Inspector Edward Brady, the precinct's commanding officer, is sent off in style
Police Inspector Edward Brady shakes hands with officers at his farewell on Friday, July 17. Photo by Victoria Espinoza.
Suffolk County Police Department’s 2nd Precinct said goodbye to its leader of more than five years on Friday afternoon with a salute and gathering of his friends and family.
Inspector Edward Brady served on the police force for 36 years, joining in October 1979 after graduating from the police academy. He became the commanding officer of the 2nd Precinct in 2009, and served at the helm for approximately five and a half years.
Brady was honored at the Huntington Town Board meeting, on Tuesday, July 14, where he was given a proclamation from Councilwoman Tracey Edwards (D), who also attended the salute to Brady on Friday afternoon.
Officers applaud Police Inspector Edward Brady during his farewell at the 2nd Precinct on Friday, July 17. Photo by Victoria Espinoza.
“It was certainly emotional walking out,” he said. “The people I worked with here I have close relations with, some of them for many years. Some of the people here today I was in the police academy with back in ’79, so that’s 36 years of knowing them, of working with them, of going through difficult times with them, so it was emotional but it feels good to see this many people show up.”
3rd Precinct Deputy Inspector Christopher Hatton of Miller Place will take over for Brady.
A horseshoe crab no more than 4 years old. Photo by Erika Karp
The Brookhaven Town Board has officially backed Supervisor Ed Romaine’s push for a horseshoe crab harvesting ban at town parks and properties.
At a meeting on July 16, councilmembers unanimously supported a resolution that requests the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation close North and South Shore parks and underwater lands to horseshoe crab harvesting and recommends strategies to reduce the harvesting. State Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket) also spoke at the meeting and threw in his support for the effort, as it would help protect the crab population — which, according to some reports, has decreased.
“I support this resolution and encourage its passage and compliment the very fact that it has been initiated,” said Englebright, who chairs the Assembly’s Committee on Environmental Conservation.
State Assemblyman Steve Englebright, right, and a local fisherman, left, speak at a Brookhaven Town Board meeting. Photo by Erika Karp
In May, Romaine announced he would seek a horseshoe crab harvesting ban for areas within 500 feet of town-owned waterfront properties. Fishermen often use horseshoe crabs for bait, but the crabs are also used for medicinal purposes, as their blue blood, which is worth an estimated $15,000 a quart, is used in the biomedical and pharmaceutical industries to detect bacterial contamination in drugs and supplies.
Advocates for the ban have said the crabs, whose species is 450 million years old, play a vital role in the ecosystem, as birds like the red knot eat the crabs’ eggs.
Local parks covered within the town’s request include Port Jefferson Harbor; the western boundary of the Mount Sinai inlet; underwater lands and town-owned shoreline of Setauket Harbor; and Shoreham Beach.
The DEC already has bans in place at Mount Sinai Harbor and West Meadow Beach.
In addition, the town asked the DEC to consider mandating fishers to use bait bags and/or artificial bait; banning the harvesting of horseshoe crab females; and establishing full harvest bans several days before and after full moons in May and June — the crabs’ nesting season.
Those latter recommendations were not included in the original resolution, but were added after weeks of discussion on the issue.
Local baymen have said their livelihoods would be jeopardized by any further restrictions, and the seamen remained opposed to the resolution last Thursday. Many also disagreed with officials that the crab population was decreasing.
“If you were with us you would know the quantities are there,” Florence Sharkey, president of the Brookhaven Baymen’s Association, said at the meeting.
Sharkey added that alternative baits have been tried, but don’t work.
Brookhaven Supervisor Ed Romaine holds a horseshoe crab as he calls on the state to ban the harvesting of the crabs within 500 feet of town property. Photo by Erika Karp
Despite the testimony, the Town Board moved forward with resolution, which had been tabled for nearly two months. Councilwoman Valerie Cartright (D-Port Jefferson Station) called the decision a difficult one.
During public comment, Englebright invited the fishers to speak before his committee, as the state is wrestling with the issue as well.
The assemblyman introduced legislation in March that would impose a moratorium on harvesting horseshoe crabs and their eggs until 2021. While the bill wasn’t voted on in the last legislative session, a different bill, which outlines similar recommendations to the DEC regarding crab conservation and management, was approved.
