At age 105, Dominick Critelli has seen his share of history. He served in World War II, spent years teaching the next generation and, through it all, kept his saxophone close by.
On Sept. 8, Critelli, a decorated former Army staff sergeant, broke out the instrument once again at Lynbrook Restorative Therapy and Nursing, where he performed for veterans, residents and guests.
Before he began, though, he had something he wanted to say to his colleagues in the room. “We have so many veterans here,” Critelli said. “Gentlemen, we love you. We want to see you more often.
“All the veterans, not just from World War II — all the veterans,” he added, “because everybody is in the same pot, believe me.”
Critelli, a longtime Floral Park resident and a former industrial arts teacher at South Shore High School in Brooklyn, continues to play the saxophone well into his second century. His music has also become a way for him to pay tribute to the servicemen and women who came before and after him.
His performance in Lynbrook took place just days before the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. He honored fallen service members as well as the first responders and others who died that day.
For Critelli, the gathering was also a chance to speak to younger veterans about a responsibility he believes has passed from his generation to theirs. “The veterancy that we had before, such as I was, we can’t have anymore,” he said. “We have to have somebody else to really make this country very, very free.”
He urged those who followed his generation to continue protecting the freedoms for which earlier generations of service members fought. “You have to do whatever you can from now on,” he said. “We cannot do anymore. We did what we could, but we urge you, please, keep the freedom, the freedom that only this country has. It’s the greatest thing that we have.”
Critelli’s connection to the United States began long before his military service. He was born in Italy, and his family came to the U.S. when he was 8. “And of course I had to learn a lot,” he said.
More than nine decades later, one lesson, he said, has remained with him. “I learned that there’s no other country in the world like this country,” he said.
His performance came during a challenging time for Critelli. After a fall in July resulted in a fractured femur, which required surgery, he came to Lynbrook Restorative Therapy and Nursing for rehabilitation, where he has been working to regain his strength, mobility and independence. He was discharged from the rehab center a day after his performance, on Sep. 9.
But the injury has not kept him from his music. Critelli regularly plays saxophone for his fellow residents, and has long used music to honor fallen service members. He played the national anthem at a New York Islanders-New York Rangers game last December.
The Sept. 8 gathering included not only the Lynbrook facility’s residents, but guests and local officials as well. Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman proclaimed the day Dominick Critelli Day in honor of his military service and continued dedication to his community.
But Critelli spent much of his time looking outward, rather than reflecting on the recognition. And he did what he has been doing for decades.
He played.
