Bah humbug! Theatre Three, 412 Main St., Port Jefferson will hold open auditions for ages 8 to 17 for its upcoming production of “A Christmas Carol” on Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 7 p.m. A Christmas carol, “Christmas Is Coming,” will be taught. Nine roles will be double cast (for a total of 18 young people). Rehearsals begin late September and are weeknights at 7 p.m., Saturday mornings or afternoons and Sundays (morning, afternoon or evening). Young people must appear in half of the performances, including the student matinees. Performances will be held on the Mainstage from Nov. 19 to Dec. 30. For more information, call 631-928-9100 or visit www.theatrethree.com/auditions.html.
A man touches the wall to pay respect to someone he lost on Sept. 11, 2001 at Rocky Point Fire Department’s 9/11 memorial service. Photo by Giselle Barkley
Residents throughout Suffolk County will have their choice of memorial ceremonies to attend this Sept. 11.
Huntington
The East Northport Fire Department will be hosting its annual memorial service this Sunday, with two separate events, both being held at the Ninth Avenue side of the firehouse at the 9/11 Memorial Monument on Sept. 11. The morning ceremony will begin at 9:45 a.m., and the evening candlelight vigil will begin at 8 p.m. Both ceremonies are set around an eight-foot, 8,000-pound steel beam from Ground Zero that the department received from the Port Authority. During the ceremony, firefighters will read victim’s names, and sirens will sound to commemorate the collapse of the twin towers. The Northport High School Tights will sing the national anthem and “America the Beautiful,” with “Amazing Grace” played by the Northport Pipe & Drum Band. There will be a 21-gun salute from the Marine Corps League and the release of memorial doves.A memorial banner will be displayed on a fire engine that lists all of the victim’s names. A Suffolk County Police Department helicopter will be doing a flyover during the ceremony.
Huntington Town will also be holding a small ceremony at Heckscher Park at noon this Friday, Sept. 9.
Smithtown
Members of the East Northport Fire Department participate in the annual 9/11 memorial service on Friday, Sept. 11, 2015. Photo by Victoria Espinoza
The Commack School District will be presenting a candlelight ceremony of remembrance. It will be held at the Commack High School football field at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 11. The 9/11 Memorial Players, Mimi Juliano, Mark Newman and Joe Zogbi, will perform music, and honorary guest speakers will attend.
The St. James Fire Department will also be hosting a service at 6 p.m. Sunday at the 9/11 memorial at the firehouse. Local legislators will speak, the Smithtown High School band and choir will perform, and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9486 will perform a gun salute. The names of Smithtown residents and community members who lost their lives on Sept. 11 will be read including New York Police Officer Glenn Pettit, New York Fire Department Chief Lawrence Stack, New York Fire Department Chief Donald Burns, Port Authority Officer Jean Andrucki and New York Fireman Doug Oelschlager.
Brookhaven
The Order Sons of Italy in America will host its seventh annual 9/11 tribute. The candlelight remembrance is at 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 11, at Harborfront Park at Port Jefferson Village Center located at 101A East Broadway. The event will feature guest speakers and refreshments. All are welcome. For more information contact Anthony Rotoli Jr. at 631-928-7489.
The Sons of Italy Lodge was renamed the Vigiano Brothers Lodge to honor Port Jefferson residents. John Vigiano Jr. was a firefighter and Joseph Vigiano was a police detective.On Sept. 11, 2001, both Vigiano brothers responded to the call to the World Trade Center, and both were killed while saving others. John Vigiano Sr. is a retired NYC firefighter whose two sons followed him into service.The attacks of 9/11 inflicted a tremendous loss on his family and also on our country. Therefore, we honored these two heroes and their family by naming the Sons of Italy Lodge after them in Port Jefferson.
The Port Jefferson Fire Department will host its annual 9/11 memorial ceremony on Sunday, Sept. 11, at 9:30 a.m. At the Maple Place firehouse, firefighters and residents will gather to pay their respects to those who died in the terrorist attacks in 2001, including first responders from the Town of Brookhaven who perished while answering the call of duty at the World Trade Center. The ceremony includes a memorial service in which the names of the town firefighters who died that day will be read aloud.
