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Monthly Archives: November 2015

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Former Smithtown East head coach Peter Melore will be Ward Melville’s new athletic director. Photo from Three Village Central School District

Former Smithtown East football coach Peter J. Melore will be the Three Village Central School District’s new, permanent executive director of health, physical education, recreation and athletics. He will replace Nicholas Schroeder, who served the district on an interim basis since the start of the school year.

Throughout his professional tenure, Melore has also worked as a coach at both the high school and middle school levels. In the role of head varsity football coach, he guided Smithtown High School East to the Big Four Championship in 2012 and 2014, as well as the playoffs in 2013. He had similar success when he was the assistant varsity football coach at Farmingdale High School, during which he accumulated 11 Big Four championships, 10 finals showings, five county championships, one Long Island championship and one Rutgers Cup trophy and was named the 2007 Nassau County Assistant Coach of the Year.

Melore comes to the Three Village district from Roslyn school district, has more than 23 years of experience in the field of health education and athletics. He began his career as a middle school physical education teacher in Farmingdale school district and also served in that district as a building and district leader for internship projects as well as lead teacher. His most recent role was as Roslyn’s director of physical education, health, intramurals, athletics and recreation.

Melore earned his Bachelor of Science in Physical Education from SUNY Cortland, Master of Arts in Physical Education from Adelphi University and Educational Leadership Program certificate from Dowling College. Additionally, he renews his CPR and First Aid certifications annually.

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‘Tree’ by Gloria M. will be on view at the Long Island Museum from Nov. 19 to Jan. 3, 2016.

By Melissa Arnold

When you suffer from memory loss, even the simplest tasks can be maddeningly frustrating. Most people will experience simple forgetfulness as they get older — misplacing keys, not knowing someone’s name right away and so on — but others will develop dementia, a debilitating condition that affects daily living skills and communication.

According to the World Health Organization, 47.5 million people have dementia and there are 7.7 million new cases diagnosed every year. Alzheimer’s disease is one of the most common forms of dementia. As memory loss progresses, it can become difficult to communicate, and many people say they feel they’re losing control over their own lives.

For more than a year, Day Haven Adult Day Services in Ronkonkoma has worked to engage participants struggling with memory loss through artistic expression. Now, the work of 15 artists from the program will be on display at the Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook. The exhibit, aptly titled “Through Our Eyes,” allows the artists to share themselves freely when using words might be too difficult.

“One of the first things someone with Alzheimer’s disease loses is the ability to retrieve the right words,” said Betsy Geary, program director at Day Haven. “Here, that conversation is elicited by art. It brings people together.”

Day Haven is a social adult day services program for physically frail older adults and those with Alzheimer’s disease. The program also provides support for caregivers. Participants typically live with a spouse or adult child and spend the day exploring all kinds of recreational activities.

This isn’t the first time Day Haven participants have experimented with their artistic talents — the center’s Port Jefferson location, on Sheep Pasture Road, has had a dedicated art program for several years.

But the location in Ronkonkoma did not have an art program until recently, when the Long Island Museum stepped up to help. “We were able to provide a museum educator to help them get started with a dedicated art program,” said Lisa Unander, director of education at the museum. “The response was wonderful; everyone was so engaged.”

Beginning last September, a museum educator has made weekly trips to Day Haven, holding 2 1/2-hour sessions with interested participants, allowing them to explore visual art using a variety of mediums, including paints and clay. “(The educator) took the time to find out which mediums would bring out the creativity in the participants and what they felt most comfortable doing,” Geary said.

As many of the participants at Day Haven are frail or deal with physical challenges, the educator also brought along a variety of stencils, special paintbrushes and other tools adapted to fit their individual capabilities.

Week after week, Geary was delighted to find that the participants were blossoming. “I’ve seen people literally thrive off of doing art. For some participants, we’ve watched them go from the simplest of art to a deep mode of self-expression. I’ve rarely seen anything like that in other settings.”

According to Unander, The Long Island Museum has worked for several years to ensure people with memory loss can enjoy their programs. Their initiative, called In the Moment: Art Engagement for People with Memory Loss, has benefitted more than 1,000 participants since its inception in 2011.

Museum staff members were trained by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City on how to adapt their programs to fit the needs of those with memory loss. Soon after, they began to offer exhibit tours just for them.

The museum’s partnership with Day Haven is just the next step in making those with memory loss feel welcome and understood. Unander says the museum is working toward a spring conference for caregivers, medical staff and others on integrating art therapy with memory loss care.

