John Ridgeway, an only child born in 1918 to a poor working-class family, grew up in the shadow of New York City. His father died when he was ten, and despite the obstacles and hardships of the Great Depression, John excelled in school. His perseverance and hard work was rewarded by earning a scholarship to college. In 1938, he experienced the Long Island Express, a destructive Cape Verde hurricane named for its sudden arrival without much warning...