An official plays the bugle at Port Jefferson Fire Department’s 13th annual 9/11 memorial ceremony. Photo by Giselle Barkley
The Rocky Point Fire Department 9/11 Memorial Committee invites the communities of Rocky Point and Shoreham to its 15th Annual 9/11 Memorial Ceremony on Sept. 11 at 7 p.m. This ceremony will take place at the 9/11 Community Memorial site which is located on the corner of Route 25A and Tesla Street in Shoreham, next to the Shoreham Firehouse. Light refreshments will be served after the ceremony.
In honor of the 15th anniversary of the events that took place on Sept. 11, 2001, the Setauket Fire District will host a community 9/11 remembrance ceremony Sunday, Sept. 11, beginning at 10 a.m. The program will take place at the district’s 9/11 Memorial Park, located at 394 Nicolls Road, Stony Brook. The ceremony will include brief remarks from department representatives, a moment of silence and the official dedication of the two “survivor trees” recently planted in the fire district’s 9/11 Memorial Park. These trees were seeded from the 9/11 survivor tree located at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center. Light refreshments will follow the ceremony, and attendees will be invited to visit the different sections of the expanded Setauket 9/11 Memorial Park, which also includes a stone monument inscribed with the names of those lost on 9/11 and a patriotic water display.
The Alumni Association of Stony Brook University will sponsor a commemoration of the events of Sept. 11, 2001, throughout Monday, Sept. 12, with a field of pinwheels on the Academic Mall. This is the third year that the event will be held. Students and faculty are invited to take a moment to remember those lost.
Supervisor Frank Petrone. File photo by Rachel Shapiro
By Joseph Wolkin
Huntington Station is being revitalized as a state Brownfield Opportunity Area through Huntington Town. The designation is now one of 38 statewide which helps communities with tax credit incentives and enhances chances to receive grants.
For Huntington Station, a 640-acre portion of the town has been added to the brownfield initiative, centered on the Long Island Rail Road station. Administered by the New York Department of State, the BOA is meant to encourage municipalities to revitalize sections of towns in need of redevelopment.
“We at the Department of State are proud to have supported the work done by local leaders to envision a path forward in the renaissance of the Empire State and leave a vibrant economic legacy to our cities and towns,” New York Secretary of State Rossana Rosado said in a statement. “Brownfield Opportunity Area designation not only signals our commitment to assisting the communities to reach their own goals for revitalization, but also provides real incentives to attract private and public investment to these blighted areas.”
The Town of Huntington’s BOA designation followed planning activities financed by a $340,000 state grant.
In the initial application for the designation Huntington cited at least 27 potential brownfield areas, including garages, parking lots and vacant locations near the train station.
Along with Huntington, Riverhead Town and Southampton Town were among the 12 new recipients of the brownfield designation. Riverhead was awarded a $567,000 grant to finance planning activities, while Southampton received $236,900.
“The Brownfield Opportunity Area designation will help augment and speed the ongoing revitalization efforts in Huntington Station and help restore what was a vibrant community a half-century ago,” Supervisor Frank Petrone (D) said in a statement. “This designation will help the town take advantage of the New York State Brownfield Cleanup Program tax credits and get preference in applying for grants and financing, which should provide significant boosts in implementing the town’s plans.”
“The designation of Brownfield Opportunity Areas facilitates the restoration and development of devastated communities across the state,” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said in a statement. “Each of these sites possesses tremendous potential for economic development and job creation, and these designations will equip local partners with the resources they need to implement their vision for community revitalization.”
The focal point of the project, according to a state press release, will be building a hotel, making streetscape improvements, and adding commercial, retail and parking development within the area. Additionally, the plan includes the remediation and redevelopment of brownfield sites near the train station.
Some factors that played a role in Huntington Station’s selection during the application process included environmental impact, land use laws and community input.