Geary hopes that those who see the exhibit will leave with a greater appreciation for what those with memory loss can achieve. “I want people to see that there is always potential to do something new that we can celebrate. Even though (we) can lose the usual ways of communicating, art really can bring us together in a conversation without words,” she says.

“Through Our Eyes” will feature more than 30 paintings and clay creations, along with descriptions of the significance of each piece written by the artists or their families. The exhibit will run from Nov. 19 through Jan. 3, 2016. An artist reception will be held on Dec. 1, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The museum will also offer a free open house on Dec. 6, and a free “Senior Tuesday” event for people 62 and older on Dec. 8.

For more information, visit www.longislandmuseum.org or call 631-751-0066, ext. 212.

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Meng Yue at the Northeast Solar Energy Research Center. Photo from BNL

For film makers, a sudden change in weather conditions can provide a metaphor for a shift in the plot or a change in the relationship among central characters. For Meng Yue, however, the appearance of heavy, thick clouds or a sudden stoppage in wind can disrupt energy flow to a utility.

An electrical engineer in the Department of Sustainable Energy Technology at Brookhaven National Laboratory, Yue explores how the changes in production from renewable energy sources can disrupt the grid, adding either too much energy to the system or not enough.

“The major issue with wind and solar energy is that they are changing all the time,” said Yue. “Because they are intermittent and variable, it creates issues with the grid. We want to keep the grid stable.”

His research, he said, explores how the grid balances between unpredictable supply and demand, both of which can be affected by the same changes. A cold wind, for example, might help generate power while it could also increase the need for heat in homes and offices.

The uncertainties between energy production and consumption might “cancel each other out, but they may also add together,” Yue said. “We have to balance” the supply and use of energy all the time “because we do not want to have any interruption of electricity delivery.”

While he works with the Northeast Solar Energy Research Center at BNL, he spends more of his time using systems analytical models.

In his work, he builds a model for a grid, using solar and wind.

Working with energy is similar to providing any product to consumers, trying to balance between supply and demand.

“If I’m operating my grid, I don’t want to have too much generation or too little,” he said. “Both will cause grid issues.”

As electric grids are designed now, they are capable of sudden fluctuations in demand. When a train from the Long Island Railroad pulls into a station, the system is prepared for this surge although, as Yue describes it, that change is relatively small for the grid, which can withstand some variation.

One of the challenges with renewable energy is that the cost of storing the energy is too high, he said. In the future, as the country continues to increase the amount of energy derived from wind and solar, there may be other storage challenges.

Most of Yue’s work, he said, is computer model based. Running these tests provides some basic information, but it also leads to suggestions and analysis that Yue shares with utilities. He recommends where to put mitigation systems in and how much a utility might need to correct any kinds of problems.

Robert Lofaro, who as the Group Leader in the Renewable Energy Group at BNL is Yue’s supervisor, said Yue has developed and employed a high level of expertise.

“He has a background in electrical power engineering and probabilistic techniques which makes him an excellent smart grid researcher,” Lofaro said. Yue is “very well respected in the smart grid community.”

Yue takes a probabilistic approach to try to capture uncertainties in his studies so that they can be accounted for in decision making. He also reduces uncertainties through a more precise model.

Yue is “quickly becoming known for his work on power system modeling and application of probabilistic techniques to grid operation and planning,” Lofaro said.

Yue has worked closely with meteorologists for years, trying to collect the kinds of forecasts that would inform decision making at utilities. Not only does that help infuse ideas about how to prepare for changes in the amount of energy generated, but it also can aid utilities as they prepare for the likely damage from an approaching storm.

A resident of Miller Place, Yue lives with his wife Qiong Yang, an engineer at a communication company, and their sons Alan, nine, and Clarence, who is five years old. A native of China, Yue has been at BNL for 12 years.

When he travels, he said it’s hard to turn off the part of his brain that is thinking about electric grids and systems.

“No matter where you can go, you can’t avoid seeing the infrastructure like transmission lines,” Yue said. He thinks about how much energy the lines can carry, while he also notices solar or wind farms.

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Large canna leaves are topped with beautiful bright red flowers. Photo by Ellen Barcel

By Ellen Barcel

As you plan your next garden, you might want to consider planting tender bulbs in the spring that will produce beautiful flowers in mid to late summer, a time when there are fewer flowers in bloom. Tender bulbs include gladiolas, calla lilies, caladium, dahlias and cannas.