Englebright said the law would be revisited in two years. He said he hoped the DEC would get better data on the crabs in the future as well.
While the state continues to grapple with the issue, Englebright noted the town’s requested ban is different, as it pertains to parkland.
“This is a park and public expectation is different than [at] the general shoreline,” he said. “A park is usually a place that animals have the opportunity to have refuge.”
A fully restored 1956 Buick Special at the Heritage Park Car Show in Mount Sinai on Sunday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
A refurbished 1968 Ford Mustang convertible at the Heritage Park Car Show in Mount Sinai on Sunday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
The interior of a vintage Chevy Corvette glows at the Heritage Park Car Show Interior of a Vintage Chevy Corvette at the Heritage Park Car Show in Mount Sinai on Sunday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
An “I Love Lucy” themed Ford Fairlane at the Heritage Park Car Show in Mount Sinai on Sunday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
The interior of a Duster 340 at the Heritage Park Car Show in Mount Sinai on Sunday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
A 1972 Volkswagen Super Beetle at the Heritage Park Car Show in Mount Sinai on Sunday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
A young attendee gets a good look at the interior of a car at the Heritage Park Car Show in Mount Sinai on Sunday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
A vintage car sports a unique shape and color at the Heritage Park Car Show in Mount Sinai on Saturday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
Old and new model cars line the Heritage Park lawn in Mount Sinai on Sunday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
People relax under a shady umbrella next to a vintage Chevy at Heritage Park in Mount Sinai on Sunday, July 19. Photo by Talia Amorosano
Despite 95-degree weather, car enthusiasts young and old gathered at Heritage Park in Mount Sinai on Saturday to get up close and personal with old and new local cars.
Cars displayed were in pristine condition and many had been refurbished or restored. Attendees were able to view parts of the cars that they wouldn’t normally see, as many owners propped the trunks and hoods open to enable full viewing. Because some cars were accompanied by informative signs with origin stories, or were staged with time-period-appropriate memorabilia, the car show was surely a learning experience even for already knowledgeable viewers.
A masked man robbed a 7-Eleven in Hauppauge early Monday morning, injuring the clerk on duty.
According to the Suffolk County Police Department, the masked suspect, who was also wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, black pants and sunglasses, entered the convenience store on Townline Road shortly before 2 a.m., displayed what appeared to be a gun and demanded cash from the clerk. After the clerk complied, giving him cash from the drawer, the assailant fled on foot, heading west on Townline.
The clerk suffered a minor injury during the holdup, police said. He was treated at Stony Brook University Hospital and released.
Police described the robber as being about 6 feet tall and having a thin build.
Detectives from the SCPD’s 4th Squad are investigating the robbery. Anyone with information is asked to call them at 631-854-8452, or to call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 800-220-TIPS.
Vocalist Amber Ferrari has been busy preparing a brand new show that she will debut at Port Jefferson’s Theatre Three on Aug. 1. Well known on Long Island for her brilliant “Joplin’s Pearl” production, dedicated to 60s icon Janis Joplin, this time around Ferrari has decided to take on a living legend — Madonna.
The show, titled “Material Girl Featuring Amber Ferrari,” will open with the singer performing songs from Adele, Heart, Alanis Morissette, Aretha Franklin and more, including a couple of her own songs. Ferrari said the second half will consist entirely of Madonna’s hits from the 80s, as well as “Vogue,” which hit the charts in 1990.
Amber Ferrari as Madonna. Photo by Rich Balter Photography
Unlike “Joplin’s Pearl,” where Ferrari wears a wig and is dressed head-to-toe like Joplin, in this show the singer will wear costumes inspired by Madonna’s famous wardrobe, but she won’t pretend to be her.
“It’s going to be more about enjoying Madonna’s fun music,” Ferrari said.
The singer said she and her husband Chris started discussing the idea of a Madonna show a few years ago and kept it in mind until they had some free time. The couple is excited about the fact that potentially they will have two productions to perform for their audiences. Ferrari is also thrilled to sing more pop songs, as opposed to the rock songs she is known for performing.
