Suffolk County Police Homicide Squad detectives are investigating the drowning death of a woman in Fort Salonga.
Fourth Precinct officers responded to a Fort Salonga home June 24 at approximately 6:10 p.m. after a resident called 911 reporting a woman floating in his backyard pool. When officers arrived, they found Carol-Jean Werkstell unresponsive in the water.
Werkstell, 76, was transported to St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown where she was pronounced dead.
By Odeya Rosenband
School districts across Suffolk County have seen a sizable increase in voter turnout for their 2020-21 budget elections, in comparison with previous years.
2019 Budget Vote Tallies
SWR: 1,458
Rocky Point: 916
Miller Place: 783
Mount Sinai:1,381
Port Jeff: 719
Comsewogue: 812
Middle Country: 2,058
Three Village: 2,087
Smithtown: 2,776
2020 Budget Vote Tallies SWR: 2,947 (+1,458)
Rocky Point: 2,913 (+1,997)
Miller Place: 3,016 (+2,233)
Mount Sinai:2,965 (+1,584)
Port Jeff: 1,387 (+668)
Comsewogue: 3,349 (+2,537)
Middle Country: 7,639 (+5,581)
Three Village: 9231 (+7,244)
Smithtown: 11,071 (+8,293)
Notably, as opposed to in-person, all voting was conducted through a mail-in ballot this year due to the threat of COVID-19. This process made voting more readily accessible to all community members, who have largely been under stay-at-home orders as the county remained in Phase 2 at the time of the elections.
Among North Shore school districts covered by TBR News Media, the Hauppauge school district witnessed the most significant change, receiving nearly five times more voters than they did last year. Like every district, Hauppauge’s budget passed but is expecting possible cuts in state aid later in the year. This anticipation is another factor that helps to explain the increased voter turnout, as this upcoming school year’s budget is highly sensitive.
Kenneth Bossert, superintendent of Elwood school district, noted that despite the increase in voters, the ratio of people who supported the budget to those who didn’t remained similar between the two years. “Most budgets that stay under the tax cap pass,” he said. Voter turnout in Elwood increased by 253 percent from last year, with 3,985 total voters.
Not only has voting been made more accessible this year due to the mail-in format, but the fact that more people are at home suggests that people have more time to think about their local districts. With districts trying to formulate accommodations for the next year, keeping in mind the ever-changing nature of health protocols, district heads have routinely called this year’s school budgets more crucial than normal.
In terms of the number of new voters, Smithtown Central School District displayed the greatest difference with 8,295 more people voting than just last year. Interim Superintendent Russell Stewart said that, “The support [voters] have given us during this budget season [will] allow us to continue to offer the best education possible to our students.”
The collective increase in voter turnout for the North Shore school districts’ 2020-21 budgets — by more than threefold overall — indicates that mail-in ballots have been more successful than the previous in-person voting.
It is a unique comparison this year to other political votes nationwide, which have also had to contend with limitations from the pandemic. While votes were still being tallied Wednesday, June 24 for the 2020 state and local primaries, turnout is expected to be lower than in similar primaries in 2018. The number of polling places on Long Island have been consolidated, and instead of absentee ballots sent directly to homes, voting forms had to be requested and sent in before deadline the night of June 23.
In 2018, the most contentious primary for the area was for the Democratic Party contender for the U.S. Congressional District 1 seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY1). Two years ago the total number of votes equaled 20,331. While votes were still being tallied by press time, the number of total votes for people who voted in person is nearly 5,000 less than last election, according to data from the Suffolk County Board of Elections. Full results will not be known until after July 1 when all mailed-in votes are counted.
As of press time, Perry Gershon is currently leading for the Congressional District 1 seat. Laura Ahearn is also currently leading for the New York State Senate District 1 seat by a few hundred votes over Brookhaven Town Councilwoman Valerie Cartright (D-Port Jefferson Station).
Suffolk County Police arrested two men on drugs and weapons charges following a disturbance at a convenience store in Commack last night.
Fourth Precinct police officers responded to a report of a disturbance at 7-Eleven, located at 362 Veterans Memorial Highway, June 23 at approximately 9:45 p.m. During the disturbance, Robert Sperduti allegedly displayed a handgun to the cashier. Upon police arrival, Sperduti allegedly attempted to flee but was apprehended a short time later.
Police officers also apprehended Robert Cano, who was allegedly found to be in possession of Xanax without a prescription. Following an investigation, it was determined that Cano sold the gun to Sperduti.
