MEET BUTTERCUP! This little sweetie is Buttercup! At just 1 year old , she is very affectionate, loves to play and relishes attention. Buttercup would just love to come home with you! So hurry down and meet her today — we’re sure you’ll fall in love! This friendly feline comes spayed, microchipped and up to date on all her vaccines. Kent Animal Shelter is located at 2259 River Road in Calverton. For more information on Buttercup and other adoptable pets at Kent, please call 631-727-5731 or visit www.kentanimalshelter.com.
Three artists present a seaworthy exhibit at Huntington gallery
By Rita J. Egan
Photographers Holly Gordon, John Ellsworth and Jeff Urquhart are celebrating the end of summer with their latest exhibit, A Boating pARTy, at Huntington’s fotofoto gallery. The show, which opened yesterday, will run through Sept. 23.
Gordon met Ellsworth years ago when he purchased one of her photos, “Foggy Harbor,” and Ellsworth introduced her to Urquhart, whom he met at a photographer’s seminar. Gordon, a fotofoto gallery photographer, said the friendships flowed, and their nautical artwork perfectly complements each other.
“We’re three different sets of eyes and souls who see and respond to the water and boating so differently,” said Gordon.
‘Kayaks at Bay’ by Holly Gordon
While she is not an active boater, the photographer and former teacher said she enjoys being on the water and has seen a lot of the world from a boat. Gordon has captured many of her photographs both locally and in places such as Antarctica and the Galapagos while on various types of vessels, including in a raft while on the Amazon River.
The photographer said when she was younger she would gravitate to areas that had water, and she would look to see how the water’s reflection affected colors and shapes. “Being on the water, and looking at water, has always given me a sense of serenity, or calm,” Gordon said. “To me, it’s a very nurturing rhythm. I know water can also be very powerful and cause a lot of problems and trouble, but my connection with water has always been one that’s been very soothing as well as creative.”
Ellsworth said he sees the beauty in everyday things and looks for unique compositions. Among the photographs he submitted for the exhibit is “Recovered Assets.” The piece features two dinghies filled with lobster markers that floated to shore and were collected by residents of Asharoken who gifted them to a Northport bay man. Ellsworth said to him they looked like beautifully colored candy. “I like to look at items that people walk by and don’t see the beauty in them.”
A former Northport resident, Ellsworth now lives in Maryland and said he has owned various boats in his lifetime and always had an affinity to water. He was a Navy quartermaster petty officer on a destroyer in the early 1960s, and in the 1970s, he traveled by sailboat from Florida to Belize and Guatemala. It was during graduate school that he began taking classes that involved photography and the part aesthetics play in it.
“I was trying to understand, and I don’t know if I ever will, why people are moved by certain images, and what are the dynamics of art that speak to people,” Ellsworth said. “I thought if I could understand that it would make me a better photographer, and it has in terms of composition and understanding the dynamics of subject matter.”
Ellsworth said sometimes he can take 20 to 200 photos to get one he likes. “There’s a feeling you get when you get a good image,” he said. “Your whole body resonates with the scene when you click that shot.”
‘Chasing the Fleet’ by Jeff Urquhart
Urquhart, a former Verizon worker who is now a finish carpenter/project manager in Huntington Village, said he loves to sail and kayak. Like Ellsworth he’s owned different boats through the years and finds the water to be a great escape.
The photographer said he has taken photos from schooners, leaned over boats and been on the water during foggy weather to get that coveted shot. Even though he’s taken photos for more than 50 years, Urquhart said it’s only been the last few years that he has learned the intricacies that speak to the public. “There’s a very fine line between taking a picture and making a picture, and I stepped over that line, and I’m now creating pictures instead of just documenting family birthdays and holidays,” he said.
Urquhart said water has been a part of his life since his family moved from Kansas City, Missouri to Long Island when he was a child. “It just feels right,” Urquhart said. “It just feels where I need to be.”
Having learned the compositional aspects of photography, he said there is so much to capture on the water and look at on a boat. “An older wooden schooner lends itself to texture and mechanical aspects that people often overlook or take for granted,” he said.
Urquhart will focus on a specific piece of a vessel and said, when taken in color and taken out of context, it can become crisp and something to admire. Even anchors and lines in a boatyard capture his eye. “It just speaks to me as rough, ready to go, security in the fact that it’s a heavy anchor, heavy rope, it’s not going to suffer any damage,” he said. “It’s the implied security. It’s the implied peace of mind.”
