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Pictured above, Comsewogue High School nominees Angelo Guzman and Alyssa Deacy are flanked by Butch Dellecave Foundation president Mark Dellecave, left, and executive director Guy Dellecave. Photo by Artist Lake Media

Comsewogue High School seniors Angelo Guzman and Alyssa Deacy were recently honored at the 23rd annual Butch Dellecave Awards held at Villa Lombardi’s in Holbrook.

Named in memory of the legendary educator, official and coach Gaetano “Butch” Dellecave, the award is the product of a 23-year partnership between local school districts in Suffolk County and the award organizers: the Economic Opportunity Council of Suffolk, Inc., the Butch Dellecave Foundation and Newsday.

Athletic directors from all 66 Suffolk County school districts were asked to nominate one male and one female from their high school senior class. Nominees must be students who are not only at the top of their athletic game, but also score high in classroom performance and in their commitment to local community service.

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Kornreich: 90% of customers ‘paying well more than double’ the rate for natural gas

Cartoon by Kyle Horne: @kylehorneart • kylehorneart.com

The Town of Brookhaven’s Community Choice Aggregation program has drawn opposition within the Town Board.

Brookhaven launched the CCA program in May, pitching the initiative as a way to stabilize energy rates on natural gas and help residents save money. 

Through a two-year partnership with Manhattan-based CCA administrator Good Energy, all natural gas customers were automatically opted into the CCA, receiving natural gas at the fixed rate of $0.695 per therm.  

The partnership allows residents to opt-out free of charge at any time, choosing the default energy supply from National Grid, which fluctuates monthly. This month, National Grid is offering natural gas at $0.278 per them, according to its website.

Now the promise of cheaper gas has met with scrutiny from Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich (D-Stony Brook), who is urging customers to opt out of the program.

“The [National Grid] price has been going down every single month and, of course, the CCA rate continues to hold steady for two years,” Kornreich told TBR News Media. “You’re paying well more than double [the rate] at this point if you’re still opted in.”

National Grid’s “recent supply rates” have been $0.32 per therm or less since the CCA’s launch in May, according to a chart on the town’s website. Meanwhile, 90% of Brookhaven’s natural gas customers remain opted in, according to Doug Donaldson, media representative for Good Energy.

Despite the higher costs, Donaldson maintained that CCA offers a discount when assessed over a 12-month interval.

“The customer would have to study each month’s rate and know the billing cycle, and then change according to the rates to be able to get the lowest rates,” he said in a phone interview.

“But if they stick within the CCA program, they’ll know that over a 12-month period they’ll get a historically lower rate.”

The town’s CCA landing page — brookhavencommunityenergy.com — enables residents to opt in or out of the program. The page mentions “competitive pricing” as one of the program’s goals. 

“Brookhaven Community Energy aims to produce savings for customers compared to basic utility rates,” the webpage reads.

Kornreich indicates that his proposed rate-switching method — opting into the cheapest energy supplier for a given month — better accords with the program’s stated aims.

“I think the way to really create savings is to opt out of [the CCA] for now and to opt in when it makes sense to do so,” he said.

Donaldson noted that natural gas rates tend to be lower in the summer and higher in the winter. For this reason, he suggested there is a certain degree of accountability on ratepayers to monitor their energy bills and choose accordingly.

“The program offers a very easy way through the website to opt in or out,” he said. “It offers that flexibility, but it is on the customer to keep track of the rates.”

Asked whether he would advise customers to opt out during these summer months, during which the National Grid price is lower, Donaldson referred to the CCA as a “no worry” option for ratepayers.

“I sort of think it’s like a no-worry situation if you stay in it,” the Good Energy media representative said. “When the winter months come, you don’t have to worry whether you’ve switched over or about getting a super-large energy bill.”

“I think the convenience of it is worth the price difference, easily,” he added.

Given the gradual changes in National Grid’s supply rates month to month, Kornreich said customers would likely be switching just a few times a year.

“This is not something that you need to be opting in and out of every month,” the councilmember said. The price “doesn’t change that fast.”

While the National Grid rate remains lower than that of Good Energy, Deputy Supervisor Dan Panico (R-Manorville) concurred with Kornreich’s assessment of the situation.

“We encourage residents to check the price and opt in and out to their maximum benefit … to get the best rates that they can,” he said. “That’s the beauty of the program, that you can opt in and out. And I’m working with Jonathan to make sure that we get that message out.”

Kornreich stressed the matter of choice in consuming utility power, maintaining that residents must stay educated on the cost differences between National Grid and Good Energy and choose the lower rate.