File photo by Giselle Barkley
A Dragon Boat team races to the finish at last year’s event. File photo by Giselle Barkley
Dragons will roar once again as the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce hosts the 3rd annual Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival in the village on Saturday, Sept. 17 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The free event, which will be held at the Mayor Jeanne Garant Harborfront Park, 101 E. Broadway and the Port Jefferson Inner harbor, is anticipated each year with great fanfare.
The festival is the brainchild of Barbara Ransome, director of operations at the chamber, who attended a dragon boat festival in Cape May, New Jersey, a few years ago.
“This year’s ‘Dragons’ has 32 teams, up from last year of 22,” said Ransome. “We have brought in new Asian entertainment and have configured the layout of the park differently to accommodate all the new team encampments and the entertainment. The event is rain or shine and will lots of great recreational racing competition, where we will be giving out over 300 medals to our winnning team paddlers!”
Opening ceremonies begin at 8:30 a.m. with Erin and Kiera Pipe singing the national anthem and a performance by the Asian Veterans Color Guard. Buddhist Monk Bhante Nanda of the Long Island Buddhist Meditation Center will hold the Blessing of the Dragon and “Eye Dotting” ceremony to kick off the races and there will be a special appearance of the festival mascot Dragon sponsored by the Harbor Ballet Theatre.
With the first race scheduled at 9 a.m., boat teams will compete in a 250-meter course in four dragon boats provided by the High Five Dragon Boat Company and will include representatives from local hospitals, civic groups, businesses and cultural organizations. Each team will be made up of 20 “paddlers,” one steersman and one drummer. Heats will run all day (all teams will race three times) with a culmination of an awards ceremony at the end of the day.
Spectators can easily view the race course from the park’s edge and pier. In addition to the races, there will be a day-long festival featuring numerous performances including the famous Lion Dance, martial arts, dancing and singing. New this year is the performance of Bian Lian, the art of Chinese mask changing. In addition there will be a performance of the Erhu (a Chinese two-stringed fiddle).
Various Asian delicacies will be offered from food vendors including spring rolls, pot stickers, pork buns, sushi, cold noodles, bubble tea and fried dumplings. There will be many activities for children including the painting of “dragon” eggs, visiting with real dragons, crafts and even a fun photo booth to create a fun memory keepsake!
Adults can try their hand at traditional Chinese painting and calligraphy and enjoy massages and Reiki by the Port Jeff Salt Cave along with chair massages by Panacea Massage & Wellness Studio of Port Jeff.
Sponsors include the Confucius Institute of Stony Brook, LongIsland.com, People’s United Bank, Times Beacon Record Newspapers, News12, ServPro of Port Jefferson, Maggio Environmental Services, New York Community Bank, Stony Brook University, Tritec, Suffolk County National Bank, OCA Asian Pacific American Advocates — Long Island Chapter and Asian-American Cultural Circle of Unity.
Free shuttle buses provided by the Port Jeff Jitney will make frequent stops at the Port Jefferson Train Station, CVS parking lot on Barnum Avenue and the corner of Belle Terre Road and Myrtle Avenue to bring eventgoers to the Port Jefferson Village Center until 5:30 p.m.
Bring a blanket or lawn chair and come enjoy the festivities. For more information, call 631-473-1414 or visit www.portjeffdragonfest.com.