“I wanted to pick another icon in a different genre other than rock, because my first set is usually the majority rock ‘n roll,” the singer said.
Douglas Quattrock, director of development, and group sales and marketing coordinator at Theatre Three, has known Ferrari since they performed together in “Woodstockmania: Woodstock in Concert” at the theater a decade ago. He said the audience is in for a fun night, and he knows the singer’s unique and versatile voice can handle any artist’s songs.
“It’s going to be something new, but with the same energy. She throws 120 percent into everything she does. She’s just amazing,” Quattrock said.
Ferrari said she grew up listening to Madonna and lists “Material Girl,” “Into the Groove,” “Holiday,” “Dress You Up,” “La Isla Bonita,” “Like a Virgin,” and “Express Yourself” among her favorites. She said she always thought they were dynamite songs, and she’s including all of them in the Aug. 1 production.
The singer has been busy rehearsing the last few weeks with her fellow band members, which include her husband Chris on guitar, Eddie “Yaz” Yeznach on bass and Jim Carroll on drums. At the Aug. 1 show, Ferrari and band will also be joined by Frank Centrone on keyboard, Billy Aberle on background vocals, and the singer’s father, Bob Hansen, on percussions.
In addition to rehearsals, Ferrari has been working on the costumes for the show, including an 80s-style wedding dress and outfits inspired by Madonna’s “Material Girl” gown and “Lucky Star” outfit. She invites the audience members to join in on the ‘80s fun by asking them to wear their favorite outfit from the decade.
“I think it’s going to be a blast, and I think everyone is going to be surprised. It will take them back to the ‘80s,” Ferrari said.
Theatre Three, 412 Main St., Port Jefferson, will present “Material Girl Featuring Amber Ferrari” on Aug. 1 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $35 and may be purchased by calling 631-928-9100 or by visiting www.theatrethree.com.
Every time a young person dies because of a heroin overdose, I take pause and I ask myself, “What is it going to take to end this horrific epidemic? When are people going to take their heads out of the sand? When will people realize that their voices need to be raised to challenge a government that is broken and misguided and a health care system that is more fixated on finance than on treatment?”
In recent months, every media outlet has done an exposé on the heroin epidemic on Long Island. Each piece has underscored that the epidemic is not getting better — but rather, is getting worse.
The working class person and the poor have few to no options when it comes to residential treatment for addictions; the two treatment options that are free have waiting lists in the double-digit numbers.
The classic insurance company line: “fail at outpatient treatment first and then we’ll pay for a 30-day inpatient treatment program.” Parents who have insurance for outpatient treatment or can afford to pay out-of-pocket are doing this.
A record numbers of heroin and opiate addicts are failing — they are dying! These are senseless deaths that need not happen.
It is unconscionable that insurance companies are allowed to get away with murder!
Parents need to be more vigilant for their children who are trapped in the dysfunction and disorder of addiction and other destructive behaviors. Enabling them is counterproductive and basically harmful, if one is serious about recovery.
Every month, at least two or three families come to see me about their children who are out of control because of drug use. We talk about their son or daughter’s drug history and drug of choice. They ask me what they should do. They ask for recommendations.
When I outline what I think they need to consider, I see panic in their eyes and realize their lack of understanding as to the seriousness of heroin addiction. From my experience as an addictions specialist, most young people between the ages of 18 and 35 need long-term residential treatment, 12 to 18 months, if they have any hope of recovering.
What amazes me is their initial response. I have worked with young people battling heroin addiction for more than 25 years; my training and experience tell me that the average heroin addict needs long-term care if they hope to reclaim their life. After I say that, a growing number of parents begin to make excuses, and minimize the seriousness of their son or daughter’s addiction.
Honestly, these parents are in denial. I further remind them that while their children are in treatment there are no cell phones, no computers and no access to social media. They must be focused on recovery and that is hard work.
Life on a good day is hard work; recovery is even harder when trying to reclaim one’s life. It is a demanding process. It is one day at a time and some days it’s one minute at a time. However, I know change and transformation are possible. I see it firsthand every day, as I witness broken and wounded young men embrace the challenge and the hard work of reclaiming their lives.
