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Smithtown West boys volleyball wins Suffolk title
The Northport Tigers, the No. 1 seed, faced the No. 3 seed Smithtown West in the Suffolk AA Championship game at Longwood High School Nov. 9. West won the first two sets before Northport won the third forcing a game four. The Bulls took the fourth set to win the game 25-22, 26-24, 15-25 and 25-20 and will advance to the Long Island Championship (regional final) Nov. 11.
Senior Daniel Shanley led the way for the Bulls with 20 kills. Smithtown West returns to Longwood High School where they’ll face Massapequa. Game time is 11 a.m.
Bellone announces free COVID-19 vaccines for children ages 5 to 11
Following the recent CDC announcement, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone announced on Tuesday, Nov. 9 that the Suffolk County Health Department will begin administering free COVID-19 vaccines to children ages 5 to 11.
The vaccine clinics — which will be located at the H. Lee Dennison Building in Hauppauge — will be exclusively for children ages 5 to 17.
“I am beyond pleased that the CDC has recommended that children ages 5 to 11 years old be vaccinated against COVID-19,” Bellone said. “As a father, I am encouraging all parents who may have questions to talk with their pediatrician or a trusted healthcare provider about the importance of getting their children vaccinated. This vaccine saves lives and it could save the life of your child.”
On Nov. 2, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gave the final clearance for the use of the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5 to 11, following the emergency use authorization granted by the Food and Drug Administration last month.
All children ages 5 to 11 are now eligible to receive a two-dose primary series of the pediatric formulation of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, effective immediately. This is the first COVID-19 vaccine to be permitted for use in the age group, leading the way for more than 28 million children in the United States to be vaccinated as soon as possible.
To date, nearly 88 percent of county residents 18 and over have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and 74% of all county residents have received at least one dose.
Vaccines will be administered at the H. Lee Dennison Building located at 100 Veterans Memorial Highway in Hauppauge on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
While appointments are not required, they are strongly encouraged. Walk-ins will be available on a first come, first served basis. For more information on the County’s vaccine efforts, or to schedule an appointment call 311 or visit suffolkcountyny.gov/vaccine.
Veterans Day events on the North Shore
This year’s Veterans Day is Thursday, November 11, and the North Shore community is honoring military veterans with several events in the area.
Veterans Day Parade
VFW Post 395 in St. James invite the community to their annual Veteran’s Day Parade at 10 a.m. The parade will step off from the intersection of Lake and Woodlawn Avenues in St. James and march to the St. James Elementary School for a ceremony. Questions? Call 631-250-9463.
Veterans Day Ceremony
The Sound Beach Civic Association will hold a Veterans Day ceremony at the Sound Beach Vets Memorial Park on New York Ave., Sound Beach at 11 a.m. All are welcome. For further information, call 631-744-6952.
Veterans Day Observance
In commemoration of Veterans Day 2021, American Legion Greenlawn Post 1244 will conduct its annual Veterans Day Observance onNov. 11 at 11 a.m. at Greenlawn Memorial Park, at the corner of Pulaski Rd. and Broadway in Greenlawn. For more information, call 516-458-7881 or e-mail [email protected].
Veterans Day Ceremony
VFW Post 3054 of Setauket hosts its annual Veterans Day Ceremony at the Setauket Veterans Memorial Park on Shore Road and Route 25A on Nov. 11 at 11 a.m. All are welcome. For more information, call 631-751-5541.
Free admission to Vets at LIM
The Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook remembers, honors and thanks all the men and women who have served and who are currently serving. As a tribute, the museum is offering free admission to all Veterans and their families on Nov. 11 from noon to 5 p.m. Call 631-751-0066 for further information.
Free admission to Vets at Vanderbilt Museum
The Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum, 180 Little Neck Road, Centerport will thank veterans and active military personnel and their families for their extraordinary service, on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, and on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, November 12, 13 and 14 from noon to 4 p.m. The Museum will offer them free general admission plus guided Mansion tours and Planetarium shows. (Veterans’ proof of military service, or active-duty military ID required for complimentary guest admission. For more information, call 631-854-5579 or visit www.vanderbiltmuseum.org.
Free admission to Vets at Three Village Historical Society
The Three Village Historical Society, 93 North Country Road, Setauket remembers and honors all the individuals who have served and who are currently serving. As a thank you to our Veterans, the History Center at the Society is offering free admission to all Veterans and their families on Nov. 11. They will be open for tours of their exhibits from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, call 631-751-3730.
