He had been elected to the State Senate before most of his constituents were born, but on a campaign night on Staten Island several years ago, John J. Marchi was making the rounds dutifully at a local political function, taking nothing for granted even though he hadn’t faced a serious challenge in a quarter-century.
An old acquaintance of mine saw him standing by himself, looking very much like the 80-something he was. He was bent forward, what little hair he had left was gray, and he seemed a little too thin. If my friend was hesitant about approaching him, it was with good reason.
