Asbury Park Press from Asbury Park, New Jersey • Page 70

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 13, 2000 4 3 ASBURY PARK PRESS Retiree becomes model citizen By BONNIE DELANEY STAFF WRITER A up a -down koski in Alexander boy to liked the Carteret, growing to Ku- Rar- go itan River to swim with his friends. Vanessa Big Eyes is a spayed, 6-month-old female cat. She's very affectionate and good with other cats. Adopt Vanessa or another pet at the Jersey Shore Animal Center, 185 Brick Brick.

Hours are 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Closed Monday. Call (732) 920-1600. Look at those eyes Index THEATER 4 .....................10 POLICE REAL 10 KID STUFF.

MEETING COMMUNITY appears every Wednesday in the Asbury Park Press. News about your town also appears daily in your county section. Readers are invited to write or call Press offices to share their opinions and ideas for news stories. Clare McDowell, ADVERTISING Community Editor B.J. King, Retail Advertising (732) 922-6000 Ext.

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(732) 922-5858. To confirm a fax: (732) 922-6779. "When a tugboat came by, we'd swim out and catch the rollers," he recalled. "Rollers were what we called the waves back then. "That's how I became fascinated with tugboats," said Kukoski, a retiree who lives in Stafford with his wife, Florence, and spends his free time building intricate models of the tugboats that once chugged along the rivers and bays of New York and New Jersey.

His collection of boats is displayed in the family workshop of his home and the homes of friends and relatives. The couple, who celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary Sept. 9, have two sons and a daughter, and five grandchildren. Some of the boats, like the mahogany tug Sequin that he built for his wife, are encased in glass. Others sit atop desks and cabinets.

The boats are big, about 4 feet long, and heavy some weigh about 40 pounds and the batteries that power them can weigh another 35 pounds. When the weather is nice, the couple takes the boats to the nearby Manahawkin Lake, where Kukoski guides them back and forth with a radio controller. "He attracts a lot of attention when he's out there with the boats," said Florence. "People are always curious about the history of the boats." "Some of the old-timers remember a particular boat and tell me stories about them," Kukoski said. MR.

ALEX' Alexander Kukoski of Stafford builds detailed model boats such as this one as a hobby. He researches the history of the vessels and installs radio controls in them to guide them on the Manahawkin Lake. Before he selects a boat to build, Kukoski said he researches the history of the vessel. The USS Brooklyn, for example, was built in 1910, and pulled railroad barges to Staten Island, N.Y., Kukoski said. It was in use until about 1964, when it was sold for scrap, he said.

Kukoski got into the boat building business after he retired in 1992 from U.S. Squibb and Son in North Brunswick. So far, he's built about 18 boats, including models of the USS Crockett gun boat and the P.T. 88. "Working on the boats gives me peace of mind," said Kukoski, who has a degenerative muscle disorder which causes nerve damage and requires him to use a cane for walking.

"My wife sits here at night while I'm working and watches TV. When I'm working, I visualize what life was like in the early 1900s for the men on the boats," he said. "This is my getaway," he said. "When I get into my work I forget the pain." Kukoski's latest project is a Mister Darby model, which he has named the "Mr. Alex." It will be his largest boat yet at 9 feet, 3 inches long.

"This is going to be a real challenge," he said. "I can't wait until it's done.".