As a community, we need to work harder at educating people about addiction and its many faces, and create a stronger community of support, compassion and concern. I am encouraged and inspired every day by our community. It gives me hope that this epidemic one day will end!
Fr. Pizzarelli is the director of Hope House Ministries in Port Jefferson.
Blue-green algae has made some waters in Suffolk County unsafe for residents, according to the county health department.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation reported recently that in seven nearby bodies of water, levels of cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae, have exceeded health criteria, according to the Suffolk County Department of Health Services.
While cyanobacteria appear naturally in lakes and streams in low levels, the department said, they can become abundant and form blooms that are green, blue-green, yellow, brown or red in color. The algae can appear in “floating scums on the surface of the water, or may cause the water to take on [a] paint-like appearance.” Contact with those scummy or discolored waters should be avoided.
Currently affected waters include parts of Lake Ronkonkoma; Old Town Pond, Agawam Lake and Mill Pond in Southampton; Maratooka Lake in Mattituck; Kellis Pond in Bridgehampton; and Wainscott Pond in Wainscott.
Lake Ronkonkoma Beach has already been closed to bathing for more than a week, a health department official said on Monday, because test results showed high levels of a different bacteria — E. coli, caused by fowl droppings.
The levels of cyanobacteria and “associated toxins” are particularly high at Agawam Lake, the health department said in a recent press release, so residents should avoid direct exposure to water there.
At all of the affected locations, the health department said, residents should not use the water, and should not swim or wade in it. Officials also advised residents to keep both children and pets away from the areas.
If people or pets come in contact with the affected water, health officials said, they should be rinsed off immediately with clean water. If the affected person experiences symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, allergic reactions, breathing difficulties or irritation in the skin, eyes or throat, he should seek medical attention.
To report a cyanobacteria bloom at a county beach where bathing is permitted, call the Suffolk County Department of Health Services’ Office of Ecology at 631-852-5760. To report one at a body of water in Suffolk County without a bathing beach, call the Division of Water at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation at 518-402-8179.
Officers discovered a young man lying in the street after he was shot in Huntington Station on Saturday night, July 18.
Suffolk County police responded to a call shortly after 8 p.m. on 11th Avenue, across from Clifford Court, where they found Luis Hernandez with a gunshot wound in his leg.
Police said Hernandez was standing in the street in front of his house when he was shot, and the shooter’s identity is still unknown. Police said Hernandez was in stable condition at Huntington Hospital.
However, Alexandra Zendrian, director of public relations for North Shore-LIJ Health System, said on Tuesday in a phone interview that no one by the name of Luis Hernandez was in their directory.
Attempts to contact Hernandez this week were unsuccessful.
The shooting happened mere blocks from Huntington Manor Fire Department’s annual fireman’s fair, where many residents of Huntington Station were enjoying a fireworks show.
“Another one of our children [is] being wounded, what is it going to take to stop this?” June Margolin, a founder of Huntington Matters Neighborhood Watch said on Monday. Huntington Matters Neighborhood Watch was founded in 2014 due to the number of young casualties the community had suffered in the past two years.
The organization aims to unite citizens and law enforcement to deter crime and make the community safer.
The Huntington Station community is still feeling the effects of violence against its youth. On Thursday, July 16, friends and family of 18-year-old Maggie Rosales, 25-year-old Danny Carbajal and 23-year-old Sarah Strobel gathered at Depot Road Park for a memorial ceremony dedicated to the three Huntington Station youths that fell victim to crimes over the last two years.
Rosales was found stabbed to death, on Lynch Street in Huntington Station last October. Carbajal was shot in the head in July 2014 outside his Huntington Station home. Strobel’s body was found off the side of a path in Froehlich Farm Nature Preserve in October 2013.
While police have charged Adam Saalfield of Huntington Station with Rosales’ murder, the other two victims have not yet seen justice, which is currently the same situation Hernandez is in.
“The police are working harder with us and I am looking forward to the new inspector at the 2nd Precinct, I hope there will be new ways to address this problem,” Margolin said. “But to me it doesn’t seem like this issue is slowing down.”
A missing Centereach woman who police said may have been suicidal has been found dead.