Urquhart is hoping the exhibit will inspire art lovers to visit the places he has and photograph them. “Experience what I’ve experienced,” he said. “Or, if they’ve already done that, and if they don’t have a memory or memento of that trip they took, maybe what I have would satisfy the need.”
Ellsworth’s creative mission is for exhibitgoers to look at things differently whether walking along a shore, boatyard or town. “I [hope they] look at common things in an uncommon way whether a photographer or not, and to enhance one’s viewings when they’re walking, when they’re bicycling, when they’re driving but mostly when they’re walking,” he said.
Gordon has chosen 30 pieces of art in canvas, metal and traditional mat frame and glass for the exhibit. She said the photographs represent the Huntington area, Nova Scotia, Maine and Martha’s Vineyard. Gordon said these places as well as others in the world are connected by water.
“Sometimes I think in terms of Mother Earth, and the water is her blood flowing through all of her veins and arteries and it encircles the whole planet,” Gordon said.
A Boating pARTy exhibit will be docked at the fotofoto gallery, 14 West Carver St., Huntington, until Sept. 23. A public reception to meet the photographers will be held on Sept. 2 from 5 to 7 p.m. For more information, visit www.fotofotogallery.org or call 631-549-0448.
Christina Loeffler, the co-owner of Rely RX Pharmacy & Medical Supplies in St. James, works at one of the few non-major pharmacies in the county participating in the program to give low to no cost Narcan to those with prescription health insurance coverage. Photo by Kyle Barr
By Kyle Barr
The opioid crisis on Long Island has left devastation in its wake, and as opioid-related deaths rise every year, New York State has created an additional, more affordable way to combat it. To deal with the rash of overdoses as a result of addiction, New York State made it easier for people with prescription insurance to afford Naloxone, a common overdose reversal medication.
On Aug. 7, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced starting Aug. 9 that people with prescription health insurance coverage would be able to receive Naloxone, which is commonly referred to as Narcan, for a copay of up to $40. New York is the first state to offer the drug for such a low cost in pharmacies.
Narcan kit are now available for low to no cost at many New York pharmacies. File photo by Rohma Abbas
“The vast majority of folks who have health insurance with prescription coverage will be able to receive Naloxone through this program for free,” said Ben Rosen, a spokesperson for the New York State Department of Health.
Before the change, the average shelf cost of Narcan, which is administered nasally, was $125 without prescription with an average national copay of $10. People on Medicaid and Medicare paid between $1 and $3, Rosen said.
This action on part of the state comes at a critical time. Over 300 people from Suffolk County died from opioid-related deaths in 2016, according to county medical examiner records. On Aug. 10, President Donald Trump (R) declared the opioid issue a national emergency, meaning that there is now more pressure on Congress to pass legislation to deal with the crisis, as well as a push to supply more funds to states, police departments and health services to help deal with the problem.
The drug is available in over 3,000 pharmacies across New York and well over 100 pharmacies in Suffolk County. This includes all major pharmacies like CVS Health, Walgreens and Rite Aid, but also includes a few local pharmacies that already participate in the state Aids Drug Assistance Program and Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance Coverage and Medicaid, according to Kathy Febraio, the executive director of the Pharmacists Society of the State of New York, a not-for-profit pharmacists advocacy group.
The program is only available for people who either have Medicare, Medicaid or health insurance with prescription coverage. Otherwise, officials said that those who lack insurance who need access can get it through a number of free Narcan training courses.
“We think that anything that can have an affect on this crisis is a good thing,” Febraio said. “This will certainly help. We need anything that will get Naloxone into the hands of those who need it.”
While Suffolk County Legislator and Presiding Officer DuWayne Gregory (D-Amityville) likes the idea of additional access to Narcan, he is skeptical about whether those who get it know how to properly administer it.
Narcan kits are now available for low to no cost at many New York pharmacies, like at Rely RX Pharmacy & Medical Supplies in St. James. Photo by Kyle Barr
“You don’t need a PHD to know how to use it, but there is some training that would help people be more comfortable, such as how to properly use it in an emergency situation and how to store it so that it is accessible while making sure children can’t get their hands on it,” he said. “Unfortunately the epidemic is so wide spread. Everyone knows someone who is affected.”