Man dies of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning at construction site
Suffolk County Police Fourth Squad detectives are investigating the death of a construction worker who died from apparent carbon monoxide poisoning while at a residential job site this afternoon in Fort Salonga.
Victor Irizarry, an employee of Suffolk Excavating, was working for approximately 15 minutes to remove silt from the bottom of a drainage pipe approximately 10 feet into the ground at 92 Fort Salonga Road when he stopped responding to co-workers at approximately 2:35 p.m. A co-worker attempted to go down the pipe to rescue Irizarry, but felt burning in his nose and throat, forcing him to exit the pipe.
The Kings Park Fire Department responded to the location and found carbon monoxide levels to be dangerously high. Firefighters were able to pull Irizarry from the pipe.
Irizarry, 30, of Flanders, was transported to St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown where he was pronounced dead. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration was notified and is investigating.
Smithtown West falls to Massapequa
After trailing, 0-1, coming out of the halftime break Smithtown West senior Hannah Maracina’s shot on goal made it a new game in the girl’s class AA Long Island Championship soccer round against Massapequa at Shoreham Wading River High School Nov 6.
Massapequa’s Lia Howard scored the go-ahead goal at the 20-minute mark of the second half for the 2-1 advantage that would hold up for the victory. Meghan Peet had four saves in net.
Smithtown West concludes their 2021 campaign with an overall record of 12-2-1.
Editorial: Congrats and concerns
Tuesday was a busy night where candidates across Long Island came together to wait for the 2021 election results.
TBR News Media spent the last month interviewing local officials and their opponents on the ballots, listening and reporting on what they can bring to the table if reelected or elected.
We congratulate the winners of this year’s races, and we are looking forward to working alongside them.
But there is one thing that concerned us as our reporters waited to hear the announcements of both parties late Tuesday night.
Several candidates did not actively campaign this time around, including for example William Amato who ran on the Republican ticket against Errol Toulon Jr. (D) for his seat as the Suffolk County sheriff.
Toulon, who has been county sheriff since 2017, was declared winner with 141,931 votes (54.30%). Amato somehow came close with 119,357 (45.67%).
Interesting for someone who never showed his face at any debate or public outing.
It seems as though voters just went down the row for whatever party they chose. Did anyone take the time out to research which candidate would actually be there for their constituents?
We know that this speaks more of what’s going on in the nation than about the candidates themselves. We understand the political divide and we don’t blame anyone for their beliefs.
But it’s disappointing to think that someone who had no intention of actively being there throughout the campaign could have won such an important position.
Would Amato have been ready to serve if he had won those extra few thousand votes?
We encourage voters to do their part — submitting a ballot is just part of it. Read your local news, listen to debates and educate yourselves on what is going on in your community. Instead of voting for someone who may not actually be qualified, it’s important to understand who’s behind the name and what they can bring to the table.
Remember, if you don’t like your choices in a race, you don’t have to vote for anyone in that column on your ballot. Send a message to local political committees that asks for strong candidates who are ready to serve, instead of rubber stamping someone who just happens to belong to the same party as you.
Elected officials have difficult work to do, and if someone isn’t showing up when it comes time to campaign, that’s not a good sign.
Mills Pond Gallery in St. James shines light on climate change in latest exhibit, ‘On the Edge’
By Melissa Arnold
As global temperatures continue to climb, we are unfortunately subject to more natural disasters, lack of resources, and personal discomfort. It’s a harsh reality, but it can be hard for some people to grasp.
The Smithtown Township Arts Council (STAC) is tackling the issue of climate change with a dynamic and colorful exhibit called “On the Edge” at the Mills Pond Gallery in Saint James.
Beginning Nov. 6 and running through Dec. 19, “On the Edge” will feature more than 50 works from environmental artists Pam Brown and Kathy Levine. The exhibit is part of a deeper exploration of environmental concerns through the lens of art.
“For a while now I’ve been wanting to dedicate a year to the issue of climate change and what can be done about it. We read about it and are touched by it every day, but I thought we could explore this issue through art and the beauty of our natural world,” said Allison Cruz, executive director of STAC.
Cruz met Stony Brook-based artist Pam Brown years ago through the local art community, and since then, Brown has served as a juror for several STAC exhibits. Prior to the pandemic, Brown suggested she could put together an environmental-themed exhibit with Levine, her longtime friend and colleague from New York City.
“Pam’s environmental work makes me think, and it touches my heart. I love the choices she makes,” Cruz said. “I was so excited to see this idea take shape and to meet Kathy. When I saw [Kathy’s] passion for connecting people to the environment and the way she salvages material to create beautiful art, I was hooked.”