“Ninety percent of people are currently paying more than they need to,” he said. “The question is: Do they not care and maybe have confidence that over the long run [CCA] will work for them? Or do they simply not know?”

He concluded, “I don’t know what that mix is, but we have to make sure that our consumers and residents are informed.”

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Photo by Capturing Life as it happens from Pixabay

In recent years, much has been said of the state of division in the United States. But as the nation celebrates its 247th birthday, Americans should remember the many struggles they have overcome.

After the fall of Fort Sumter in April 1861, President Abraham Lincoln believed the Confederate South would never peaceably re-enter the Union. The country was engaged in the defining conflict of its history and the deadliest war its citizens had ever fought. 

Yet Lincoln helped the nation carry on, ensuring that Americans would reunite under one flag. In a speech to Congress on July 4, 1861, he asserted the cause of the Union as that of the American Revolution. The Civil War, Lincoln affirmed, would prove to the world the viability of self-rule.

“It is now for [Americans] to demonstrate to the world that those who can fairly carry an election can also suppress a rebellion,” Lincoln said, “that ballots are the rightful and peaceful successors of bullets, and that when ballots have fairly and constitutionally decided there can be no successful appeal back to bullets.”

And the nation endured.

In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson nervously watched as European powers marched toward World War I — the “powder keg” ignited after the heir of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, was assassinated. 

“Nobody outside of America believed when it was uttered that we could make good our independence,” Wilson told a beleaguered nation. “Now nobody anywhere would dare to doubt that we are independent and can maintain our independence.” 

After his re-election in 1916, Wilson declared war against Germany in April 1917 to make the “world safe for democracy.” As it had during the Civil War, the nation again endured.

In early July 1945, the United States was nearing the end of World War II. With Nazi Germany defeated, America was one month away from dropping the atomic bomb against the Japanese. On July 4 of that year, President Harry S. Truman tied the war effort to the cause of American freedom. 

“This year, the men and women of our armed forces, and many civilians as well, are celebrating the anniversary of American independence in other countries throughout the world,” he said. “Citizens of these other lands will understand what we celebrate and why, for freedom is dear to the hearts of all men everywhere.”

The war would end the following month, and the nation endured once more.

President John F. Kennedy presided over the federal government at a volatile moment. After the failed Bay of Pigs invasion in April 1961 and only months away from the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, Kennedy reminded his fellow citizens of the cause of independence on July 4, 1962.

“For that Declaration unleashed not merely a revolution against the British, but a revolution in human affairs,” Kennedy noted. “Its authors were highly conscious of its worldwide implications.”

Despite the tumult of the 1960s, the nation still endured.

Near the end of the Cold War, President Ronald Reagan was determined to ensure American victory over the Soviet Union in this global conflict. With tensions mounting between these two superpowers, Reagan reminded citizens of the resolve of America’s founders.

“Their courage created a nation built on a universal claim to human dignity — on the proposition that every man, woman and child had a right to a future of freedom,” Reagan said in his July 4, 1986 speech, likening the cause of independence to the triumph over communism.

The U.S. won the Cold War, and the nation endured.

Today, as Americans enjoy outdoor barbecues and spend time with loved ones, they should remember that the legacy of independence still flourishes. In the face of brewing tensions abroad, Americans must remember that we have experienced such challenges before and will do so again.

And the nation will endure.

Rich Acritelli is a history teacher at Rocky Point High School and adjunct professor at Suffolk County Community College.

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Gordon Wood, professor emeritus of history at Brown University. Photo by Kenneth C. Zirke from Wikimedia Commons

This week marks the 247th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

In the nearly two-and-a-half centuries since this formative moment in American history, much has changed, with an uncertainty of the country’s long-term future.

Gordon Wood, professor emeritus of history at Brown University and 1993 Pulitzer Prize recipient for his book, “The Radicalism of the American Revolution,” remains optimistic that America’s future is bright. 

In an exclusive phone interview, he detailed why the American Revolution is relevant today, dismissing apocalyptic predictions. 

Revolutionary relevance

Wood contends that despite prolonged separation from the American Revolution, this cause remains highly relevant today.

“It is the most important event in our history, bar none,” he said. “It not only legally created the United States, but it infused into our culture everything we believe.”

Wood maintains that America is “not a nation in the usual sense of the term.” By this, he means Americans are not bound by any common ancestry. Instead, the United States represents a particular set of ideas to which Americans subscribe.