Christina Loeffler, the co-owner of Rely RX Pharmacy & Medical Supplies in St. James, one of the few non-major pharmacies in the county participating in the program, said though the business has not yet received many calls for Narcan, the state requires pharmacists to demonstrate how to use it.
“You have to counsel the patient and show them how to use it,” she said. “We were showed videos, we were given kits to practice on before we were certified to do it. I feel like it’s a good thing that they’re doing it.”
The county currently provides numerous Narcan training courses for locals, where they receive training and free supplies of the life-saving drug. Suffolk County Legislator Sarah Anker (D-Mount Sinai) said that she will be co-hosting a free Narcan training course Oct. 5 at Rocky Point High School with support from the North Shore Youth Council.
“They absolutely need to be trained,” she said. “Narcan is almost a miracle drug — it brings people back from death. However, people need to know what they’re doing so that it is administered correctly.”
Check on the New York State Department of Health website’s opioid overdose directories section for a full list of participating pharmacies.
Hundreds of residents gather at the Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s Educational & Cultural Center to learn about Serbian inventor Nikola Tesla. Photo by Kevin Redding
By Kevin Redding
More than 100 years after his great-grandfather designed and oversaw the construction of Nikola Tesla’s Wardenclyffe laboratory in Shoreham, Sebastian White, a renowned physicist and St. James native, filled a local lecture hall to discuss all things surrounding the Serbian-American inventor.
White, whose famous ancestor Stanford White’s architectural achievements include Washington Square Arch, the original Madison Square Garden and what is now the Tesla Science Center, took time out of his busy schedule as a particle physicist for CERN — the European Organization for Nuclear Research — to engage a roomful of science lovers Aug. 27.
The presentation was in conjunction with the center’s summer-long Tesla exhibit in Stony Brook and ended with a screening of clips from “Tower to the People,” a documentary made by a local filmmaker about the laboratory.
The physicist, and chairman of the Tesla Science Center’s Science Advisory Board, examined the litany of Tesla influences in modern-day technology and the late-19th century culture that helped shape his genius.
Dr. Sebastian White, the great-grandson of Nikola Tesla’s architect Stanford White, discuss the importance of inventor Nikola Tesla and his work. Photo by Kevin Redding
“Today it’s very clear that Tesla is trending in much of the science that’s showing up, such as wireless transmission of energy, which is a new field, and the Tesla car, but I think we shouldn’t only remember him for what he did, but also the incredible time in America he became part of,” White told the 130 residents packed into the lecture hall on the top floor at The Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s Educational & Cultural Center. “I think the story of Tesla, who many of my colleagues don’t even know, is an important one as it tells us how we got to where we are.”
White explained how Tesla’s grand vision for wireless transmission of energy, which eventually culminated in a torn-down tower on the Shoreham site in 1917, remains a much-pursued concept.
“There’s a very lively industry happening today, mostly because people keep forgetting to charge their iPhones and they want to find a way to do it without needing cords,” he said.
Through a process called energy harvesting, industry scientists are actively working on ways to charge cellphones while they sit inside pockets by capturing energy just from the environment.
“It’s an enormous field now — new companies are very interested in it and a lot is happening,” White said, pointing out other examples of wireless power transmissions over the years. “In 1964, on the Walter Cronkite TV show, a guy named William C. Brown demonstrated a model of an electric helicopter powered by a microwave. The United States, Canada and Japan have experimented with airplanes powered by radio waves. I would say, probably, if Tesla were around today, he’d be more happy about all the things people are inventing with new techniques rather than always quoting him and saying, ‘Well, Tesla said this.’”
White said Tesla’s emergence as one of the most influential scientific minds of all time coincided with what he referred to as “an incredibly important time” in the late 1800s, a period referred to as the American Renaissance.
Among the prolific figures with whom Tesla interacted were writer Mark Twain, physicist Ernest Rutherford, American businessman John Jacob Astor IV, and, of course, Stanford White. The physicist said a huge year for Tesla was 1892, when he lectured and demonstrated his experiments at the Institution for Electrical Engineers at the Royal Institution in London.
