WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JANUARY 26, 2017 25 BUZZ See some of the awesome ‘trash treasures’ that this Ridgewood man has been collecting BY ANTHONY GIUDICE [email protected] @A_GIUDICEREPORT Other people’s trash has become this Ridgewood man’s treasure. Nick DiMola has been using his residential and commercial interior demolition and rubbish removal company, DiMola Bros. Inc., to collect old and interesting items from people’s trash for over 30 years, and has amassed quite a collection in his Ridgewood-based offi ce. DiMola, who was born and raised in Ridgewood, started his business right aft er high school. He began by laying concrete, but quickly transitioned into cleaning up residential and commercial debris. He decided to keep his family name on the business because his grandparents owned a shop on Myrtle Avenue in the 1940s, so it was a way to keep the name in the neighborhood. “I love Ridgewood. I wouldn’t move from this neighborhood for nothing,” DiMola said. “Unless I’m forced out, if the zoning changes force my business out of here. Then I don’t have a choice, but I’m in here for the long haul. They consider this part of Ridgewood to be the industrial zone.” Since he was a kid, DiMola has had in interest in collecting things. He would always be collecting plastic toy soldiers, pens, pencils, marbles and anything he could get his hands on. So when he started throwing away people’s trash he was keeping an eye out for old and interesting things. “Over the course of time, you go to sites and you have to throw garbage away and you just pick things out of the garbage because you like something and you end up accumulating a collection,” DiMola said. “Then the collection takes over and it becomes a part of you.” DiMola’s office on Summerfield Street is fi lled with all kinds of artifacts, trinkets, toys, electronics and even some items from when Ridgewood was younger. Some of the more interesting things he has includes old pocket watches, a vintage Coca Cola vending machine, an old gynecologist’s chair, old cellphones and much, much more. One of the oldest items DiMola has is a Swedish coin from 1764. While the coin may be the oldest item, DiMola has an attachment to the many cast iron car toys he has collected over the years. As the times change, however, DiMola is fi nding it increasingly diffi cult to fi nd older items in the trash. “The garbage is getting less and less interesting with fi nding old stuff ,” he said. “That’s what makes it more of a trash-treasure when you fi nd something because you see less and less of it.” The main reason DiMola likes to collect these “trash treasures” is because they truly are a window into the way people lived their lives. “You can go to the museum and see millions of dollars’ worth of old artifacts and artwork. It’s not the same as checking out stuff you fi nd in the everyday lives of people. It has so much more character to it because you can explain to kids that your grandparents, and their grandparents, this is what they did, this is what they used and this is how they lived.” D iMol a says he is not interested in selling off any of his collection, but hopes that his collection is passed on to his son and other collectors to keep the items’ stories alive. Photos by Anthony Giudice RIDGEWOOD TIMES Wedding bells will be ringing! The Ridgewood Times would like to congratulate our reporter, Anthony Giudice, on his engagement earlier this month to Alison Duignan; the couple resides in Glendale. Anthony popped the question to Alison, who works at Ridgewood Savings Bank, while they vacationed in Ireland earlier this month. The proud parents are Patrick Duignan and Gillian Leiper, and Joseph Giudice and Lisa Lettieri. A wedding date has not yet been set. “It is with all the happiness in the world that I announce my engagement to the love of my life, my best friend, my tag team partner, Alison Duignan,” Anthony said. “I cannot wait to spend the rest of my life learning, growing, traveling and loving with you. You truly are an amazing person and I have been blessed to share these last fi ve years with you. Without a doubt you make me a better person, and I couldn’t picture anyone else by my side as I walk through this crazy journey called life. I love you and thanks for saying yes!” The staff of the Ridgewood Times congratulates the happy couple and wishes them all the best!
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