Some are bulbs, some rhizomes, some tubers and some corms (see my columns of last Jan. 25 and Feb. 5 for details on the botanical differences). What the glads, dahlias etc. all have in common is that they are geophytes, that is, plants with underground storage units, and all need protection from Long Island’s cold winters. The easiest way to do this is to lift them from the garden in the fall, dry them and store them in an unheated shed or garage and then replant them in spring. You could also treat them as annuals, buying new each spring. That’s up to each gardener.

If you find that any of your summer flowering bulbs are affected by disease, such as a fungal disease, it’s best to discard the bulbs and start from scratch next year, unless you have a very special plant you wish to save (use a fungicide then). Do not put diseased plants in your compost pile as you are just saving the disease pathogens for next year.

Large canna leaves are topped with beautiful bright red flowers. Photo by Ellen Barcel
Large canna leaves are topped with beautiful bright red flowers. Photo by Ellen Barcel

Remember that the first year you plant any of the above, they should do extremely well, as they are producing leaves and flowers based on last year’s care, that is, the grower’s care. To make sure that the bulbs, rhizomes etc. do well in future years, you need to water them adequately and provide fertilizer the current growing season. Then next year your bulbs should continue to thrive as well. Mulching them during the summer will help to keep the soil from drying out during periods of little or no rain.

Calla lilies are not true lilies at all. The tender variety are sold in the spring as rhizomes or potted plants. They are natives of South Africa and come in a rainbow of colors. Canna lilies have a very unique shaped flower, which is almost modernist.

They do best in well-drained soil (ideal for Long Island’s sandy soil) and full sun. Store the rhizomes in peat moss over winter. Calla lilies can be grown as houseplants but do need a period of dormancy, so don’t panic if the leaves die down. Let them rest a few months and they should be ready to grow again.

Caladium consists of many hundreds of varieties, including elephant ears. There are many cultivars that have arrowhead-shaped leaves that are six to 18 inches long and filled with stunning colors (green, white, pink and red) and patterns. They are native to the Americas (Central and South America). The wild plants go dormant in the dry season but are only hardy in zone 10. Since they prefer partial shade, they bring color to the shade garden.

Cannas are tropical plants that grow from rhizomes. They are native to the southern part of the United States and through Central and into South America. They’re grown not only for their large showy leaves but also for their beautiful flowers

While the most common varieties of cannas have green or red leaves with bright red flowers, there are other flower colors as well, including pink (‘City of Portland’), yellow (‘King City Gold’ and ‘Yellow Futurity’), coral (‘Tropical Sunrise’) and orange (‘Orange Beauty’ and ‘Wyoming’) to name just a few.

Cannas do best in full sun and in a well-drained soil. Long Island’s sandy soil is just fine, but do remember to water them during periods of drought, like we had this past summer. You can try growing them from seeds, but some varieties are sterile. Canna rhizomes are sold in the spring or you can sometimes find potted plants. While some cannas can be quite large —up to five feet — there are dwarf varieties.

Ellen Barcel is a freelance writer and master gardener. Send your gardening questions to [email protected]. To reach Cornell Cooperative Extension and its Master Gardener program, call 631-727-7850.

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A Reclaim New York study suggests that it is increasingly difficult to afford living on the Island. File photo

By Brandon Muir

Long Island is a place that should be synonymous with thriving families, beaches, and the best New York has to offer. However, as more people and businesses struggle to stay here, it has become, unfortunately, just as associated with high taxes, a stagnant economy, debt, and public corruption.

It’s no mystery to Long Islanders that the region has struggled. They read the headlines about population decline, while they watch their neighbors move south. As they work to make ends meet, they may not realize they are fighting an uphill battle against a deep and widespread affordability crisis that has consequences for virtually every household.

Long Islanders are paying the price for high taxation, endless regulation, and corruption that drive the cost of government sky-high.

A new study by Reclaim New York provides the most alarming evidence yet that recent graduates, middle-class families, and even people making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year are struggling to achieve financial stability and save for the future.

The analysis has computed Long Islanders’ total tax burden, including income, sales, excise, and property taxes, together with basic living expenses — what you have to pay just to wake up every morning on Long Island.

The results show that wherever you live, across Nassau and Suffolk Counties, the affordability crisis follows.