Sperduti, 22, of Huntington, was arrested and charged with criminal possession of a weapon in the 2nd and 3rd degree and menacing. Cano, 19, of Smithtown, was arrested and charged with criminal sale of a firearm and criminal possession of a controlled substance.
Sperduti and Cano are scheduled for arraignment at First District Court in Central Islip today.
With Long Island now entering Phase 3 of reopening, masks are as important as ever. More people out and about necessarily means an increase in exposure to others and potentially COVID-19. Though what has confounded us is the seeming semipolitical divide regarding masks made to protect each other from the coronavirus. Somehow whether to wear one has become a political issue instead of a health matter.
We get it. Facial coverings can be uncomfortable at times, but the discomfort is worth it for the greater good. Think about it. Women through the centuries have worn many uncomfortable undergarments for the sake of looking good, and men’s ties can be a nuisance but many wear them because of dress codes at work or to impress at special events. Just think, once upon a time, women risked fainting when their corsets were too tight simply because they wanted their waists to look smaller. A mask is much less of a fashion statement, but it has proven to significantly reduce the chances of catching the virus by over 90 percent if two individuals in close proximity are wearing face coverings.
When COVID-19 first hit our shores, information was confusing. All medical researchers could go on were similar viruses and what was going on in other countries. As they watched people snatch up N95 masks that were vital for health care and other frontline workers, it’s understandable that some scientists suggested members of the general population refrain from buying or wearing them.
Then it was discovered that if one wears a facial covering of any type, when sneezing or coughing, the distance droplets travel was reduced drastically. While the mask itself may not protect the wearer itself, it does protect others. Meaning if the majority of people wear them, community protection is increased.
We say majority because even Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) executive order says children under 2 and those with certain medical problems are exempt from wearing them.
When mandatory shutdowns first began, there were concerns that the U.S. economy would be destroyed, and small businesses would take the biggest hit. As we go back to dining and shopping, wearing a mask to protect business owners and their employees, as well as fellow customers, is vital in keeping the number of COVID-19 cases down and keeping local commerce running smoothly.
Let’s also remember to be mindful in restaurants as they begin to reopen, especially since diners can’t wear masks while eating and drinking. We can take extra care including washing our hands to help protect workers, not lingering at tables and perhaps even tipping extra since employees might be working outside in the heat with masks on, not to mention many have been out of work for months.
We are heading into summer, and it seems like all of New York wants to pretend the pandemic was nothing more than a bad dream. We have to remember that cases have increased drastically in just the past few days. Data from Johns Hopkins University shows there were more than 30,000 new cases in the South, West and Midwest just this past weekend. Health officials now seriously have to consider for and prepare for a potential second wave in the fall.
Let’s take the politics out of wearing a face covering. If people can wear something uncomfortable because they feel they look better or to comply with a dress code, then why not a mask. It may not make us look more attractive, but it helps us to keep our neighbors healthy. To us, that takes priority.
The Suffolk County Police Department received a 911 call at approximately 7:20 a.m. June 22 regarding an adult man hanging in the woods in Peter A. Nelson Park on Oakwood Road in West Hills.
According to SCPD, the death is being preliminarily classified as a non-criminal suicide based on evidence at the scene and at the male’s residence which includes a letter to his family with his reasons for his actions.
An autopsy will be performed by the Office of the Suffolk County Medical Examiner, and the family has requested that their identity, as well as the identity of the deceased, be withheld to protect their privacy.
“As a matter of policy, the Suffolk County Police Department does not normally comment on non-criminal death investigations,” a statement read. “The department investigates approximately 100 suicides annually. However, we are aware of unfortunate rumors circulating on social media and throughout the community regarding this investigation, and believe that it is in the public’s interest to issue this statement to allay any fears and quell rumors with facts.”
News of the man found hanging in Huntington spread through social media. There has been a rash of black men found hanging from trees in multiple states including California, Georgia, Oregon, Texas and New York just within the past few weeks. Police and other authorities have named all of those cases suicides, but members of the Black community have largely been skeptical, noting the long history of lynchings in America.
This post will be updated if more information becomes available.
Commack: Gurwin Jewish~Fay J. Lindner Residences staff, like employees at all senior living facilities, have been on the frontline of the battle during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fortunately, a group of local community members took note and decided to treat the health care heroes at Gurwin’s assisted living facility to a pleasant and delicious surprise.
