my life! Three years ago, I knew nothing about Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu except for the necessary general information. I’m still infatuated by my physical improvements and knowing how to use my body discrepancies to aid me. My teacher treats me like anyone else in his class. He has no pity for me and doesn’t hesitate to call me out if I’m not training at maximum. I’m pumped to see where this takes me next.

“You can do anything that you put your mind to. You simply have to eat dirt sometimes and have the determination to push forward. I’m 32 years old, I’m in no pain, on no medication, in excellent physical and mental condition, have had a job for 10 years, have an apartment, and get through this crazy world with a smile. I could write an 88,000-page book of everything that went wrong. It’s all about staying focused and being determined to rise!”

Interviewed by Jay Max

‘I call them my furry inmates and they have a decent life, but it could be better. I feel bad for them because they deserve to be in a loving home.’

Bethpage

“I’m a member of the medical staff at Rikers Island, and in my spare time, I trap cats there for TNR – trap, neuter, return. I have worked there for 22 years and we always had a feral cat population on the island.

“A retired correction captain is still involved and comes onto the island a few days a week to do cat rescue. She said, ‘We could use your help.’ That kind of changed my life. I was bitten by the cat rescue bug.

“We’re called Rikers Island Cat Rescue, a 501c3; we have a Facebook page and we’re short-staffed. COVID threw a monkey wrench; it was a ‘cat-tastrophe’ because the ASPCA had offered us free neuter services, but they closed down during kitten season, so all these kittens were being born.

“We try to get the population under fairly good control, but people dump unwanted cats here. They figure they get fed here and we have shelters.

“Thankfully, the ASPCA reopened and we were able to work out some mass trappings with 30 cats in September, then we did another operation in November, another 27 cats.

I started making winter cat houses and feral cat feeding stations and selling them to donate the profits to the cat rescue. I can’t keep up with the demand — someone saw a picture of the cat house I built and asked to buy one, and it spread by word-of-mouth.

“Right now, we’re running out of food. We go through 1,000 pounds of food per month. We estimate there are 350 cats and there are other critters that come around that eat the food. I started making winter cat houses and feral cat feeding stations and selling them to donate the profits to the cat rescue. I can’t keep up with the demand — someone saw a picture of the cat house I built and asked to buy one, and it spread by word-of-mouth.

“About 60 percent of the cats on the island are neutered, but 40 percent are not and that can change very rapidly. One female has a litter, and the kittens can get pregnant at 4 months and it grows exponentially.

“We have a cat house with 28 cats in there now, they were dumped, they were someone’s pets, and they don’t do well in the feral communities. We take them in and get them neutered and we try to get them adopted, but we’re so busy doing the caretaking of the colonies and the TNR that we’re slacking on the adoption process.

“I call them my furry inmates and they have a decent life, but it could be better. I feel bad for them because they deserve to be in a loving home.”