Residents eagerly listen and learn about the life of invetntor Nikola Tesla during a lecture. Photo by Kevin Redding
Speaking on his great-grandfather and Tesla’s friendship, which proved itself through many projects prior to Wardenclyffe, White referred to one particular exchange.
“Stanford White [once] invited Tesla to join him for an outing with William Astor Chanler, an explorer,” he recounted. “Tesla said, ‘I’m busy in the lab.’ White kept pushing him and then wrote to him, ‘I’m so delighted that you decided to tear yourself away from your laboratory. I would sooner have you on board than the Emperor of Germany or the Queen of England.’”
David Madigan, a Tesla Science Center board member, said after the lecture that having White’s perspective on this near-and-dear subject was integral.
“It’s important having Dr. White give the talk, who’s a physicist himself and whose grandfather was Stanford White, who was intimately involved in Tesla’s advancement of his many ideas both as an investor and also as an architect,” Madigan said. “It’s a good triangulation of today’s event, the Tesla exhibit, and Dr. White bringing in the scientific and family history.”
White said he has always felt a strong connection with his great-grandfather, who had a home in Smithtown, since he wasyoung.
“He was part of our life for sure,” he said. “We all felt very close to him. My son is an architect, my aunt and uncle were architects, my grandfather was an architect, and even continued in the same firm.”
East Setauket resident Michael Lubinsky said he was drawn to the lecture through a lifelong interest in Tesla.
“I always felt that Tesla was not appreciated that much in his time,” Lubinsky said, laughing that much of the lecture went over his head with its scientific terms.
Paul Scala, a software engineer living in Centereach, said he too gravitated to the event to explore more of Tesla’s story.
“I think [Dr. White] did a very nice job,” he said. “It’s very cool seeing that in the tech world they’re still trying to harness wireless energy.”
A young Port Jefferson football player stretches during the district's summer camp Aug. 26. Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson football players practice with local youth during a summer camp Aug. 26. Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson coaches talk to young, aspiring football players during the district's summer football camp Aug. 26. Photo by Bill Landon
A Port Jefferson football player teaches a youth athelte the basics during a summer football camp Aug. 26. Photo by Bill Landon
A young Port Jefferson football players makes a pass. Photo by Bill Landon
A young Port Jefferson football player waits to make a catch. Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson junior receiver Jonathan Bachmann makes a catch during a scrimmage Aug. 26.
Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson sophomore receiver Sam Florio leaps up to make a catch during a scrimmage Aug. 26. Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson sophomore receiver Sam Florio tris to stop junior Ryan Holmes in his tracks. Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson sophhmore running abck Sam Katsaros poses for a photo with a local youth player. Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson senior running back Thomas Mark makes a catch during a scrimmage Aug. 26. Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson varsity football players pose for a photo with local youth athletes during a summer football camp Aug. 26. Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson senior running back Hunter Ginas rushes past junior linebacker Matt Murphy during a scrimmage Aug. 26.
Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson senior quarterback Jack Collins passes the ball during a scrimmage Aug. 26. Photo by Bill Landon
Port Jefferson junior receiver Jonathan Bachmann makes a leaping catch ahead of the defense during a scrimmage Aug. 26. Photo by Bill Landon
By Bill Landon
Port Jefferson’s youngest football players practiced alongside the Royals varsity squad Aug. 26 during a camp designed to teach the fundamentals of the game while stressing the do’s and don’ts of safety in the sport.
Royals head coach Andrew Cosci had players break into groups of running backs, receivers, quarterbacks and linemen during the camp for which the idea he said was long overdue.
“I think it’s extremely important to involve the younger players, especially with the way football is being looked at across the nation, along with the NFL, with the emphasis on safety,” he said, also adding the desire to get the younger kids enthusiastic about and interested in the program. “It shows that we’re all in this together. The game is a great game, it teaches a lot of life lessons and you want to share it with the little ones because that’s where a lot of the fear is. When the young kids come up, [they can] see how we teach the athletes the right way to play the game.”
“I think it’s extremely important to involve the younger players … with an emphasis on safety. The game is a great game, it teaches a lot of life lessons and you want to share it with the little ones.”
— Andrew Cosci
For senior wide receiver and strong safety Thomas Mark, practicing with the younger players has been special.
“It’s definitely really important because when I was a kid coming to all the games I looked up to those players,” Mark said of seeing previous varsity athletes. “So to be out here and to see these kids look up to us is really rewarding.”