Brown, who focuses on sculpture, said that she spent much of her childhood exploring the woods around her home.
“The environment has always been a topic of interest for me, and art is a barometer for what is happening in the world,” she said. “It’s hard not to be connected to the environment, and it’s a tragedy to see the loss of beauty.”
Brown works with salvaged material that she says has its own story to tell. Everything is made of sheet metal or sheet copper, then hand cut with scissors or shears, stitched, soldered and welded together.
One of her works included in the exhibit is “A Place Called Home,” which depicts a bird inside of a hanging basket on a branch.
“The bird is calling out, looking for a new place to call home. In the same way, populations around the world are being forced to relocate because of climate changes and disasters in their places of origin,” Brown explained.
Levine is originally from Queens, but had the unique opportunity to grow up in Spain and England, where she was constantly immersed in natural beauty.
At the same time, she was impacted by the energy crisis of the 1970s. Her electricity was cut in the evenings, leaving her to do homework by candlelight.
“I saw the way humans were able to work in harmony with the natural world and have the potential to make it even better,” she recalled, “But I also began to learn just how fragile our connection to the natural world can be, and that our impact can be positive or negative.”
Levine is a mixed media artist, including painting, photography and recycled materials in her work, to name a few. She also makes recycled paper casts of natural objects including leaves and bark, and uses a water-based method of photo transfer.
One of Levine’s pieces, “Rift,” is a cast paper cross-section of a tree that’s split in half. One half depicts the urban sights of New York, while the other side shows a woodsy and natural scene.
“This kind of work fascinates me. It’s the one thing I feel like I could never get tired of,” Levine said. “It’s inexpensive and tactile, flexible and light, as opposed to other methods of sculpture.”
While the exhibit will showcase the beauty of our world, Cruz, Brown and Levine all hope that it will inspire viewers to become more active in preventing climate change.
“It can be overwhelming to consider just how large the issue of climate change is, but it’s small changes in your own family that make a big difference, like recycling, composting and using reusable materials as much as possible,” Brown said.
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The Mills Pond Gallery, 660 Route 25A, Saint James will present “On the Edge” from Nov. 6 through Dec. 19. The public is invited to an opening reception on Nov. 6 from 2 to 5 p.m. Meet the artists and enjoy an Art Talk presented by the Artists and Environmental Art Activists at 3 pm. Masks are required for unvaccinated individuals and optional for those who are vaccinated.
Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, and noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free. Please use the rear parking lot off of Mills Pond Road. For more information, call 631-862-6575 or visit www.millspondgallery.org.
See more images at www.tbrnewsmedia.com
D. None of the Above: Nine years later, New York isn’t ready for another Sandy
By Daniel Dunaief
Nine years ago, Superstorm Sandy came roaring through the area, causing flooding, knocking out power and disrupting work and school.
All these years later, New York is not prepared for other significant storms, despite studies suggesting that future, slow moving hurricanes with heavy rain could overwhelm infrastructure in and around Long Island.
“While we have dithered, New Orleans, Houston and other U.S. cities have gained federal support for regional protection strategies — which will be funded with our tax dollars,” according to an information packet created by the New York New Jersey Storm Surge Working Group. “We can’t waste another decade pursuing local responses to regional threats.”
In a ninth anniversary boat tour designed to address the challenges from a future Sandy or even a Hurricane Ida, the working group, which is chaired by School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences Distinguished Professor at Stony Brook University Malcolm Bowman, outlined four messages.
First, the group suggested that coastal flooding presented a significant danger. Storm surge, sea level rise and storm water from extreme rain present an “existential threat” to the area.
Second, the group concluded that coastal flooding is a regional challenge that requires a regional solution. These scientists urge the two middle Atlantic states to consider creating a layered defense system, which they argue would be cost effective to protect property and the environment.
Third, and perhaps most damaging, the group concludes that the area is as vulnerable now as it was nine years ago in the days before Hurricane Sandy arrived. The group wrote that “no regional costal resilience plan” is in place to protect over 1,000 miles of the New York and New Jersey metropolitan coastline.
Fourth, the changing political climate presents an opportunity to do something. The group highlighted how a new governor of New York, the start of a new term or releected governor in New Jersey, a new mayor of New York City and the restarting of the $20 million New York and New Jersey Harbor and Tributaries Focus Area Feasibility Study, or HATS, presents a “once in a lifetime opportunity to act now to address the existential threat of costal flooding with a regional coastline resilience system that meets our social justice, environmental justice, quality of life and economic development goals.”