For instance, the median family of four living in Huntington school district earns over $118,000 annually. Even by New York standards, that should make for a comfortable living.

But after government and basic expenses take a bite out of their wallet, they are left with four percent of their income.

Across the Island, in Port Jefferson, the situation is similar, yet somehow worse. A family earning the median income there goes into the red, losing $2,855 per year.

That is before they pay off debts, save for college or retirement, and cover additional expenses. Even if they cut back on basics, they are not close to building a future.

Analysis of a range of other cases, across regions and income spectrums, reveals more trends. Like why the boomerang effect is so prominent on Long Island.

Many young people are barely in the black, and too frequently in the red, if living on their own.

A recent college graduate in Lake Ronkonkoma (Sachem School District), fortunate enough to get a job in his area of study, making $48,707 annually, can only save two percent of that, or $955. That’s before any student loan payments.

It’s going to be hard to enjoy a night out too often, let alone buy a house or get married.

For the people across all these examples, New York costs 90 percent or more of their income.

When tax policies are preventing earners high and low from building financial stability, they’re no longer progressive, but simply oppressive.

This is the iceberg that is sinking Long Island. If people can’t save, they will never be on sound financial footing, especially as they get older.

An affordability and savings crisis this deep requires citizens to get informed and engaged. The key to solving it will not be figuring out better policies on paper, but changing an environment that has fostered failed policies for too long.

Brandon Muir is executive director for Reclaim New York, a non-partisan, non-profit organization dedicated to advancing a state-wide, grassroots conversation about the future of New York, its economy, and its people.

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Port Jefferson wrestler Matteo DeVincenzo has committed to Princeton University. Photo from Port Jefferson school district

Port Jefferson senior and wrestling champion Matteo DeVincenzo has committed to attend Princeton University and join the school’s athletic program next fall.

“I found the school’s wrestling and strong academic offering to be a good fit for me,” he said. “University representatives were very welcoming to me during my visits and I am looking forward to working with the coach.”

DeVincenzo said he intends to study business and finance while also wrestling for the Tigers. As a junior, DeVincenzo earned the Eastern States Crown before moving onto the state tournament, where he took the bronze.

Port Jefferson school district extended its congratulations to DeVincenzo. The school is confident he will continue to bring the Royals pride through his future achievements.

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Little Portion Friary is on Old Post Road in Mount Sinai. Photo by Giselle Barkley

After 35 years, Hope House Ministries is reuniting with its roots.

Earlier this year, in light of financial difficulties and a lack of manpower, the Franciscan Brothers of the Little Portion Friary on Old Post Road in Mount Sinai announced their building was closing. But this past spring, Father Francis Pizzarelli approached the brothers about acquiring part of the property, and now it can still have a future.

According to Pizzarelli, his Port Jefferson-based nonprofit Hope House Ministries began at the Little Portion Friary location, when it rented the friary’s guesthouse. The group has since grown, adding local properties such as the Pax Christi Hospitality Center on Oakland Avenue in Port Jefferson, where it shelters homeless men. Now it will return to where it all started.

Pizzarelli said the brothers were going to sell the 44-acre property to a developer who was going to build condominiums. Instead, Hope House will rent four acres of the lot — with the rent going toward the land’s purchase price — while the remaining 40 acres will go to Suffolk County. Hope House will change the facility’s name to Hope Academy at Little Portion Friary and use the building to further assist and support the people who are battling addiction.

With Long Island facing heroin addiction in particular as a widespread problem, Pizzarelli said he didn’t have enough space to help, so he first purchased an apartment house in Port Jefferson to accommodate those individuals brought in for assistance.

“What the friary is going to provide for me is greater space,” Pizzarelli said.

The young men who currently reside at the apartment house will be moved to the friary, and the additional space will give them more room to reflect and help further their treatment, the priest said.

The building required basic maintenance and renovations, including repainting the bedrooms, replacing carpets and cleaning the facility.

“When the brothers realized they had to leave, they weren’t going to spend money on a building that might have been demolished,” Pizzarelli said.

Hope House began renovating the building in September. Residents like Ann Moran of Sound Beach described the friary as a “little known secret” in the Mount Sinai area. She was pleased about the friary’s new future, saying, “I’m delighted that Hope House is taking it over and the [friary] won’t be closing.”

Pizzarelli said his neighbors were also thrilled that Hope House was preserving the friary’s nearly eight and a half decades of service to the community.