Resident family members Sue and Rob Seiler of Huntington joined with other family members to create a GoFundMe, with the goal of showing their appreciation for the dedicated Gurwin staff. After raising almost $1500, they partnered with Dix Hills Diner owners Michael Akapnitis and Peter Giannitsas to provide a delicious lunch for employees.
Seiler describes the food drop off as a win/win, showing appreciation to Gurwin staff members while giving a financial boost to the diner, also impacted by the pandemic. She says she and the others were inspired by the donations they were seeing larger healthcare facilities receive.
“This place might be smaller than some hospitals and healthcare chains, but it’s big to me,” Seiler said about Lindner Residences, a 201- apartment community where her mom has lived since 2016.
The effort provided nearly 100 meals for the staff. “Each and every one of our staff members are heroes, coming to work every day to take care of our residents despite the multitude of personal and family challenges they faced,” said Michael Letter, Administrator/COO of the Fay J. Lindner Residences. “We want to thank Sue, Rob, and the entire group for their generosity and thoughtfulness.”
By Warren Strugatch
We Long Islanders are a coastal people. Waterfronts provide our communities with beauty and sense of place; offer abundant recreation opportunities and make dining out delightful. Waterways teach our children about ecology and nature and account for billions of dollars in tourism revenue for businesses. The so-called “conditional approval” vote of a sewer treatment plant by the Suffolk County Sewer Agency on Gyrodyne property next Monday (June 22) threatens to destroy the balance between quality of life and economic opportunity that characterizes life on the North Shore.
Gyrodyne’s proposed 7-acre sewage treatment plant is the lynchpin of a humungous, much-debated development plan that, if it goes forward, will forever change life along Route 25A from Smithtown through Brookhaven towns. Gyrodyne’s planned tenants — a 125,000 square feet medical office complex, a 250-room assisted living center and a 150-room hotel — will of course generate jobs, bring traffic, create growth and — inevitably — produce waste. Gyrodyne, which has seen similar proposals go down in defeat for decades, this time promised to run a pipeline to nearby Lake Avenue. The offer made Gyrodyne a hero on Lake Avenue and made the company friends in local positions of power. Suddenly, their long-rejected proposal seems headed for success.
Two factors make the big sewer debate particularly contentious:
Toxic Effluent. Tenants will produce high quantities of toxic effluent, laden with radioactive waste, pharmaceutical byproducts, nitrogen and biohazards. As environmental experts testified at town hearings in January, when these components enter the harbor they increase algae bloom, turn water green, kill fish, and ultimately kill the aquatic ecosystem, rendering the waterways unfit for fishing, swimming and boating.
Gravity. Effluent will flow directly downhill from the plant and into Stony Brook Harbor, less than 8,000 feet downhill. Environmental protocols or advanced filtration requirements are not mentioned in the plant’s specs. Meaning: Pollution of the harbor is inevitable.
Inevitably, jurisdictional questions arose. Authority over the Gyrodyne proposal rests with the Town of Smithtown, which conducted hearings in January. More than 100 people spoke, including noted environmentalists, scholars of marine sciences, and local officials known for their environmental commitments. Homeowners and business owners also spoke, testifying to the likely impact the development could have on their businesses, home equity and quality of life. Most of their testimony was negative.
Town of Smithtown is still reviewing their testimonies, in accordance with New York State’s SEQRA law, enacted to ensure environmental protections are present in local permitting. The Suffolk County Sewer Agency, by choosing to interrupt the town’s process, defeats the spirit of the state’s law. The agency’s rush to offer “conditional approval” is illogical and unseemly, blurring jurisdictional responsibility and raising serious questions as to why they are calling this vote while the actual permitting agency continues to deliberate.
I don’t believe a plan that’s so poorly conceived and been dragged through a jurisdictional back door is going to work over the long haul. A sewage plant that despoils life in its shadow is ultimately harmful, not helpful, to economic growth. Suffolk County’s sewer functionaries should call off their vote, which was never a good idea, and let Smithtown’s officials do what they were installed to do. Gyrodyne, try again. Next time keep in mind that your neighbors love their water and their waterways and demand that their local officials balance environmental protection with economic growth.
Warren Strugatch is president of Select Long Island, an economic development news publisher.
TBR News Media editorial staff share memories of their dads and other special people for Father’s Day.
Rita Egan — Editor
As someone whose parents separated when she was 9 years old and moved in with her grandparents, I’m an example of a village raising a child. From an early age, I realized that relatives and even friends’ parents can play a role in a young person’s life.