“Someone once said that to be an American is not to be somebody but to believe in something,” Wood noted. “And what do we believe in? We believe in those things that came out of the Revolution: equality, liberty and so on.”

“There’s no other adhesive to hold us together, so I think we need to emphasize that,” he said.

American stability

Within contemporary national discourse, some have expressed fears that America is a declining democracy. Even the nonprofit think tank Freedom House, which measures the strength of democracy in countries around the world, has scored the United States incrementally lower in recent years.

Wood characterized some recent historical developments as “destabilizing,” though he maintained these concerns are often overblown.

“We’re still the greatest power the world has ever known,” the Brown professor emeritus said. “I think that we’re very stable, and I certainly think we’re at the height of our powers.”

Assessing the current geopolitical landscape, Wood acknowledged China is a rising global power. However, he maintained that America’s long-term outlook remains promising.

“I don’t see any evidence that China is going to replace us,” he said. “I think it would be unfortunate if we got into a war with China over this fear of being displaced, but it’s just not in the cards.”

He added that fears of American decline have been pervasive throughout the nation’s history, with concerns about China just the latest iteration of this long historical pattern.

“We have a lot of apocalyptic thinking that goes on, and that’s not new,” Wood said. “We’ve always done that. There are always people saying that we’re going to fall apart.”

Triumph of the future

Wood suggested Americans have an unusual relationship with their national history. “I don’t think we have ever been a historically minded people compared to other nations,” he said. “I think it was President James Polk [1845-49] who said the United States is the only country in the world that has its history in the future.”

Since the Revolution, Americans have always been a “future-oriented people,” according to Wood. Yet the ideas articulated by the Founding Fathers have been passed down to subsequent generations of Americans, and those values are still practiced today.

Americans “know about ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,’ and ‘all men are created equal,’” Wood said. “Those are phrases that are very potent and available to most people, but I don’t think there’s much real interest in history as such among Americans.”

But, he added, “I’m not sure that that’s a bad thing. We’re future-oriented. We think the future is going to be better than the present.”

Wood concluded by saying that America’s faith in the future has long attracted new immigrants. Despite the numerous complications throughout its history, America still draws in people from all around the world. 

Wood indicated that this attraction demonstrates how the American Dream lives to this day.

“Immigrants still want to come here because they can get a better life here than they can where they came from,” he said. “It’s an optimistic view.”

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Thank you, TBR

After reading the story in the June 22 edition informing the community about the Guide Dog Foundation in Smithtown, I would like to share as a volunteer — both as a puppy raiser and presently breeder-caretaker — the joys and fulfillment over the years of seeing first-hand people helped by assistance and service dogs.

The Guide Dog Foundation truly helps people “live life without boundaries.” After seeing its flier stating so in a local supermarket, all staff members in various departments helped me through my different roles of training and preparing these special dogs in lives of service. As a volunteer, I have always been treated with courtesy and appreciation in visits, contacts and calls.

Thank you TBR News Media for publishing in detail the mission I am myself living each day, which is close to my heart.

Anna Fisco-Aubree

Ridge

Port Jeff needed change

One must sympathize with Mr. William Snaden’s “broken heart” considering his wife’s loss to Mayor Lauren Sheprow’s remarkable win through a write-in ballot [Letter, “My heart is breaking for Port Jeff,” The Port Times Record, June 29]. 

Mr. Snaden cannot bring himself to understand his wife’s loss in terms of her apparent efforts on behalf of the Village of Port Jefferson. What he fails to recognize is that the people of Port Jefferson needed a change from the same old approach to problems that were pursued by the Garant-Snaden administration. 

Let us face the future with fresh ideas and with the guidance of Mayor Lauren Sheprow. I anticipate that the Village of Port Jefferson will rally in supporting Lauren and her new administration.

Herb Herman

Port Jefferson

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Email letters to: [email protected] or mail them to TBR News Media, P.O. Box 707, Setauket, NY 11733

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Long-time communications professional to serve out remainder of Mayor Sheprow's unexpired trustee term

Village clerk Barbara Sakovich, right, swears newly-appointed trustee Drew Biondo into office on Tuesday, July 4. Photo by Julianne Mosher

In the first official action of the new administration, Mayor Lauren Sheprow appointed communications professional Drew Biondo to serve as village trustee.

Sheprow was elected trustee last year for a two-year term ending June 2024. Biondo will serve out the remainder of Sheprow’s unexpired term. This appointment is not subject to board approval under New York Village Law.