Despite the changes, one local tradition will remain — the bakery is and will still be open for business. For many years, the brothers were known locally for baking bread and have passed the baton to Hope House, which has been selling bread since October.

Pizzarelli said he kept the bakery “not so much to make money, but to basically honor the brothers and their 86 years.”

The labyrinth and chapel will also be available for community members to use.

According to the Little Portion Friary website, the friary helped serve the community through “prayer, study and work.” The brothers of the friary occasionally took in homeless people or others who simply needed a safe place to go.

The Franciscan brothers are currently in San Francisco and were not available for comment, but Pizzarelli said the brothers were also pleased to know the friary would be used for a good cause.

“The Franciscan brothers have always been supportive of this ministry and are grateful that [the] ministry will continue to give life to this holy ground.”

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George Liberman reprises role for 9th year

Alexander Yagud-Wolek and George Liberman in last year’s performance of ‘A Christmas Carol.' Photo by Elizabeth Castrogiovanni, Kayline Productions

By Rita J. Egan

In the classic tale “A Christmas Carol,” a glimpse of his younger years working for Mr. Fezziwig provides a delightful vision of Christmas past for Ebenezer Scrooge. This holiday season, for the 9th year in a row, actor George Liberman will take on the role of the miser’s former boss in Theatre Three’s adaptation of the holiday classic.

It’s a character the actor loves portraying and one whose kind-hearted spirit he captures perfectly, with great energy and a jovial laugh.

The Ghost stopped at a certain warehouse door, and asked Scrooge if he knew it. “Know it!” said Scrooge. “Was I apprenticed here?”

They went in. At sight of an old gentleman in a Welsh wig, sitting behind such a high desk, that if he had been two inches taller he must have knocked his head against the ceiling, Scrooge cried in great excitement: “Why, it’s old Fezziwig! Bless his heart; it’s Fezziwig alive again!”

Old Fezziwig laid down his pen, and looked up at the clock, which pointed to the hour of seven. He rubbed his hands; adjusted his capacious waistcoat; laughed all over himself, from his shows to his organ of benevolence; and called out in a comfortable, oily, rich, fat, jovial voice.

— Excerpt from Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” 1843

“Fezziwig was a good businessman, but he believed that a happy workplace is a prosperous workplace, exactly the opposite of the environment that Scrooge is working in. His workplace was miserable; he was miserable. The Fezziwig workplace was totally different. You kind of see that when you go into the whole Fezziwig sequence in the show. It’s just a happy place,” said Liberman, who has played this role more than 400 times.

“The Fezziwig party — he’s inviting all of his workers, regardless of their class. He’s inviting his neighbors in; he’s having a great time. He wants everyone to enjoy themselves,” the actor said. “He’s bubbly, he’s happy; he has a great relationship with his wife. That’s kind of the way I try to portray him — being very, very happy and very bubbly, very full of life — and that’s what I love about the role.”

Douglas Quattrock, director of development and marketing, and group sales and marketing coordinator, who has played Bob Cratchit in the production for the last 12 years, said Liberman has a great understanding of the Fezziwig role. Quattrock explained that the character adds that touch of humanity to the story, where the most important thing is love.

“I think George embodies that. I’ve noticed that tenderness grow over the years. Every year he’s brought that nuance to it that a lot of actors who might play the role once or twice might not capture,” Quattrock said.

Liberman’s relationship with Theatre Three began in 1991, when he attended a performance of “Sweeney Todd.” The actor enjoyed the show so much he began auditioning and through the years has appeared in “Man of La Mancha” (Captain of the Inquisition), “Guys and Dolls” (Rusty Charlie) “Fiddler on the Roof” (Lazar Wolf), as well as others.

Jeffrey Sanzel, Theatre Three’s executive artistic director, describes Liberman as a go-to person who always has great chemistry with his castmates. “George is one of the easiest people to work with. I have never heard anybody say anything other than he’s wonderful,” Sanzel said, who also directs “A Christmas Carol” and stars as Scrooge.

Liberman’s interest in performing began during his days at Adelphi University. While a student there, he was a member of the Adelphi University Octet. The singing group would perform throughout New York State, and he appeared in one of the university’s musicals, “Little Mary Sunshine.” However, he said after graduating from college, due to working full-time and family responsibilities, he didn’t perform again until 1991, appearing in Theatre Three’s production of “Man of La Mancha”.

