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by MICHAEL SCHOLL
For many new firefighters welcomed into the ranks of New York's Bravest yesterday, it was a step into the "family business."
They include Joseph Sanger, 21, of Port Richmond, whose father, Edward, is a retired 27-year FDNY veteran.
"My dad was always telling me it's the best job in the world," said Sanger, one of 57 Staten Islanders among the 241 newly minted firefighters who completed their training at the Fire Academy on Randall's Island.
Proud father Edward Sanger described his son's early affinity for the job.
"He came into the firehouse as a little kid, and he fell in love with [it]," the elder Sanger said. "He's always looked forward to being a firefighter."
Edward Sanger called firefighting the "best job in the world" because of the exhilaration that comes from helping people.
That's exactly how his father felt about the job, said Firefighter Christopher Ganci, the class valedictorian.
"Of all the people I knew growing up, my father was the adult who was happy going to work," said Ganci.
His father, late Chief of Department Peter Ganci, was killed at Ground Zero when he responded to the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Ganci received thunderous applause as he stepped up to deliver his speech at the graduation ceremony, held in Walt Whitman Hall at Brooklyn College.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta and Chief of Department Peter Hayden also spoke.
Bloomberg thanked the graduates for "answering the call" to serve and protect their fellow New Yorkers.
Two women were in yesterday's graduating class. The 239 male graduates included 202 whites, three blacks, 30 Hispanics and four Asians.
In total, 16.2 percent of yesterday's graduates were either women or members of racial minorities, higher than the 9 percent figure for the March graduating class but lower than the 19 percent figure for the December 2004 class.
At a City Hall press conference yesterday morning, members of the Vulcan Society, an organization of African-American firefighters, called on the FDNY to do more to increase minority representation in its ranks.
Scoppetta responded that the department does not discriminate in its hiring decisions, which he said were based on the results of civil service examinations.
The Staten Island graduates are:
Anthony Abruzese, Michael Aceto, Charles Alba, William Arce, Edis Baftjari, Evan Balcome, Michael Brusca, Antonio Cipollone, Christopher Cordes, Anthony Cristino, Stephen Cunningham, Thomas Cuozzo, Brian Davis, Anthony Dellaventura, Salvatore DePaola, Mark DeRosa, Robert Diaz, John Dorio and Christopher Dos Santos.
Robert Fischer, William B. Garcia, Christopher Gilbert, Sean Gillen, Steven Gough, Michael Grieco, Carl Jost III, Christopher Kotula, Thomas La Pera, Gerard Leonard, James Marcantonio, John Matthies, Kevin McNeil, Jesse Meiners, Keith Norris, Michael O'Connell, Franco Pannone and Edward Poli.
Andre Ramos, Peter Raspitha, Kenneth Reilly, James Riordan, Joseph Roggenkamp, Sanger, Wigberto Santiago, Ihsan Scott, Michael Seise, Thomas Shea, Anthony Simoncini, Michael Sottosanti, Jason Speiser, Frank Staiti Jr., Frank Staplefeldt, Vincent Tozzo, Daniel Trainor, Jude Vanden-Heuvel, Timothy Wilson and Peter Zaccariello.
Poli was class salutatorian, while Zaccariello received the Physical Fitness Award.
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