Thursday, October 1, 2026
For nearly six decades, Frank Ozol has responded to fire alarms, dropping whatever he was doing to climb aboard a fire truck and head toward an emergency in Melville and then, years later, in Oyster Bay.
Ozol, who currently serves as Atlantic Steamer Fire Company’s second assistant chief, has been a volunteer firefighter for 57 years. His service spans generations, technological advances in firefighting and countless calls that residents deeply rely on.
For that lifetime of service and dedication, Ozol has been named the Oyster Bay Herald Person of the Year for 2025.
“I’ve been a fireman for 50 years, except for 20 minutes,” Ozol said, recalling the brief gap between resigning from the Melville Fire Department and being sworn into Atlantic Steamer. “And that was God’s honest truth. There’s only been 20 minutes I didn’t belong to a fire department.”
Born in 1950, Ozol grew up in Melville, where his father was a charter member of the local fire department in 1947. From an early age, the firehouse was part of his everyday life, and it even had a firehouse dog, a Dalmatian that was cared for by various members while they waited for calls.
Ozol joined the Melville Fire Department in 1968 while still in high school, at a time when most departments required members to be at least age 18.
“I grew up in that fire department, because I just always had the interest in the fire trucks,” Ozol said. “Even now, I’m just a big kid. I just love hearing the sirens.”
In the early 1980s, Ozol moved to Oyster Bay with his wife, Kathy, who he met at SUNY New Paltz. The couple came to Oyster Bay because Kathy, who died this year, grew up and longed to return to raise a family.
While Ozol knew that he would miss his friends in the Melville Fire Department, “I told her, ‘I can join the fire department anywhere on Long Island,’” he said.
The following week, he resigned from the Melville department and joined Atlantic Steamer, postdating his resignation to 20 minutes before his swearing-in ceremony.
Ozol has served Atlantic Steamer in nearly every capacity, including multiple terms as chief. Even now, at age 75, as one of the oldest active members in the department, he remains hands-on.
Francesco Barbera, Atlantic Steamer’s current fire chief, said Ozol’s presence is invaluable.
Barbera said he first met Ozol at a fire school 14 years ago, and was impressed by the no-nonsense but informative way Ozol walked him and the other trainees through the routines.
“His nature is to teach people and share his knowledge and that was exactly what he was doing,” Barbera said. “He approached me and introduced himself and wanted to educate me on the fire service and what they did as an organization.”
Rob Walles, a firefighter in the department who has known Ozol since the 1980s, added that teaching instinct defines Ozol.
“Frank is a wealth of knowledge,” Walles said. “He’s been in the fire service for years, and he knows many of the other chiefs. He’s an excellent training officer, and he’s good to the young guys because he takes the time to explain to them and make sure they really understand.”
During his 57 years of service, Ozol has seen firefighting evolve dramatically, from protective gear to rescue tools.
He recalled early car accidents where firefighters had to remove seats with ratchet wrenches because steering wheels could not be moved. Firefighters now have a range of mechanical tools at their disposal, such as the “jaws of life,” to pry open crushed or blocked doorways in car crashes.
Despite advances in technology, Ozol said the core of firefighting has remained unchanged.
“The firefighters are the same,” he said. “They want to help people, and they find excitement in challenging the fire.”
He described instances when a chief would order firefighters to evacuate a burning building in danger of collapse, and the trust that is required to immediately follow those commands.
Ozol has spent decades balancing his volunteer fire service with a full professional and creative life. After earning a bachelor’s degree in economics, he worked as a forms analyst and methods analyst at a bank, and later at aircraft manufacturers Republic Aviation and Grumman, where he helped streamline processes and save money.
In 1996, anticipating layoffs after Northrop acquired Grummon, Ozol chose to leave and reinvent himself. He purchased Summit Street Deli in Oyster Bay and ran it for two years.
He explained that he frequently worked 15-hour days, helping the co-owner and chef prepare food and serve customers. Despite the long hours, he described it as one of his best professional experiences.
After selling the business, Ozol retired from full-time work and became, in his words, a “full-time fire chief” for a period, often eating lunch at the chief’s desk between calls.
Alongside his firefighting, for more than 25 years, he played saxophone, flute and clarinet in an 18-piece big band that performed across Long Island and New York City. And, at times, the two worlds collided.
“I ruined a couple tuxedos,” Ozol said. “I’d have the frilly shirt on, and when you go into a fire, they easily rip or get all smoky.”
For Ozol, the sacrifices have always been worth it, adding that there is no feeling like saving someone’s life, whether it’s performing CPR, using an AED or rescuing someone from a burning building.
His fellow firefighters added that in a crisis, few people could be trusted more.
“He’s very relaxed. He doesn’t get shook,” Walles said. “He knows his job very well, so if we have a problem and Frank says, ‘This is what we gotta do,’ there’s nobody there that questions it.”
As Atlantic Steamer’s second assistant chief, Ozol’s responsible for training new members and encouraging young people to join. It’s a role he enjoys, especially since those same early interactions made such an impact on him when he was younger.
“Every time I see a 3 or 4 year old at the firehouse,” Ozol said, “I think maybe in 14 or 15 years, this kid is going to say, ‘I remember when that guy put me in the fire truck.’”
Barbera said that sense of mentorship keeps the department alive.
“With preserving what we are as an organization and making sure that there’s a way to see you after us,” Barbera said, “it keeps the history alive.”
In addition to his work at the department, Ozol has served for years as an officer in the Volunteer & Exempt Firemens Benevolent Association of Oyster Bay, as well as being involved in several fundraisers for cerebral palsy.
For Oyster Bay, Ozol’s decades of service reflect a tradition of volunteerism that continues to protect the village, one alarm at a time.
