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By Max Jaeger
Brooklyn Daily
For an evening, Bay Ridge stretched all the way to Mill Basin.
Ridge movers and shakers ate, drank, and danced the night away at the Bay Ridge Community Council’s Annual Dinner Dance at El Caribe Country Club in Mill Basin on June 6. The 63-year-old umbrella organization of area civic groups honored business leader and community activist Basil Capetanaikis for his life-long service to the neighborhood.
“We have a shared goal of developing and keeping the area as good as its always been,” Capetanakis said of the Council. “Knowing the great work he Council does, I am deeply honored for this award.”
The Greek-born real estate broker moved to Brooklyn in 1946 at the age of 16. Capetenakis served in the United States Army during the Korean War before started a real estate firm in 1972. Since then, he has been a fixture in the community, founding Soterios Ellenas Parochial School and the Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District, as well as chairing Community Board 10.
After two years of service, Council president Renee Dorsa passed the torch to fellow life-long Ridgeite Vincent Bocchino.
Another council member lauded Dorsa for her commitment to the Ridge.
“Renee Dorsa spares nothing when it comes to giving back to her community,” said past-president Bob Kassenbrock.