Biondo has served as director of communications at Suffolk County Community College since 2013. He is a former Long Island Power Authority trustee, serving in that role from 2018-23. He also worked as director of communications and press secretary for former New York State Sen. Ken LaValle (R-Port Jefferson).

“I’ve known and worked with Drew in a variety of capacities for more than 20 years,” Sheprow said in a press release July 3. “I know him to be very strategic and purposeful in his approach. His time spent on the LIPA board, in higher education, as well as in Senator LaValle’s [office] has prepared him well to be able to serve the residents of Port Jefferson as a trustee.”

In an exclusive interview, Biondo shared that he visited Village Hall on Monday, where he introduced himself to village staff. He expressed confidence in the administration in place.

“Just in my brief time at Village Hall this morning, I got to meet a few of the career professionals,” he said. “I think we’re in really good hands.”

In the leadup to accepting the appointment, Biondo said he and Sheprow began discussing “government processes,” which he noted will be a central policy focus in the coming term.

“As much as people complain that the government is slow and bureaucratic, those processes are a check and balance to make sure that everything is done properly, that i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed,” he said.

The newly appointed trustee indicated development and redevelopment projects are at the “top of mind for a lot of village residents.” He suggested parking and taxes would also represent priority areas for the reconfigured village board.

“Those are all things that I think all of the trustees will focus on,” he said.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently announced new regulations targeting existing power plants [See story, “Powering down? New climate regulations may impact local power plants,” May 20, TBR News Media website]. 

With unsettled questions surrounding the tax-generating Port Jefferson Power Station, Biondo said he would aim to leverage his experience on the LIPA board to advance the cause of village residents.

“Yes, I will be using my five years of experience serving on the board of LIPA to help the village,” he said.

Speaking to his new constituency, Biondo said, “It’s not lost on me that I’m unelected.” Despite this, he stressed the need for the village to look ahead.

“There’s a time for politics, and there’s a time for governing,” he said. “Now is the time to govern.”

“Thank you to Mayor Sheprow,” he added. “I look forward to serving the village and its residents.”

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Fireworks in the Village of Asharoken on July 4. Photo by Steve Zaitz

Each year, we have the pleasure of covering the patriotism and camaraderie of our North Shore community.

While we love featuring fireworks and celebrations, it’s easy to get discouraged about the state of our nation. Yet, we are reminded each year to put it all in perspective. 

On a rainy Fourth of July, as families gathered for barbecues and the fireworks shot into the sky, it’s safe to say most of us could recognize that we are among the luckiest of people in history to have the freedoms and opportunities we have.

To love our country, and our community, is to fight for them both. The Founding Fathers envisioned an active, informed and passionate electorate. We encourage everyone who took Independence Day to reflect on their patriotism and gratitude for our service members, and to think about how we got this wonderful freedom born out of a grand experiment.

The Founders were passionate citizens, many of whom risked their lives to design a government they thought would bring freedom and prosperity to all. This bit of history, which we all shared this week on July Fourth, is one we should remember each day.

We, too, should think of ways to improve our government. In these divided times, most of us have plenty of opinions on this already, but maybe not in terms of realistic expectations and compromise.

We must think about issues and consider ways we can move the needle. Writing to our elected officials and contributing letters to the editor are ways to do that.

The Founders wanted us to participate in the political process. We should follow their example and speak up, while being civil and compromising as we work toward mutually agreeable solutions for all.

The spirit of freedom we celebrated this week can live on throughout the year. It’s up to all of us to continue to pursue efforts to maintain equity and justice for all Americans and all members of our communities. It’s up to us to ensure that all of us feel free.

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Photo by Julianne Mosher
Photo by Julianne Mosher
Photo by Julianne Mosher
Photo by Julianne Mosher
Photo by Julianne Mosher
Photo by Julianne Mosher
Photo by Julianne Mosher
Photo by Julianne Mosher

Despite rainy weather, hundreds of people from across Long Island headed to downtown Port Jefferson July 4 to cheer on their families, friends and neighbors during the annual Port Jefferson Fire Department Independence Day Parade.

Fire departments from both the North Shore and South Shore brought in their fire trucks, ambulances and marching bands all sporting red, white and blue, while local dancers, Cub Scouts and business personnel marched alongside them down Main Street.

And while the weather held up for most of the event, a quick downpour didn’t stop spectators from watching the newest village officials get sworn in.

Port Jefferson village clerk Barbara Sakovich gave the oath on the steps of Village Hall to the village’s newest mayor, Lauren Sheprow, reelected trustee Stan Loucks, newly elected trustee Bob Juliano and newly appointed trustee Drew Biondo.