The Suffolk County Police Department had issued a Silver Alert for 60-year-old Celeste Nazario early Monday morning, under a program to help find missing people with special needs. Police said at the time that she had depression and was possibly suicidal, and asked for the public’s help to find the Rosemary Lane resident.
She had last been spotted on Saturday morning, when her landlord saw the Portuguese woman leave her house on foot at about 10 a.m.
Police said Monday evening that she had been found dead, and called the apparent cause of her death “non-criminal.”
Kailen Rosenberg with Oprah Winfrey on the reality show "Lovetown, USA." Photo by The Love Architects
Huey Lewis — yes, I am so going there — had a song about the power of love. He said it could “make a bad one good, a wrong one right.” And though it’s just a song – from the ‘80s, no less – the sentiment is not all that different from that of celebrity love architect Kailen Rosenberg.
Yes, you read that right, celebrity love architect.
Known for bringing people together, Kailen Rosenberg has worked with thousands of clients over the past 20 years as more than a mere matchmaker. She worked her magic with Paul Carrick Bunson on Oprah’s award-winning reality show, “Lovetown, USA,” on OWN — the Oprah Winfrey Network. She turned Kingsland, Georgia, once plagued by resentment and disagreement, into a harmonious town that thrived on love.
As her husband, a homebuilder, pointed out, Kailen is a love architect because she treats relationships as structures to be built on and added to with love. Makes sense, doesn’t it?
The foundation of lasting relationships, Kailen says, are people who are healed, healthy and whole. “We can all make a tremendous shift in our world just by being gentle with our words and gentle in our thoughts,” she added during a recent telephone conversation.
Hmm. We might want to pass that on to some Facebook posters.
So how do we increase the love energy in our lives? Maybe get off Twitter and Facebook for starters. Okay, so Kailen didn’t exactly say that, but she does have a website called TheLoveRadar.com, a barometer of sorts. It can rate a city’s love or hatred based on tweets from people living there. Cool, right?
The idea behind it, says Kailen, who lives in Minnesota, is for people to see the power of positive (or negative) energy. She’s seen the proof played out in the Super Bowl. It’s actually happened that a team playing for a city with a higher love quotient has beaten one with less love, even though the team wasn’t favored to win! So much for the trash talk.
Kailen Rosenberg is the author of the book Real Love, Right Now, available this month from Howard Books, an imprint of Simon and Schuster. Photo by The Love Architects
The mother of three sons hopes to do more with the site, which her husband of 13 years built for her. Of course, with finishing her book Real Love, Right Now and shooting a new reality show, “Stewarts and Hamiltons,” for the E! Network, Kailen has been pretty busy!
Meanwhile, Kailen, who has a master’s-level certification as a life coach, has other ways to stoke love in all the relationships in our lives.
“We spend a lot of time in life lying to ourselves by not listening to our voice,” Kailen says.
“We lose parts of ourselves because we become someone other than who we’re meant to be.”
This is why when she works with clients, singles, couples and families, she “digs deep” — 100 layers deep — to get to the heart of a person to uncover who the person truly is. This work is important for helping clients understand why they react in ways that can lead them to disconnect from their loved ones.
Kailen, who exuded nothing but warmth and sincerity throughout our phone conversation, recommended that families come together every week “for a meeting of the hearts and minds and spirits.”
This family time would be an opportunity to share the highlights or low points of the week and for each family member to listen not just with their ears, but with their heart. And, says Kailen, not to give advice. It’s a time “to see into each other,” she says — an exercise that leads to more natural compassion and empathy, strengthens bonds and keeps loved ones connected.
“We lose intimacy when we allow stress to disconnect us,” she says.
Kailen also recommends date nights with your partner. “Continue to court each other,” she says. Be flirty. Smell good.
And set aside special “date time” with the kids, as well, whether they are young children or adult children. Do something fun. Do something different, Kailen says.
And if you do those two things, you can keep whatever goes awry in life from harming your relationships.
Most important for nurturing yourself and your relationships is “learning to find and trust your inner voice,” Kailen advises.
“It is your teacher. It protects us and guides us to the right one and away from the wrong one.”
“Stewarts and Hamiltons,” a reality show featuring Alana Stewart, former wife of both Rod Stewart and George Hamilton, premieres on E! on July 26 at 10 pm.
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