I was fortunate that my new friends and their parents made my transition to life in Smithtown an easier one. There were the Irvolinos, the D’Agostinos, Mrs. Naseem, and later in high school, the Juans, the DeNobregas and the Castros who always made me feel welcome in their homes, even at family gatherings. I frequently was in the Irvolinos’ pool and on their boat. The D’Agostinos introduced me to the beauty of Head of the River and would take me with the family to the Jersey Shore. And of course, there were the rides many parents gave me when it was too dark for my grandfather to drive.
One day on Fire Island, my friend Nancy and I were knocked down by a huge wave. One second I’m hitting my head against something hard, and the next I was grabbed out of the water by Mr. Irvolino. He had me in his right hand and Nancy in his left. I will be forever grateful for my village. Happy Father’s Day to all the dads and a belated Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms, too.
Kyle Barr — Editor
When my parents call me on the weekend, we can go through the platitudes of normal life: How is your job, how’s Long Island, how’s your brother?
Dad, you can make comments about how I continue to leave my room a FEMA-designated disaster area. You can talk about my habits of leaving my clothing in the laundry bin after washing them instead of putting it in drawers.
Then we can get into the heavier stuff of national politics and local happenings. We can talk about the issues, and I can get angry and you can deflect. And I can’t seem to stop and ask you how you’re really doing.
You moved away, and I hope you’re doing OK. I hope the pandemic and quarantine has not made you so reclusive you can’t talk to anybody except mom’s parents. I hope the days you spend in retirement allow you to explore things you haven’t necessarily had the opportunity to.
I can ask only so much of you. I can ask you to be patient until I find time to see you. Until then, I can enjoy those platitudes and our conversations.
David Luces — Reporter
When it comes to Father’s Day, I immediately think of my uncle and my late grandpa, two men I’ve been lucky to have in my life. As a young kid, they were a constant fixture, always there to lend me encouragement and support. Whether it was a Little League baseball game or a band recital, they were there. Sometimes, it would just be us slouched on the couch spending hours watching a Knicks game or WWE professional wrestling. My younger self didn’t know any better, but now looking back I think the one thing I take away from those experiences is to be present and to enjoy those moments with the people you love.
My grandpa passed away before he could see me graduate high school and college, though I know he would be proud of my accomplishments and the person I’ve become. My uncle and family have played a big part in that.
So when I think of this Father’s Day, I think of spending time with my uncle, maybe having a couple of beers and reminiscing of past times with my grandpa. But most importantly, we’ll be with family to make new memories together.
SOCIAL DISTANCING FAUX PAS
Tom Caruso of Smithtown captured this exciting meeting at Mayor Jeanne Garant Harborfront Park in Port Jefferson on June 14. The village has been the place to be this week with families (and dogs) enjoying the beautiful weather and picturesque water views.
Send your Photo of the Week to [email protected]
Claire Nicolas White, born June 18,1925, in Groet, Netherlands, died May 26 in St. James.
A woman of vast and varied talents, she was a poet, writer and teacher of ballet, French and writing. Daughter of stained-glass painter Joep Nicolas and sculptor Suzanne Nys, Claire spent her early childhood in the Netherlands and a convent school in France. When she was 14, her parents fled the Nazi menace. Her father had a commission to paint a mural in Rockefeller Center, New York, where the family felt at home in a European community of exiled artists and writers. Claire and her younger sister, Sylvia, attended the Lycée Français with the children and grandchildren of other refugees.
When she’d arrived in New York, Claire spoke Dutch and French. By the time she graduated from Smith College, she’d fallen in love with English. In the poem, “Marriage II,” she wrote:
But English I wed for better or worse,
my reality, my daily companion.
In 1946, Claire, with her mother, sister and fiancé, drove to California to visit her mother’s sister, Maria, and her husband, writer Aldous Huxley. In a 2017 interview, Claire said that her famous uncle had encouraged her to follow her chosen path.
After graduating from Smith College, she married Robert White, renowned sculptor and a grandson of the architect Stanford White. Speaking of the primacy of art in their relationship, Claire said, in that same interview, “Life is chaos; art is necessary to organize it.”
Claire and Bobby had four children. Their oldest, Sebastian, became a physicist; Stephanie, a dancer; and Christian, a painter. Claire’s youngest child, Natalie, died in a car accident when she was only 17. Claire also had six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Until her last days, her close family, including many nieces and nephews, was a continual source of joy. She took pride in the way Sylvia and her son, Diego, have carried on the stained-glass legacy of the Nicolas family.