Sheprow was surrounded at the podium by family, including her grandchildren and father, former village Mayor Harold Sheprow.

“I could not have done this without you,” she said, looking out to him in the crowd.

She also thanked her supporters. 

“I look at each one of your faces, and I know you supported this initiative,” she said. “I thank you so much from the bottom of my heart.”

— Photos by Julianne Mosher

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Pictured in front row, from left, TOB Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich, PJCC Secretary Nancy Bradley, PJCC Director Mary Joy Pipe, owner Curinne Polizzi, PJV Trustee Rebecca Kassay, and Polizzi's daughter Gianna Infantolino; second row, from left, staff members Leigha Knepper, Sydney Infantolino, Samantha Seda-Barahona and Sam Infantolino; third row, from left, staff members Gianna Vecchione and Gia Catalano. Photo from PJCC

The Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce (PJCC) hosted a ribbon cutting for Ivory & Main on June 29. 

Town of Brookhaven Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich, Port Jefferson Village Trustee Rebecca Kassay, members of the chamber, family and staff joined owner Curinne Polizzi in the celebration and to wish her well in her new venture.

Located at 98 Main Street in Port Jefferson in the former Christina’s Fashion Handbags, the shop is New York’s first exclusively plus size bridal gown boutique and sell dresses for everyday wear and eveningwear. They cater to sizes 14-32 and also have a wide variety of accessories to choose from to complete your special look. 

A second shop is located in Sayville at 53 Main Street, Unit #4.

Store hours are Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m For more information, call 631-760-7082 or visit ivorymain.com.

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Image from Pixabay

By Daniel Dunaief

Daniel Dunaief

Okay, I’ll admit it: I’m a morning person.

Yes, sometimes, I’m an annoying morning person, ready to poke my wife in the arm, kiss her cheek, or play peek-a-boo with a son who can barely open his heavy lids to notice me.

No, my son is not two, and yet, I still have the urge to smile at him and play games in the morning.

I’m the lone morning wolf in my family. Even my dog, who is as far from a wolf as a dog could be, sometimes closes his eyes tightly when I get up too early for him, hoping I’ll go away or, maybe, I won’t see him. No matter how much his fur blends in with the carpet, it’s impossible not to notice a 95-pound dog.

On the other end of the circadian spectrum, I start to fade early each day. Surrounded by family and friends, much of the time, who enjoy late-night snacks, conversations, giggle fests, and games, I can barely keep my head up and my eyes open.

“You look so tired,” someone will say at about 10 p.m.

“Huh?” I’ll respond, trying to figure out if they’re talking to me. “Oh, yeah, well, I got up early today.”

I get up early almost every day. Getting up late for me means climbing out of bed after 8 am.

I’d like to alter my circadian clock sometimes, but I can’t.

Sensing my imminent departure into dreamland, my wife sometimes asks me a question or two at the utterly reasonable hour of 10:30 pm. I do my best to pick up my head and offer a coherent answer, knowing that the top few floors of my cognitive team have packed up, turned off the lights and tucked themselves in for the night.

The balance between the morning and night person in our marriage means that one of us can handle whatever time-sensitive needs or responsibilities might arise throughout the day. We have shifts.

When we go out on dates, which we can do on any given night as empty nesters, we typically lean towards the earlier side for our outings. The other diners at the early bird special are often decades older than we, although we also sometimes eat with families who have young children.

Our circadian differences extend to the seasons as well. I love the winter, when the sun isn’t too bright, and the air is cooler. Skiing is one of my favorite sports.

My wife, naturally, revels in the summer sun, basking in the extra sunlight each day and soaking up the warmth of the midday sun.

These seasonal differences also mean that one of us often feels energized and inspired by the season. With my wife dressed in numerous layers, we can take a stroll in cooler weather.

During those days when the sun bakes the sidewalk, and the humid air weighs on my shoulders, I can carry ice water or my wife can obligingly dump a welcome ice cube down my back.

Apart from the bookends of each day, we find times when we can give each other our best, reveling in the accomplishments of our children, observing the absurdities of life, and laughing at the differences in approaches to play between our dog and cats.

Even as we are in the middle of my wife’s favorite season, I enjoy the summer more than I otherwise would, knowing that she’s fulfilled and, when I need it, ready to search for a comforting ice cube sometime around mid-afternoon, when I prepare to pass the baton towards her favorite time of day. 

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