FESTIVAL SCHEDULE:
A dragon greets visitors at last year’s festival. Photo by Elyse Sutton
7:45 a.m. Team captains meeting on the Great Lawn at Harborfront Park
8:30 a.m. Opening ceremonies 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Food vendors, crafts, children activities, photo booth pictures, cultural/educational/nonprofit vendor tables
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dragon Boat races in the Port Jefferson Inner Harbor
9 a.m. First races begin
9 a.m. DDKY Korean Traditional Drums
9:30 a.m. Long Island Chinese Dance Group
10 a.m. Sound of Long Island Chorus, Chinese classic, modern singing, dances
10:30 to 11 a.m. Performance by Taiko Tides — Japanese percussion instruments, drumming
11:15 a.m. Performance by the Stony Brook Youth Choir — Peking Opera, Chorus and Chinese Yoyo
11:30 a.m. North Shore Youth Music Ensemble
12 to 1 p.m. Lunch break (no racing)
12 to 12:45 p.m. Parade of the Team T-Shirt Contest and Best Drummer Costume Contest. Location: Show Mobile
12:45 p.m. Authentic Shaolin Kung-Fu Lion Dance, Kung Fu and Tai Chi demonstration
1 p.m. Races continue
2 p.m. Chinese Umbrella Dance performed by Alice and Emily Snyder
2:30 p.m. DDKY Korean Traditional Drums
3 p.m. Bian Lian performance (art of Chinese mask changing) and performance of the Erhu (Chinese two-stringed fiddle)
3:30 p.m. Song Island Performing Art Group
4 p.m. United Martial Arts Center — Japanese Karate and Ninjutsu
4:30 p.m. Performance by Taiko Tides — Japanese percussion instruments, drumming
Above, the Eastbound Freight Bluegrass band in front of the Port Jefferson Village Center. Photo by Amy Tuttle
By Philip Griffith
On the soft summer evening of Aug. 31, another friendly audience viewed and listened to the Eastbound Freight Bluegrass band [in Port Jefferson]. It was the final of nine free Sunset Concerts of the 2016 season. Raindrops moved picnic suppers, blankets and chairs into the comfortable confines of the Port Jefferson Village Center overlooking the Harborfront Park and Long Island Sound.
Listening to the traditional bluegrass music, I was reminded of my family’s visits to Clarksburg, West Virginia. It was there in my grandparent’s home that my father and his 12 brothers and sisters grew up.
During their childhood and adult years, my father and uncles were coal miners. Like the Welsh coal-mining family in the Academy Award winning 1941 motion picture, “How Green Was My Valley,” the miners performed their dangerous work with manly pride and all contributed their meager wages to their mother.
The West Virginia heroes were John L. Lewis of the United Mine Workers, socialist candidate for U.S. president Eugene Debs and union organizer Mary Harris Jones, a.k.a. Mother Jones. My grandfather and his sons were part of the bitter labor union struggles of coal miners.
During the 1930s Depression, my father migrated to New York City to find work, but he always loved his roots in the mountain state. On our family’s frequent visits to his childhood homestead, there would always be warm gatherings of families and friends.
At those reunions, there would be much food, drink and always the playing of their own brand of Appalachian Mountain country music. This family ritual provided a joyful respite from the rigors of coal mining. It was at those gatherings that I first hear and forever loved old-time country and bluegrass music. The Irish poet and playwright, Oscar Wilde, wrote, “Music is the art which is most near to tears and memory.”
I do not know what other recollections were engendered among the audience by these pure sounds of American bluegrass, but I’m certain it triggered a toe tapping, hand-clapping response. After both the last tune and an encore, the audience gave Bill Ayasse, Bruce Barry, John Bricotti, Bill De Turk and Dave Thompson standing ovations of appreciation.
These annual Sunset Concerts are a valuable artistic contribution to the wonderful life in the Village of Port Jefferson. Thank you to everyone who gives us this musical gift each year since 2009.
The author is a resident of Port Jefferson.
Editor’s note: The Sunset Concert series is sponsored by the Greater Port Jefferson Arts Council.
Do you know where and when this photo was taken? Why are these men wearing costumes? Email your answers to [email protected]. To see more wonderful vintage photographs like this, visit The Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s ongoing exhibit, It Takes a Team to Build a Village, at The WMHO’s Educational & Cultural Center, 97P Main Street, Stony Brook. For more information, call 631-751-2244.