It wasn’t until the husband and father retired from working as an administrator for the New York State Office of Mental Health nine years ago that he approached Sanzel about participating in “A Christmas Carol.” He explained that the holiday production’s rehearsal and performance schedule would have been too demanding for him while working full-time.

Sanzel said he knew Liberman was perfect for the role of Fezziwig. “He’s very warm. There’s a real honesty about George, which comes across on stage because he’s that way in life,” the director said.

Liberman’s participation in “A Christmas Carol” keeps him, as well as the other actors, extremely busy the last few months of the year. Rehearsals this year began in the beginning of October, when the cast met downstairs to run through their lines, and on Oct. 26, they began rehearsing on stage, with a good percentage of the set constructed. Liberman, who loves to golf, said jokingly that he’s not quite sure what he would do this time of year if he weren’t rehearsing and performing on stage, especially with golf season being over.

Jenna Kavaler, George Liberman and Jeffrey Sanzel in last year’s performance of ‘A Christmas Carol.' Photo by Elizabeth Castrogiovanni, Kayline Productions
Jenna Kavaler, George Liberman and Jeffrey Sanzel in last year’s performance of ‘A Christmas Carol.’ Photo by Elizabeth Castrogiovanni, Kayline Productions

Liberman said he enjoys working with his fellow “A Christmas Carol” actors, both those who have returned from previous years and newcomers. He said Michelle Cosentino will be playing Mrs. Fezziwig for the first time and is wonderful in the role.

Cosentino enjoys working with Liberman as well, and she said she appreciates how welcoming and patient he is. “He’s pretty much Christmas 24/7. It’s like happiness is bursting out of him,” Cosentino said.

Liberman said he continually learns more about the story and the role and has added some refinements over the years, and he said he has grown as an actor as well. The growth has occurred not only due to playing Fezziwig each year, but also by watching Sanzel take on the role of Scrooge every holiday season. Liberman said he has learned a lot by watching the director, especially with how he shades his character in different ways.

In addition to his appreciation for what Fezziwig stands for, Liberman said the theme of “A Christmas Carol” also brings him back each year. He said, for him, the classic holiday story shows that even when you are as mean as Scrooge is, a person can learn the errors of his way.

“The message of the show is a very uplifting, positive message, as it progresses through the show. So I really enjoy doing it,” the actor said.

Liberman hopes that theatergoers will enjoy the message of the holiday story as much as he does. “I would hope that when people walk away, they’re inspired, and they come away with the notion that even the meanest of characters, the meanest of people, can be redeemed and can change, can see the positive in people and can do something positive for those around them,” he said.

Theatre Three, 412 Main Street, Port Jefferson, will present its 32nd annual production of “A Christmas Carol” from Nov. 14 to Dec. 27. Ticket prices range from $15 to $30. For more information and show times, visit www.theatrethree.com or call 631-928-9100.

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A view of the front entrance of the new Asharoken Village Hall located on Asharoken Avenue. The building, which opened less than a month ago, has more space for police and village business. Photo by Victoria Espinoza

Asharoken’s new Village Hall has got it all, according to Mayor Greg Letica.

Letica said the new structure is nearly three times larger than the old building — the ground floor is approximately 3,000 square feet. Most of that is made up of the village clerk’s office, an office for Letica, a small conference room, a kitchen and the village trustees’ meeting room.

The rest of the first floor and the second floor are spaces for the police department, including an office, an interview room, a locker room and storage.

Letica said the police department had about 120 square feet inside the old Village Hall, so its wish list was a bit bigger for the new building.

“There was no interview room, no office; there was no nothing,” Letica said.

Both the police department and the village clerk’s office moved into the new building about a month ago.

According to the mayor, this new Village Hall would not be possible if it weren’t for the involvement of village residents. The budget for the entire building was roughly $950,000 and residents opened their wallets to help.

“What’s great about this project is how we funded it,” he said. “To date, we have approximately $360,000 worth of resident donations.”

Residents have been donating money for nine years, ever since the idea to renovate the old village hall was brought up by Trustee Mel Ettinger. In October alone, Letica said, they received $13,000 in resident donations.

“We have roughly 300 families in the village and about 200 donated,” Ettinger said. “It’s incredible. And some of them gave tens of thousands and some gave $50. It was a conglomeration and obviously the overwhelming majority of people wanted to donate.”

Asharoken was also able to capitalize on money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and multiple grants to help fund the construction of the new building, because the old one took a beating during Hurricane Sandy. Letica said they received $530,000 from FEMA and about $80,000 in grants.