Bowman urged New York and New Jersey residents to consider the progress other states and countries have made.
“Houston is going ahead,” Bowman said, even while New York hasn’t taken any significant steps.
Bowman said part of the challenge in creating any change that protects the area comes from the lack of any enduring focus on a vulnerability that isn’t evident to residents on a daily basis.
“People have short memories,” Bowman said. “It’s not on their minds” even if they endured the disruption and devastation from storms like Sandy and Ida.
Necessity and the lack of deep pockets in other countries is the mother of invention.
“A lot of countries can’t afford” to rebuild the way New York and New Jersey did after Hurricane Sandy,” Bowman said. “They are forced to be more careful.”
Bowman said any major project to protect the area needs a hero who can tackle the details, navigate through the politics and execute on viable ideas.
The late Daniel Patrick Moynihan had “that kind of charisma,” Bowman said. “We need somebody who everybody sees as the hero. I don’t see that person” at this point.
For New York and New Jersey, the longer time passes without any protective measures, “the more the danger will increase,” Bowman cautioned.
Between You and Me: Connecting the dots from shots in Dallas, Vietnam and into our arms
By Leah S. Dunaief
Elections have ended and the newly elected and reelected officials are going to have to cope with a disturbing fact: people don’t trust government. This change in attitude has been a long time coming. It didn’t just happen suddenly. I know, I have lived through the change.
Trust started to fall apart with the Vietnam War. Maybe it even started earlier than that, with the assassination of President Kennedy. I was in my early 20s then, just graduated from college, newly married, in my dream job, looking forward to an unbounded future filled with joyful events. The nation was at peace, there was a young and vigorous president talking about making life better with civil rights legislation, women were speaking up for themselves, it was a hopeful time.
Friday afternoon, a sunny day, business lunch in a midtown Manhattan restaurant with a television on over the bar in the distance, a movie playing about a president who had been shot in the head. But wait. Wait! It wasn’t a movie, it was a news broadcast from Dallas interrupting the regular programming, it was our president, everyone standing up, crying, paying their checks, rushing back to their offices, trying to deal with the unthinkable.
How could this happen? How could Secret Service let this happen? In our country! A president, the President of the United States, could not be protected! Our bubble of safety was bursting, slowly, excruciatingly. Lee Harvey Oswald shot on television while under arrest. In what could you trust?
Who killed Kennedy? All kinds of conspiracy theories, the Warren Commission, an end but never a certainty. Was the government lying to us? Was there a cover-up?
Next came the Vietnam War. First only “advisors,” then military, then body counts, always more Viet Cong than Americans lay on the battlefields. Promises of progress and victory by the government, as casualties and numbers drafted rose. This even as Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara privately expressed doubts of victory as early as 1966. But President Johnson was afraid of losing the 1968 election should the United States withdraw. Instead we lost thousands of young men, all of which eventually was revealed to the public. Protests were the order of the day, and more violence, including the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., Robert Kennedy and the chaos at the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago. What’s happening to the nation’s authority figures?
We rolled right into Watergate and Nixon’s resignation. Our President accused of being a liar and a crook. What’s left to believe in? President Jimmy Carter held hostage by the Iranians, the Iran-Contra deception of Ronald Reagan’s second term, Bill Clinton making Monica Lewinsky a household name around the globe. Then the Weapons of Mass Destruction lies by the senior administration officials manipulating us into the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars. Whom to believe?
Whom to trust? Each lie, each governmental deception blew away more trust, leading to the climax: the disbelief in the COVID-19 vaccine. Even when ex-President Donald Trump urged his audience to get vaccinated on Aug. 21, in Cullman, Alabama, one of the areas struggling to cope with COVID cases and hospitalization, he was booed. “But I recommend take the vaccines,” Trump said. “I did it. It’s good. Take the vaccines.” After that experience, he hasn’t again mentioned vaccination at a rally. But the reaction wasn’t partisan. They were, like Trump, all Republicans who had come to hear him, It was symptomatic of the larger distrust in government.
I was in my early teens when I received the polio vaccination. Polio was a dreaded disease by parents the world over, more so as I remember, than COVID-19. Like today, we were discouraged from assembling in groups or joining crowds. The virus attacks the brain and spinal cord, leaving paralysis and even causing death. When Jonas Salk and his colleagues created the vaccine, we all lined up to take the shot. It was the Eisenhower years. We believed our president.
Those vaccines have eliminated polio from most of the world. That’s what approved vaccinations can do.
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