Last week’s photo:
This photo was taken in the early 1940s in the Harbor Crescent section of the Stony Brook Village Center. Photo courtesy of The WMHO
Over 100 exhibiting artists and artisans will be at Gallery North's 51st annual Outdoor Art and Music Festival this weekend. Photo courtesy of Gallery North
Exhibiting artists and artisans will offer a variety of art and crafts at this weekend’s Outdoor Art and Music Festival. Photo courtesy of Gallery North
They say some things just get better with age. This can surely be attributed to Gallery North’s annual Outdoor Art and Music Festival, which celebrates its 51st anniversary this year. Over 100 exhibiting artists and artisans, offering a variety of art and crafts such as painting (acrylic and oil), ceramics, jewelry, photography, fiber art, sculpture and mixed media work, will congregate on North Country Road in Setauket this Saturday, Sept. 10 and Sunday, Sept. 11 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., rain or shine.
The two-day event provides members of the community an opportunity to interact with artists, purchase finely made crafts, and enjoy a weekend full of exciting activities while searching for the perfect handmade gift for family and friends and to get a jump-start on holiday shopping.
Roberta Fabiano and Tony Montalbo will perform live during Gallery North’s 51st annual Outdoor Art and Music Festival. Photo courtesy of Gallery North
Throughout the weekend visitors will enjoy musical performances by Sybil Lefferts & Friends, Claudia Jacobs Band, Roberta Fabiano and Tony Montalbo and The Bobby Sexton Trio. All musical entertainment is sponsored by Bridgehampton National Bank.
In addition to enjoying the outdoor festivities, all are invited to stop by the gallery to view the current Printmaking exhibition. The Community Art Center will also be open on both Saturday and Sunday welcoming visitors to participate in the gallery’s Make Your Mark Tile Fundraiser. Adults, children, families, as well as professional artists are invited to paint their own six-inch ceramic tile, which will be used in the garden wall of the terrace of the new Community Art Center.
In honor of excellence in Fine Art and Craft, Gallery North’s Board of Trustees and Friends will sponsor prizes for outstanding work in the areas of jewelry, painting, crafts and mixed media, work on paper including watercolor, pastel and graphics and drawing, wood craft, photography, glass as well as best in show. This year’s judges will be Larissa Grass, Stephanie Gress and Dean Goelz. Prize sponsors include Sharon Cowles, Judy Gibbons, Robin and Doug Dahlgard, Ronne Cosel, Stephanie Gress, Nancy Goroff and Dina and Bill Weisberger.
Event schedule
Saturday, Sept. 10
◆ 10 am to 5 pm: Make Your Mark — Tile Fundraiser in the Community Art Center (CAC)
◆ 11 am to 1 pm.: Kids Art Table
◆ 12 to 2 pm: Sybil Lefferts & Friends in concert
◆ 2:30 to 4:30 pm: Claudia Jacobs Band in concert
Sunday, Sept. 11
◆ 10 am to 5 pm: Make Your Mark — Tile Fundraiser in the CAC
◆ 11 am to 1 pm: Kids Art Table
◆ 12 to 2 pm: Roberta Fabiano and Tony Montalbo, 9/11 Tribute
◆ 2:30 to 4:30 pm: The Bobby Sexton Trio in concert
Gallery North is located at 90 North Country Road in Setauket. For additional information, please call 631-751-2676 or visit www.gallerynorth.org.
Jay Gammill of East Setauket took this gorgeous photo of a female black swallowtail butterfly taking a sip of nectar from tall garden phlox in his backyard in August.
Last year’s winners of the Long Island Apple Festival’s apple pie contest, from left, second-place winner Rosemary Ullrich of South Setauket; Michelle Miller of Setauket (best looking pie); first-place winner James Goddard of Middle Island; and third-place winner Alyssa Turano of Setauket. File photo by Heidi Sutton
The humble apple will be the focus of the largest Apple Pie Baking Contest on Long Island, to be held in conjunction with the 27th Annual Long Island Apple Festival Sunday, Sept. 25, at the Sherwood-Jayne Farm, 55 Old Post Road, Setauket, from 11 to 4:30 p.m. Participants get a chance to show off their favorite family recipes and participate in an old-fashioned blue ribbon competition. The contest is sponsored by Homestead Arts, the Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities and the Greater Port Jefferson-Northern Brookhaven Arts Council.