Port Jeff sixth-grader Shane Wardell said the reason he was at the camp was simple.
“To have fun and to see the varsity team,” he said. “I want to play on varsity some day.”
Senior running back Joey Evangelista echoed Mark’s sentiment, and said he thinks the camp is an important one.
“It shows them what we do up here at this level and it gets them ready for it,” Evangelista said, and then assessed his team’s chances this season. “We have a lot of our backfield coming back, which is awesome. A lot of our line left us last year, but we have some big guys, so I think we can do it.”
Cosci will rely on all 14 of his seniors to set the example for the younger generations and the underclassmen on the team. The hope is to make a deep run in the playoffs.
“From year to year you never know and you always get surprises, but hopefully they’re good surprises,” Cosci said. “We have a couple of holes that we knew we’d have to fill up front because of guys who graduated last year, but every day they’re getting better and they’re working hard and that’s all you can ask of them.”
“I remember when I was that age and we didn’t have a Port Jeff youth program, so it’s nice to be part of … it’s nice to be able to give back to the community and I’m happy that I’m able to be part of it.”
— Jack Collins
The Royals look to improve on the 5-3 conference season from last year, and have a new weapon in their arsenal to get the job done, according to senior quarterback Jack Collins.
“This year we have athletes like we’ve never had before,” the third-year varsity player said. “We have some new kids who are really good outside. We’ve lost some tonnage from last year’s team, so we’re going to have to work on getting the blocks down, but we got players to do it — we have the size to do it.”
Mark said he also likes what he sees in this year’s lineup.
“We have a lot of skill players — our receivers, running backs, quarterback — we’ve got a good bond so far and a lot of really athletic kids, so I’m looking forward to seeing how many big plays they can make,” he said. “But it’s knowing who to block and when, and knowing our schemes.”
Collins reflected on what it means to be involved with the local youth football players in their formative years.
“It’s very important to involve the younger players [because they] are the ones who keep the program going,” he said. “I remember when I was that age and we didn’t have a Port Jeff youth program, so it’s nice to be part of [it]. It’s nice to be able to give back to the community and I’m happy that I’m able to be part of it.”
The Royals will pick up where they left off as they open their season on the road against Miller Place, the team that ended their season in the playoffs last year. The Sept. 8 matchup has a kickoff time slated for 7 p.m.
Cosci said he is optimistic about Port Jefferson’s chances to go further.
“What I like a lot is our skill positions — they’re very dangerous on the football field,” the head coach said. “Even on defense our linebackers and our secondary, we’re very, very strong and as long as we keep going in that direction we’re going to be a dangerous team. Shoreham is the team to beat — we’ve always had a tough time with them, but we’re not just looking to make the playoffs, we’re looking to make some noise when we get there.”
The Aug. 17 suit opposes dumping in Long Island Sound
Councilwoman Valerie Cartright, Brookhaven Supervisor Ed Romaine, Councilwoman Jane Bonner and Assemblyman Steve Englebright are joined by environmentalists to support a state lawsuit against the EPA's practice of dumping dredged materials in the Long Island Sound during an Aug. 28 press conference at Cedar Beach in Mount Sinai. Photo by Alex Petroski
By Alex Petroski
New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) is picking a fight with the federal government, and as of Aug. 28, he officially has backup.
Brookhaven Town Supervisor Ed Romaine (R), joined by town board members, environmentalists and State Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket), announced the town’s support of a lawsuit filed by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman Aug. 17 against the United States Environmental Protection Agency regarding the open dumping of dredged materials in the Long Island Sound. The lawsuit alleged the Long Island Sound Dredge Material Management Plan, which was approved by the EPA, violates the Ocean Dumping Act and Coastal Zone Management Act, and also cited a “failure to address environmental impacts on the Long Island Sound.”
“The state of New York and this governor, Andrew Cuomo, has done a great service to this state and to the residents of Long Island by working to enjoin, in the court, the EPA from allowing continued dumping in the Sound.”
