25 Sandy Years: Bosacco Reflects on His First Quarter Century as a Stone Harbor Beach Patrol Captain
Soft-spoken strength, consistency and longevity.
These assets define the leadership of Sandy Bosacco, a South Jersey lifeguard fixture completing his 25th year as captain of the Stone Harbor Beach Patrol and 38th year with the group.
Bosacco’s subtle guidance matches his low-key demeanor in a high-profile job. He’s been a teacher, boss, coach and mentor for the guards who protect thousands of beach visitors each year.
As part of his personality, Bosacco can nudge people in the right direction without having to push.
Regarding his blueprint, however, there is no compromise. Perhaps Bosacco’s best gift to the community has been an ironclad, time-tested safety vision.
“There have been many advancements over the years with all the technology,” Bosacco says, “but no matter how much of that you have, this job hasn’t changed. It is still about paying attention. It is still about making sure people don’t get in trouble, and the guards have to be in great physical shape.
“Nothing else really works,” he adds. “We are on top of everything to make sure the bathers don’t face danger. Our best day is when there is no emergency. We don’t want to be reactive, but proactive, preventing people from being in trouble in the first place.
“When you look through all the noise, the job at its core still is a trained, fit rescuer, with a whistle, who knows what to do.”
And when one looks AT the noise, there’s a deeply entrenched Bosacco-Stone Harbor lifeguard connection.
• His Stone Harbor roots go back to the early 1900s, with his great-grandfather having a home here.
• Sandy’s father Stephen was a lieutenant with the Stone Harbor patrol in the 1960s. (Both were also part of the Avalon patrol). Sandy and Stephen were featured in a Seven Mile Times story commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Stone Harbor patrol in 2012. Sadly, Stephen died in March.
• Sandy’s wife DeDe was a longtime coach of the Middle Township High School swim team. She was also a Sea Isle City lifeguard for several years.
• Their daughter Sophia set a number of swimming records at Middle Township under the tutelage of her mom. Sophia is a sophomore at LaSalle University and a Stone Harbor Beach Patrol guard.
• Their son Stephen, a member of the Stone Harbor patrol, just graduated from St. Joseph’s University, where he rowed in the varsity eight.
The children blend into a mold that Bosacco treasures about the job.
“I love working with young people,” he says. “This is a time that is very exciting for them. It’s always interesting to see young guards come in as a teenager. You see them at the start and they are not confident. You watch them grow up, get some responsibility, handle the responsibility and then move on in life to be very successful.
“It is very satisfying when they come back here years later. You might have a doctor who wants to show his children what it was like to be a guard.
“I always remember taking my son out to row, too,” Bosacco adds. “He was 16. You watch him improve and then he gets better than you are.”
Sandy’s children appear to have gotten his message.
“My dad taught us a strong work ethic,” 22-year-old Stephen says. “He has shown me the importance of drive and motivation. Probably the best thing about him is how much time he is around. He would help me with anything.”
“I am proud to call him my dad,” says 19-year-old Sophia. “One of the things that sticks out to me is that he is hardworking. He prioritizes the safety of the beach, that is all he cares about. He really stays calm; it is one of the things he needs to do. He stays calm in situations in which other people would be neurotic.
“I don’t think I would be the lifeguard I am if he wasn’t my boss,” she continues. “I get a behind-the-scenes view of his thought process. There is a reason for everything he does, he thinks everything through.”
And in case you were wondering …
“Yes, he’s tough on me,” she laughs.
Keith Gabor, Bosacco’s senior lieutenant, salutes his boss’ leadership stance in three areas.
“One, he leads by example, he is here seven days a week and he works with all of us,” Gabor says. “Sandy has created a great work environment.
“Two, he is very loyal to his people. If you are doing a great job on the beach, you are always on time, you do the job well, he is going to bat for you. I look up at the guys in the headquarters and all of them have more than 20 years working for this man.
“Three, you know where you stand. He is very clear about running a safe beach, looking out for all the people who are here and for representing the borough of Stone Harbor in a great way.”
To that end, he’s also a visionary. Last summer, Bosacco persuaded city officials to approve a pay raise to $20 per hour, preserving Stone Harbor’s ability to keep guards. COVID-19 and the flood of unemployment money, for starters, had made many businesses scramble to maintain staff.
With the raise, Stone Harbor received more applicants than positions, reversing a dangerous trend.
“He did us a favor with that last year, because afterwards, we were able to get the same raise for our guards,” says Murray Wolf, the since-retired Avalon Beach Patrol chief, who saw Bosacco rise to senior lieutenant there before assuming command in Stone Harbor.
“Sandy worked his way up as you are supposed to do,” Wolf recalls. “He was excellent. You could see that he had leadership skills. I know one thing: I didn’t have to do too much disciplining of people with Sandy around. Sandy was quiet but tough.”
Pragmatic, not dramatic.
Bosacco’s leadership extends to all the patrols, extending from Brigantine to Cape May, as president of the South Jersey Lifeguard Chiefs Association.
The duty entails approving the protocols of all 15 patrols, impacting perhaps 1,000 lifeguards. He presided over a group that made the tough decision of canceling races last year for a circuit dating back to 1924 amid the pandemic and then restoring the schedule this year.
Bosacco is thus connected with the effort to protect millions of South Jersey beachgoers every year.
Most people in this area would not know that, which is just the way Sandy likes it. He’s always looked through the noise, prioritizing what matters, with a low profile.
