Searching For Frank

That's me, back row, 2nd from right in the suit. Frank is to my left (2nd grade)

It's an annual tradition.

Every year, ever April 16, I reach out to an old friend.

I think I first met Frank Viggiano in second grade at Austin Road Elementary School in Mahopac. We were in Mrs. Clarizio's class.

I don't really remember how we hit it off, but we became brothers.

I'd be at his house. He'd be at mine. We -- me, Frank, John Vaughan, Brian Power, and Chris Guiney -- were inseparable sports nuts. We were all Yankees fans. We'd go to games together.

Me: Top row, far right. Frank: front row, left. Chris: front row, center. John: front row, right. (5th grade)

We had differences in football (Cowboys, Steelers, and Giants among us, as I recall).

We'd play basketball, and they utilized my height, even if I didn't know the sport that well.

There was some interest in hockey also (more so with Brian and Chris). They were bigger on the pro wrestling scene than I was, and Frank -- ever "The Italian Stallion" -- also appreciated boxing.

The summer was full of all of the above.

We talked about everything. Music, TV, video games (I can still see Frank's Colecovision), and movies. Frank had a Betamax, because of course he did.

There was a feeling of "The Sandlot" to us because we weren't afraid to take on any comers. Just name the sport.

We were the tough guys who would ride our bikes to Rodak's deli for sandwiches (oh those meatball wedges), then take over Mahopac High School's football field.

We'd go back to Austin Road and just do dumb things. We might have climbed on the roof once, but I think that the statute of limitations has expired.

Frank: top row, left. Me: top row, fourth from left. Brian: third row, far right. (7th grade)

Frank's family moved to a different part of Putnam County, and he'd go to another high school. Eventually, as is known to happen, the five of us split up. We'd still see each other, but girls and other friends and jobs and, well, life took over. Times changed. We changed.

I continued to stay in touch with Frank as best as I could, even going to see him at his new house.

We did a good job of staying close during the latter part of the '80s. He went off to a baseball college in Texas, when the phone rang one night. It was Frank, just wanting to hear the sound of a friendly voice as he fought homesickness.

He, frankly, was among the best ballplayers I had the pleasure of knowing. We won championships together in the mid-80s as a part of coach Lou D'Aliso's team.

Back row: Mike Fanning, Frank, me, Steve Adamec and our 1986 championship team

The last time I remember seeing some of the guys was at my dad's wake. I remember sobbing at them coming out to support my family, and hugging Frank tightly.

Then ... life went on. I moved on, married, divorced, etc. As for Brian and John? I have no idea. Sadly.

Chris is a Facebook friend and seems to be doing well. We still talk Yankees every once in a while.

If I'm happy for social media for any reason, it's that.

As for Frank, I was invited to his wedding in the late '90s.

I last saw him in 1999. I went to his house on Long Island and watched the World Series with him. A few nights later, we went to Game 4 and watched our boyhood team win a title together.

Every year, I'd still reach out to wish him a happy birthday. Around the same time my marriage broke up, I called him to do my annual routine.

He no longer lived there. His ex-wife was kind enough to call me.

"You were always so nice to him," she said. "I felt you deserved to know."

She gave me another phone number to reach him.

We connected again, and he caught me up to date.

We're Facebook friends, but he doesn't seem to use it anymore.

I knew he was involved with teaching and coaching sports on Long Island, and I had often mentioned how great it would be to broadcast a game of his. I liked being able to do such things for friends, just as I did on Staten Island in 2014.

Sadly, he's never met Sean.

I still have that number. I could try him.

But it just feels like there have been too many years of unreturned calls.

I know his brother died just before the wedding back in the '90s.

So I guess I began to wonder if he was just content to leave Mahopac alone and move on.

I've prided myself on staying connected to my old friends, so it bums me when I can't find Brian or John or Dan Kaplan, or I go years without talking to Frank.

I miss these guys.

I still wished Frank happy birthday today on Facebook.

Some things never change.