—Ed Romaine
In 2016, the EPA increased the number of open water dumping sites in the Sound from two to three, despite a call from state government leaders of both New York and Connecticut in 2005 to reduce and eventually eliminate the practice of dumping in the Sound. According to the suit, the dumping is also inconsistent with several investments of taxpayer dollars and policies that have sought to clean up the vital Long Island waterway. Cuomo opposed the additional dumping site in late 2016, and Romaine and the town sent a letter to the governor in support of legal action against the federal agency.
“We’re here to send a very strong message — that we are opposed to dumping in the Sound,” Romaine said during a press conference Aug. 28 at Cedar Beach in Mount Sinai. “The state of New York and this governor, Andrew Cuomo, has done a great service to this state and to the residents of Long Island by working to enjoin, in the court, the EPA from allowing continued dumping in the Sound.”
Romaine accused the EPA of taking the expedient course of action rather than the most environmentally sound course with dredged materials, some of which are contaminated by pollutants.
Though a spokesperson for the EPA declined via email to comment on ongoing litigation, an April 2016 statement from the agency spelled out the motivation for continued dumping in the Sound.
“Dredging is needed to ensure safe navigation in the sound,” EPA spokesman John Martin said in an email to Times Beacon Record Newspapers. He added the agency felt the proposal struck “an appropriate balance between the need for dredging to maintain safe and efficient navigation and our desired outcome to restore and protect Long Island Sound.”
Kevin McAllister, the president of Defend H20, a nonprofit organization dedicated to defending and restoring the quality of Long Island’s waterways, spoke in support of the town and the governor during the press conference.
“We’re spending billions of dollars on water quality improvements and the open water dumping of contaminated silt flies in the face of these efforts.”
—Kevin McAllister
“As a federally designated Estuary of National Significance, Long Island Sound is in need of greater protection,” he said. “We’re spending billions of dollars on water quality improvements and the open water dumping of contaminated silt flies in the face of these efforts.”
Representatives from the nonprofits Sierra Club Long Island and the Setauket Harbor Task Force also pledged support in opposition of the dumping plan.
Englebright offered a suggestion for an alternative to the continued dumping in the Sound.
“It is ironic that at a time when we’re watching a terrible hurricane devastating the great state of Texas and reflecting on the reality that sea level is rising, that the federal government is proposing to take a vast amount of sediment that will be needed to bulwark our coastal investments, our coastal communities from a rising sea level to augment our beaches with that sediment, to take it instead and use it in the most harmful possible way,” Englebright said. He added the dumping is “radicalizing the ecology” of the waterway, saying the sediment could be needed and should be used to strengthen coastlines. Englebright cited a deadly 1953 storm in the Netherlands that inspired the same fortification he proposed, a practice that nation has continued since.
Brookhaven Town Council members Valerie Cartright (D-Port Jefferson Station) and Jane Bonner (C-Rocky Point) also voiced support of the lawsuit. Romaine said he had been in contact with 1st Congressional District U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) regarding the town’s support of the lawsuit, and Romaine said the congressman is strongly opposed to dumping in the Sound.
Zeldin has sponsored and supported bills designed to improve the health of the Sound in the past and has opposed long term dumping at the designated sites.
“The Long Island Sound shouldn’t be a dumping ground, especially when there are many viable alternatives to open water dumping, including recycling and safe disposal on land,” Zeldin said in an emailed statement through spokeswoman Jennifer DiSiena.
This post was updated to include comments by Lee Zeldin.
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
Scenes from Port Jefferson's annual Greek Festival at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption. Photo by Kevin Redding
By Kevin Redding
From Aug. 24 to 27, the grounds at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption in Port Jefferson were filled with residents shouting “Opa!”
Vendors were selling Greek art and jewelry, there were carnival rides, happy faces and a whole lot of food for the 56th annual Greek Festival.
Long Islanders chowed down on gyros, moussaka, souvlaki and spanakopita while kids took to the merry-go-round and giant slide. Guided tours of the church and grand raffle prizes were available throughout the weekend and Greek music from the festival could be heard for miles.
Suffolk County Police 6th Squad detectives are investigating a motor vehicle crash that killed a motorcyclist in Selden Aug. 27.
Charles Ciapi drove a motorcycle out of a parking lot and onto Route 25 when he was struck by a 2013 Hyundai SUV traveling eastbound at approximately 9:45 p.m. Ciapi, 50, of Selden, was transported by ambulance to Stony Brook University Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, according to police. The driver of the Hyundai, Julia Leyboldt, 19, of West Sayville, was not injured.
