Our family settled on the North Shore of Staten Island, where my brother Joe and I were born and raised.

I remember when our Dad took us kids and the family for the first time down to Scholes Dock to see the party boats come in. The boats were filled with fish, and from that day on, my brother and I were hooked. All we did was talk about those catches.

So the following week, we started making the journey to Great Kills every weekend, jumping onboard public transportation with our fishing rods and tackle box in hand.  The bus dropped us off near Smitty's Sporting Goods, where we used to pick up bait in the morning and head down to the beach beside the dock.

We always watched the party boats go by in the mornings, and the Viking, owned by Captain Andy Kondraky, was our favorite.  After the boats sailed by, we would spend the day fishing for fluke and bluefish. And I tell you, the bite was always good off the sandbar at Great Kills.  When the boats would return, we’d pick up our fishing lines and run over to the dock and see what the customers bagged. Most of the time they’d come back with a whole load of fluke and see bass. 

After a while, we got to know a few people on the party boat.  We started exchanging stories about our catches with the regular customers on the Viking. Before you know it, my brother Joe was working on the boat, making a couple of dollars plus tips.  I was still too young to work on the boat.

As my brother Joe was gaining knowledge about operating a boat and fishing the waters of Raritan Bay and the ocean, I was going every weekend down to the beach with my friends to fish, having a great time. To this day, I still talk about those times. 

A couple of years later, when we were still kids, my brother, friends and I were fishing together on the party boat. I couldn't believe how many older people would help us out. These guys would help every which way they could, so we could land fish. From that day on, I listened to everyone from the captain right down to the mates and anglers. 

So my brother Joe and I said to each other, “Wouldn’t it be great to have our own boat to fish