Entries must be traditional apple pies only. Pie, including crust, must be homemade by amateur bakers. Early registration is preferred, before Thursday, Sept. 22, but registrations will also be accepted on the day of the festival. Pies must be on the contest table at the Sherwood-Jayne House before 11 a.m. on the day of the festival. A written recipe must be submitted with each entry including the name and address of the baker. Each contestant will receive one free Apple Festival entry.
The judging will begin at 2 p.m. with prizes awarded between 3 and 4 p.m. First-, second- and third-place winners will be announced for Best Tasting Pie, and there will be a prize for Best Looking Pie. Several local judges will participate along with an Everyman judge chosen from our Apple Festival audience. All winners will receive a prize. Past prizes have included a brunch or dinner for two at fine restaurants, theater tickets, gift baskets and gift certificates, to name a few. The first-place winner will be invited to be a judge at next year’s Apple Pie Baking Contest. All pies, including their dishes, will be auctioned off after the winners are announced.
For contest entry forms, visit www.splia.org. For more information call 631-692-4664.
Jonathan Berlin, second from left, smiles with other participants at a recent Nassau Suffolk Water Commissioners’ Association meeting. Photo from Allison Gayne
Water commissions and cybersecurity threats may not sound like they have much in common, but to one Smithtown resident the two are intertwined.
Jonathan Berlin recently spoke to water commissioners from districts in Nassau and Suffolk counties about measures that should be applied to the water supply industry and Long Island suppliers.
“There has been a growing concern of cybersecurity threats in the last few years,” Berlin said in a phone interview.
The Smithtown resident works as an information technology consultant for Total Technology Solutions, a computer service firm based on the North Shore. He said his goal is to bring a better sense of awareness to organizations of threats they face and help them limit their risk.
“[Water commissions] are a target, and I do a lot of work with local governments,” Berlin said. He also said clients he has worked with have seen threats from Russia, China and more.
“Some [hackers] just want to see what they can get through to,” he said. But other security breaches can access emails, contact lists, spread computer viruses and more.
“Our critical infrastructure continues to be at risk from threats in cyberspace, and our economy is harmed by the theft of our intellectual property.”
— Barack Obama
Cybersecurity is not just a local issue. According to news reports, a county in Nevada came under attack this past March for a breach, and in 2011, a city in Texas suffered as well.
“Now that we see this is a risk, we need to put a plan into place,” Berlin said.
President Barack Obama (D) announced a Cybersecurity National Action Plan in February to take a series of short-term and long-term actions to improve our nation’s cybersecurity posture.
“America’s economic prosperity, national security, and our individual liberties depend on our commitment to securing cyberspace and maintaining an open, interoperable, secure, and reliable Internet,” Obama said in a White House press statement. “Our critical infrastructure continues to be at risk from threats in cyberspace, and our economy is harmed by the theft of our intellectual property. I believe if we address [threats] effectively, we can ensure that the internet remains an engine for economic growth and a platform for the free exchange of ideas.”
The commission is made up of 12 individuals from the business and educational fields, and they are expected to make a presentation in December with recommendations to the nation for actions that can be taken over the next decade to strengthen cybersecurity in both the public and private sector.
Berlin said he and his company try to penetrate their client’s websites when they are working to improve their cybersecurity and test how vulnerable the municipality is.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, internet users should always be wary of clicking on links and opening attachments in emails. To keep a system safe, anti-virus software should always be up to date as well.
This photo was taken in the early 1940s in the Harbor Crescent section of the Stony Brook Village Center. Photo courtesy of The WMHO
Entries must be traditional apple pies only. Pie, including crust, must be homemade by amateur bakers. Early registration is preferred, before Thursday, Sept. 22, but registrations will also be accepted on the day of the festival. Pies must be on the contest table at the Sherwood-Jayne House before 11 a.m. on the day of the festival. A written recipe must be submitted with each entry including the name and address of the baker. Each contestant will receive one free Apple Festival entry.
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