“After Sandy, it became more apparent that we had to do something,” Letica said. “And maintaining the old building made no sense anymore.”

The new village trustee meeting room will soon have a donor board, where the  names of people who have donated will be showcased on the wall.

“This is a really neat accomplishment by the village residents,” Letica said. “It’s something I think very few communities on Long Island could rally to do. I think it says a lot about Asharoken as a community.”

The new Village Hall is also much more energy efficient and environmentally friendly than the old establishment.

The building uses spray foam insulation, an alternative to traditional insulation, and LED lighting, which produces more light per watt than incandescent light bulbs. Both of those products lower utility bills and save on energy costs.

“We expect this building to be very economical energy-wise,” Letica said.

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Flying high on the Smithtown Bypass
A 38-year-old man from Amityville was arrested on Nov. 9 at 10 p.m. after police said he had heroin in his possession, pushed a police officer to the ground and then forcefully pulled away while trying to resist arrest on the Smithtown Bypass in Smithtown. He was charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, second-degree physical contact and resisting arrest.

Garage door damage
An unknown person damaged a garage door of a residence on Oak Avenue in Smithtown at 4 p.m. on Nov. 6.

Goodbye
A 51-year-old man from Holbrook was arrested on Nov. 6 at 11:15 p.m. after police said he drove into a 2007 Ford van that was parked on Johnson Avenue in Ronkonkoma and fled. He was charged with leaving the scene with property damage.

No more rims
Four tires and rims were stolen from a Cadillac at King O’Rourke Cadillac Buick GMC in Smithtown at 10 p.m. on Nov. 4.

Shed crime
A 19-year-old woman and a 20-year-old woman from Commack were arrested after police said they entered a shed on Lillian Road in Nesconset on Nov. 4 without permission at 7:30 a.m. They were both charged with third-degree criminal trespassing of an enclosed property.

Fake
A 45-year-old man from Commack was arrested on Nov. 7 after police said he pretended to be a police officer by showing a fake badge and saying he was a police officer at 1:30 p.m. on Route 25A in Commack. He was charged with second-degree criminal impersonation of a public servant.

Pot stop
Police said a 18-year-old man from Commack had marijuana in his possession at the corner of Route 25A and Commack Road in Commack at 10:50 p.m. on Nov. 4. He was arrested and charged with fifth-degree criminal possession of marijuana.

Flee fail
On Nov. 4 a 63-year-old woman from Commack was arrested after police said she hit a parked 2006 Ford pickup truck on Commack Road at 5:20 p.m. while driving a 2004 Cadillac and attempted to flee the scene. She was arrested and charged with leaving the scene with property damage.

Repair needed
On Nov. 6 around 1:40 p.m. an unknown person damaged the Dano’s Auto Clinic sign on Route 112 in Port Jefferson Station.

Cool crime
Between Nov. 3 and 4 an unidentified person stole an air-conditioning unit from Rheumatology Associates of Long Island in Port Jefferson Station.

Inhospitable hit
Suffolk County police said an unknown person broke the front window of the Pax Christi Hospitality Center in Port Jefferson on Nov. 6. The individual used a rock to damage the window.

Starting a garage band
On Nov. 5 an unidentified person stole an iMac computer and a guitar from a building on Riverhead Road in Sound Beach.

Just beachy
At Scott’s Beach Club in Sound Beach on Nov. 5, someone damaged a security camera and the arm of the security gate.

Mad hatter
On Nov. 7 someone left the Kohl’s in Rocky Point with a black hat without paying.

Can’t get no re-leaf
Between Nov. 4 and 5, an unknown person stole a leaf blower from a residence on Oxhead Road in Centereach. Police said the leaf blower was inside the home but didn’t specify how the person entered the home.

ShopWrong
An unknown person entered the ShopRite in Selden and stole assorted merchandise on Nov. 7.
A female stole assorted items from the Walmart on Nesconset Highway in East Setauket on Nov. 5.

Stony broke
On Nov. 6, an unknown person used another person’s identification without permission. According to police, the victim, who lives in Stony Brook, saw several charges to their bank card.

Drugged up and dreamin’
Police arrested a 28-year-old man from Medford for driving while ability impaired by drugs on Nov. 5, around 4:34 p.m., after he allegedly fell asleep while driving a 2008 Honda Civic west on Canal Road in Mount Sinai. Police arrested the man at the scene.