Because of family connections and her schooling, Claire was accustomed to meeting famous people. She wrote opera libretti for Vittorio Rieti, the composer, a great friend and the father of the artist Fabio Rieti, her Lycée classmate. Cartier-Bresson photographed her as a young woman. She took silent walks with the Indian writer and philosopher, Krishnamurti, who taught her how to concentrate on each step. Through Rieti, she met Igor Stravinsky and introduced him to Aldous Huxley. Through Stravinsky, she met the great choreographer, George Balanchine. When Bobby won a Prix de Rome, the couple befriended the writer William Styron and his wife in Italy.
And yet Claire was not drawn to the limelight. She was fond of quoting the line in Emily Dickinson, “I’m Nobody! Who are you?” Putting down roots in St. James, she created an astonishing legacy, producing poems, libretti, plays, essays, memoirs, novels, art criticism (Art News, Newsday) and translations of Dutch and French literature. She mentored students of all ages at the Walt Whitman birthplace, in schools all over Long Island and in nursing homes. At Taproot Workshops & Journals, a nonprofit that encourages senior citizens to write in all genres, Claire was, according to its executive director, Enid Graf (in a letter to The New York Times,1995), “One of the organization’s finest teachers.” Claire was also the first editor of Oberon Poetry Magazine, founded in 2002 and still published by the Oberon Foundation.
She wrote into her 90s, both poetry and prose. Writer Orel Protopopescu, like many others in Claire’s orbit, considered her a mentor as well as a friend: “Until late last year, she was well enough to meet with our writing group weekly and would surprise us with unexpected turns of phrase, and a wry wit that was inimitably hers. Poems came to her with the regularity of dreams. There is a short poem called “The Tower” in which Claire describes an old wooden water tower close to her house. Its concluding lines encapsulate her philosophy of life:”
When life is flat I tower it
with a view
of the infinite.
In 2006, Claire donated her work to Stony Brook University Special Collections & Archives. Open to researchers without restriction, the collection comprises 10 cubic feet of newspaper clippings, articles, manuscripts, journals, notebooks, correspondence and published works from 1944 to 2006.
Reading the titles in this collection, not all listed below, made me dizzy. I had thought that I knew her, but now I see I only had a glimpse. Claire was an extraordinary woman, complex and not always easy. She had a powerful impact on the lives of all of us privileged to know her, work with her, live a part of our lives with her and to love her.
Some of Claire White’s publications:
Poetry in reviews and anthologies: The New Yorker, Partisan Review, Grand Street, Atlantic Monthly, Witness, Confrontation, The Paris Review, Long Island Quarterly, Paumanok, Poems and Pictures of Long Island and A Taste of Poetry (Walt Whitman Birthplace Association).
Translations: “The Time of Our Lives (Journal d’une petite fille)” by Martine Rouchaud, 1946 (with Louise Varèse); “The Assault” by Harry Mulisch, 1985 (Pantheon Books, 1985 Honorable mention, PEN Translation prize); “A Night in May (La Nuit de mai)” by Alfred de Musset, 1989; “A Letter of Time” by Hans van de Waarsenburg in 1989; “The Vanishing” by Tim Krabbé, 1993; and “My Father’s War: A Novel” by Adriaan van Dis, 1996.
Selected books, poetry and prose: “The Death of the Orange Trees” (Harper and Row, 1963), a novel; “Joep Nicolas, leven en werk” (life and work) (Van Spijk, 1979); “Biography and Other Poems” (Doubleday, 1981); “Fragments of Stained Glass” (Mercury House, 1981), a memoir (Spanish tr. “Mosaico de Una Vida,” Sabina Editorial, 2017); “The Bridge” (Cross Cultural Communications, 1987); “River Boy,” 1988 (ed.); “Stanford White: Letters to His Family” (Rizzoli,1997); “The Elephant and the Rose” (The Vineyard Press, 2003), a memoir’; and poetry collections: “Riding at Anchor” (Waterline Books, 1994); “News from Home” (Birnham Woods Graphics, 1998); and since 2004: “Elusive Harbors” (poetry), “An Armful of Time, Snapshots” (memoir), “Ernestine” (novella), “Robert White, Sculptor,” “The Land of the Smiths” (2014) and “Five Generations Painting with Light” (2019).
Submitted by Kathy Donnelly with contributions from poets and writers.
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