John Daskos, a retired Major in the New York State Guard, a member of our Greenburgh Veterans Committee, a country club manager lost his life to Covid-19.
BE CAREFUL, WEAR A MASK, SOCIAL DISTANCE--COVID IS KILLING SOME LOCAL COMMUNITY LEADERS---THIS PAST WEEK: MAJOR JOHN DASKOS OF HARTSDALE
In recent days I have received a number of calls/e mails from residents who have observed people not wearing masks at supermarkets, shopping centers and at events. Although most people are complying with social distancing rules and with masks - there are still many who are being careless. COVID-19 is a terrible disease that is prematurely taking the lives of young people, older people, residents who are careless and careful. The more careless you are the more likely it is that you could get the illness. And, possibly lose your life.
As of today, over 316,200 Americans lost their lives to COVID-19. Sadly, some of the 316,200 have been important leaders in the Greenburgh community. Earlier this week I reported the passing of former Elmsford Village Trustee and Assistant Greenburgh Building Inspector Bill Tibbs of COVID. This past weekend I learned of the death of Major John Daskos of the NYS Guard who resided on Dalewood Drive in Hartsdale for many years. Major Daskos, who lost his wife Helen at the young age of 41, brought up his children Maria and Emanuel. An exceptionally nice man, Major Daskos was healthy a few weeks ago. It took two weeks for Covid to kill our local hero.
John, a member of the Greenburgh Veterans Committee, knew how to interact with everyone. He could be a friend to the rich and to the poor. He was nice to everyone. He started working as a caddie at Sunningdale Country Club in the Edgemont section of town at 12 years old and became assistant manager at 17. He worked at the Waldorf Astoria, the Harmonie Club in NYC and later became General Manager of the Quaker Ridge Golf Club in Scarsdale; the Elmwood Country Club, Rockville Links Country Club and Towers Country Club. He was inducted into the Metropolitan Club Managers Association Hall of Fame.
Beyond his contributions to the church, he had an unwavering passion and enthusiasm for service within his community. He served as a Major and Administrative Assistant in the New York State Guard, Executive Board Member of the Westchester Alcohol and Drug Dependency Council, and a Volunteer at White Plains Hospital. He was a big supporter of the Greenburgh Police, always spoke with me about the importance of good customer service (providing me with advice from his years of managing country clubs) and attended our annual veterans day and memorial day ceremonies (with a mask on this past fall).
He served his country as a Food Service Officer for the New York State Guard at Camp Smith in Peekskill, NY. John was active on 9/11 at Camp Smith and Ground Zero. He was a member of the 42nd Infantry “Rainbow” Division Association of the United States Army National Guard and in 2018 received the Appreciation Award in recognition of his role as Upstate Chapter Coordinator of Special Events.Major John Daskos (Ret.) was a member of the Town of Greenburgh, Veterans Advisory Committee. The Veterans Advisory Committee is dedicated to serving Veterans in our community, and throughout Westchester County. John’s primary focus was the prevention of Veteran suicides whenever possible. He thought every suicide was preventable, and would go to any length to help another Veteran. In every episode as co-host of “Veterans Helping Veterans'' on the Public Access Channel, and at every Veteran event, he would continually remind Veterans that “You Are Not Alone, We are Here For You”. John coordinated many adaptive sporting events for wounded Veterans to insure they could participate in sports with other Veterans. “Let’s Get Them Out With Other Veterans'' was his standing order to the committee. He was very active in monitoring the healthcare of our Veterans at the VA Montrose Campus, and he worked tirelessly to insure the facility received proper federal funding. John coordinated the Town Annual Veterans Barbeque that was attended by over 350 Veterans and their spouses. He worked on many food drives to insure that the Montrose Veteran’s Food Pantry would always have sufficient food available for all Veterans in need. His phone was available 24 hours a day for anyone in crisis. He was an active member of the Scarsdale American Legion Post 52, belonged to numerous Veteran organizations, and ensured that our Veterans were never forgotten in our community.
John will be missed. He was a great neighbor, friend, community leader, patriot --and a caring person.
PAUL FEINER
Greenburgh Town Supervisor