Wrong way
Police charged a 23-year-old woman on Nov. 5 for driving while ability impaired after she drove a black 2015 Hyundai Elantra the wrong way on a ramp connecting Route 97 and Route 25 in Centereach. According to police, the woman crashed into a tan 2003 Mercedes Benz. Police arrested the woman at the scene.          

License to spray paint
Police arrested a 69-year-old man from Selden on Nov. 6 for six counts of criminal tampering. The man allegedly spray-painted the front and rear license plates of a 2001 Toyota Camry, a 2004 Ford Taurus and four other unidentified cars on Oct. 17 and 27. The incidents took place at St. Joseph’s Village For Senior Citizens in Selden.

Low on luck
An 18-year-old man from East Setauket was arrested for petit larceny on Nov. 5, a few days after he took items from a Lowe’s home improvement store in Medford and attempted to return them for store credit.

Caught after the act
A 50-year-old woman from Rocky Point was arrested for grand larceny on Nov. 5, almost a month after she took a wallet from another woman’s purse on West Broadway in Port Jefferson. Police arrested the woman at the 6th Precinct.

In a Garden State of mind
Police arrested a 17-year-old teen from Brentwood on Nov. 6 for operating a car without a license. According to police, the teen was with another individual when he was driving the 2012 Toyota east on Route 25A in Miller Place, and he was in possession of forged New Jersey license plates.

Crash landing
A 23-year-old woman from Sound Beach was arrested on Nov. 7 for driving while ability impaired, after she crashed her 1996 Volkswagen on Rocky Point Landing Road in Rocky Point. Police arrested the woman on Tall Tree Lane.

The Heartbreaker
Coins and cash were stolen from a 2004 Chevrolet, a 2014 GMC and a 2005 Subaru, all parked in driveways on Valentine Lane in Huntington on Nov. 6.

Windshield woes
On Nov. 5 at 10 p.m. a 21-year-old man from Greenlawn was arrested after police said he jumped on a car on the corner of Greenlawn Road and Tilden Lane, and damaged the windshield. He caused injury to a police officer while resisting arrest, and was charged with second-degree assault with intent to cause physical injury to an officer, resisting arrest and intent to damage property.

Electronic troubles
An unknown person entered a gray 1999 Jeep Cherokee on Nassau Road in Huntington and stole a cell phone and an iPod at 1 a.m. on Nov. 7.

Not quite on Target
On Nov. 5, a 21-year-old woman from Huntington was arrested after police said she stole assorted clothing from the Target on East Jericho Turnpike in Huntington Station at 10:40 p.m. She was charged with petit larceny.

Dodgin’ the law
An unknown person entered a 2011 Dodge in a driveway on Vestry Court in Huntington and stole assorted items, including a pocket knife and a flashlight on Nov. 6.

Fake it till you make it
Police said a 19-year-old man from Roosevelt used fake checks at Community Market on Depot Road in Huntington Station on Nov. 4 at 12:30 p.m. He was charged with second-degree possession of a forged instrument.

Making a legacy in his Legacy
A 53-year-old man from Freeport was arrested at 10:15 a.m. on Nov. 6 after police said he intentionally hit a police vehicle with his 2015 Subaru Legacy on Rofay Drive in East Northport and then resisted arrest. According to police, he also had heroin in his possession. He was charged with second-degree reckless endangerment, third degree criminal mischief for property damage and fourth degree criminal possession of narcotic drugs.

Tears at Sears
Police said a 35-year-old from Huntington Station stole clothing from Sears on Route 25A in East Northport on Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. He was charged with petit larceny.

High on North Hill
A 30-year-old man from Huntington Station was arrested after police said he was in possession of marijuana on the corner of North Hill Drive and Pulaski Road in East Northport on Nov. 5 at around 10 p.m.

No room for that at the inn
On Nov. 7, a 34-year-old man from Hicksville was arrested after police said he was in possession of cocaine in a parking lot of Rodeway Inn on West Jericho Turnpike in Huntington Station. He was charged with seventh degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

Full speed ahead on Railroad Street
A 35-year-old man from Syosset was arrested on Nov. 5 after police said he was in possession of cocaine, marijuana and prescription pills without a prescription and then resisted arrest at 10:15 p.m. on the corner of Railroad Street and West Pulaski Road in Huntington Station. He was charged with two accounts of seventh degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, resisting arrest and fifth degree criminal possession of marijuana.

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