Both vehicles were impounded for a safety checks. The investigation is ongoing. Detectives are asking anyone with information about this crash to call the 6th Squad at 631-854–8652.
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Residents gathered at Huntington's Heckscher Park Aug. 27 to see some classic cars on display as part of the Northport Centerport Lions Club's annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
Huntington and Northport residents could cruise into a different era at the Hecksher Park ballfields in their choice of classic cars Aug. 27.
The Northport Centerport Lions Club hosted the 54th annual Robert J. Bohaty Memorial Lions Classic auto show featuring dozens of classic cruisers dating back to the 1930s. This year’s show was dedicated to the Lions’ past district governor Howard Wilson and past president Clinton Strait.
Attendees had the opportunity to look, but not touch, Ford Roadsters, Chevy Coupes, a Chevelle SS Convertible, Ford Thunderbirds and even a Crown Victoria that previously served as a police squad car.
Proceeds from the show provide monetary support to the Cleary School for the Deaf in Nesconset, Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind in Smithtown, and the Lions Eye Bank for Long Island, a part of Northwell Health.
Donated funds are also used to support local Cub and Boy Scouts, food pantries, little leagues and aid victims of natural disasters.
Residents gather outside the entrance of Renaissance Technologies in Setauket Aug. 23 to protest Robert Mercer's alleged funding of alternative-right causes. Photo by Rita J. Egan
Residents gather outside the entrance of Renaissance Technologies in Setauket Aug. 23 to protest Robert Mercer's alleged funding of alternative-right causes. Photo by Rita J. Egan
Residents gather outside the entrance of Renaissance Technologies in Setauket Aug. 23 to protest Robert Mercer's funding of alternative-right causes. Photo by Rita J. Egan
Residents gather outside the entrance of Renaissance Technologies in Setauket Aug. 23 to protest Robert Mercer's alleged funding of alternative-right causes. Photo by Rita J. Egan
Residents gather outside the entrance of Renaissance Technologies in Setauket Aug. 23 to protest Robert Mercer's alleged funding of alternative-right causes. Photo by Rita J. Egan
Residents gather outside the entrance of Renaissance Technologies in Setauket Aug. 23 to protest Robert Mercer's alleged funding of alternative-right causes. Photo by Rita J. Egan
Residents gather outside the entrance of Renaissance Technologies in Setauket Aug. 23 to protest Robert Mercer's alleged funding of alternative-right causes. Photo by Rita J. Egan
By Rita J. Egan
A local activist group is asking a Long Island billionaire and his daughter to stop funding the alt-right.
According to a press release from the North Country Peace Group, Robert Mercer, billionaire co-CEO of the Setauket-based hedge fund Renaissance Technologies, and his daughter Rebekah have allegedly contributed millions of dollars to alt-right causes due to his alliance with the online media company Breitbart News.
The group held a rally in front of the company’s entrance on Route 25A Aug. 23 because members feel Breitbart News has provided a forum for white supremacist, sexist and other racist voices.
Approximately two dozen protesters were in attendance with signs in tow. During the rally, Charles Perretti of Setauket grabbed a megaphone and addressed the crowd.
“What does [the Mercer family] want?” he asked. “They want to control the public dialogue. They want to advance their attitudes and values at the expense of true representative government and the spirit of one man and one vote.”
Perretti said Mercer supports the current Republican presidential administration, referring to that of President Donald Trump (R).
“What do we want, the people on the corner?” he said. “We want concern for the common good.”
The statement inspired protesters to respond repeatedly: “Concern for the common good.”
In recent months, the local peace group has organized or participated in several rallies covering various topics including Trump’s proposed transgender military ban, climate change, alleged use of force by police and a sister event to the Women’s March on Washington.
Peace group member Rosemary Maffei, of Setauket, has been in attendance for much of the group’s protests. She said attending political demonstrations is something she feels she needs to do for herself personally and for the country, and she appreciates being around like-minded residents.
“I feel it’s important to let people see that there is resistance to Trump and the Republican Party, especially here on ‘red’ Long Island,” she said. “Sitting home and doing nothing while the country is being torn apart is something I don’t understand.”
Mercer did not respond to a request sent through an executive assistant at his company for comments about the rally.
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