By: By Dan Israeli
"A loving husband and father, James Gottlieb gave not only to his family, but to the Franklin Square/Garden City South community as well."
The above words are engraved on a plaque that is mounted on the brand new home dugout at H. Frank Carey High School's baseball field, in honor of a man who tragically had his like taken away from him in January of 2005. Both newly constructed dugouts were dedicated in a special ceremony on March 29, before Carey's season opener, where family and friends of the late James Gottlieb gathered to see him remembered for one of his greatest passions in life, the game of baseball.
"James loved baseball, from little league to high school to the pros," said Elizabeth Gottlieb, his widowed wife. She stood in the middle of the field with her three children, James, 22, Brian, 20, and Alicia, 11, all coached by their father in Garden City South Little League, as they were presented with the plaque recognizing Gottlieb's years of service. "He would be very proud," added Elizabeth. "He's probably here with us right now."
For those who knew him, the dedication ceremony provided some positive closure, just over three years after Gottlieb's heinous murder. On Jan. 5, 2005, Gottlieb was driving to his Garden City home from his job as a bank manager at a HSBC branch in Cedarhurst, when Reginald Gousse, of Queens, impersonating a cop, pulled him over. Gousse was a convicted felon, with a prior record of committing similar crimes. After a struggle to obtain Gottlieb's key to the bank, Gousse shot him twice. Gottlieb died an hour later at Mercy Medical Center in Rockville Centre due to a massive loss of blood.
An unforgiving Gousse, who denied killing Gottlieb, was sentenced to life in prison without parole two years ago, after an overwhelming amount of evidence proved his guilt. While the verdict provided the real closure for the Gottlieb family and their friends, it did little to bring back the memory of their lost loved one. The dugout project, two years in the making, was a collaborative effort of many community participants, spawned in 2006 when John Punis Jr., of the Carey JV baseball squad, suggested that the dugouts be dedicated in Gottlieb's honor.
"When people started hearing about it, money came pouring in," said Bart Badalucco, a technology teacher at Carey. He was one of several school participants to pitch in for the project, which received funding from a number of outside suppliers, most notably Super Stud Building Products, which donated roughly $20,000 worth of materials.
Andrew Monteleone, president of Garden City South Little League, said he was impressed with the finished project, especially considering the man it was dedicated to. "He gave so much to the community," Monteleone said. "He would still be coaching his daughter if he was alive today. Jim will always be our tenth player on the field when Carey and Garden City South little league play ball." The little league has already established a James Gottlieb scholarship for $500, which will be awarded to each a boy and girl this week.
Carey Principal Douglas Monaghan said he was impressed with the effort put into the dugout project. "It shows what great communities Franklin Square and Garden City South are," he said. "It's a tribute to such fine people, who were devastated with the loss of one of our most amazing citizens." Both of Gottlieb's sons attended Carey and played for the baseball team, while daughter Alicia attends Washington Street School.
The dugouts, which have been worked on since last summer, are magnificent cement structures with beautifully finished wood benches and equipment racks inside, comparable to those of professional teams. As she spoke to the crowd in attendance, Elizabeth Gottlieb acknowledged all those who lent a helping hand.
"On behalf of my family, I want to thank everyone involved in the project," she said. "My husband truly loved the game of baseball. He is missed by us, and it is an honor to see that so many of you miss him as much as we do."
