After an abbreviated 12-game season last spring, the Comsewogue girls’ volleyball had their hands full in their season opener on the road against East Islip Sept. 1.
The Lady Warriors fell in three sets 11-25, 14-25 and 10-25. Comsewogue retook the court Sept. 3 where they hosted Hauppauge, followed by another road game against West Babylon Sept. 10.
First service for both games is 5:45p.m.
All photos by Bill Landon
In recognition of International Overdose Awareness Day on Aug. 31, Northwell Health held a system-wide event to provide resources to help prevent future overdoses, as well as recognizing those whose lives have already been cut short by substance use.
The effort included the staffing of tables at 13 Northwell facilities where patients, employees and members of the public could find information about the wide range of services and programs offered by the health system for people struggling with a substance use issue and for concerned relatives, friends and members of the community.
“Awareness and understanding are some of the most powerful tools we have in the fight against the opioid epidemic,” said Dr. Sandeep Kapoor, assistant vice president of addiction services for Northwell’s emergency medicine service line. “Events like these provide members of our community with the tools they need to protect themselves and their loved ones. And by framing substance use as a medical issue like any other, we help lift the stigma that can close people off from seeking help.”
Mather Hospital had a table in the main lobby beginning at 11 a.m., offering overdose information as well as NARCAN training to reverse an opioid overdose. People in attendance could be trained in the use of naloxone, a medication that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose, and after training, they could receive a rescue kit containing the medicine.
Information was also available on how to access addiction care provided by Northwell and other providers in the community, as well as how to connect with Northwell’s Employee and Family Assistance Program, a free and confidential counseling service available to the health system’s 76,000 employees and family members.
“Our employees are not immune to this crisis and neither are their families,” said Patricia Flynn, assistant vice president of employee wellness at Northwell. “We are committed to providing them the support they need to stay healthy, physically, emotionally and mentally.”
Drug overdose deaths in the United States increased by nearly 30% in 2020 compared to the previous year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reaching a record level of more than 93,000. Experts point to the extreme stress caused by the pandemic as a likely cause, along with increased difficulty in accessing treatment.
“Substance misuse and addiction are profound threats to the health of our community, and we can’t allow the focus on COVID-19 to deflect us from our work to prevent and treat their effects,” said Bruce Goldman, LCSW, senior director of behavioral health at Northwell and head of substance abuse services at Zucker Hillside Hospital, a Northwell behavioral health facility. “Even in the midst of the pandemic, substance use disorders remain one of the primary drivers of misery. We want our patients and our workforce to understand that no matter what their needs, help is available at Northwell.”
It was a night to remember.
On Saturday, Aug. 28, Suffolk County Legislator Sarah Anker (D-Mount Sinai) was one of many who attended the Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe’s Sound of Science musical event in Shoreham.
The event, sponsored by the TSCW and the Rites of Spring Music Festival, featured interactive exhibits and activities related to the connection between science and music, a tribute to scientist and inventor Nikola Tesla, and electric musical performances from the Rites of Spring Ensemble.
The show included 12 musicians who played innovative music on electric instruments. Unlike other concerts, the show was featured at a unique venue and open-air theater with Tesla’s famous tower base as center stage and his laboratory as a backdrop.
It began with an interactive surround-sound experience on the octagonal tower base, plus exhibits featuring singing Tesla coils, theremin and the science of sound.
After, the Rites of Spring Ensemble performed an electric concert featuring new music by Kanasevich, Mazzoli, Clyne, Akiho, Rodriguez, Romitelli and Little.
“The Sound of Science was a fantastic event that was enjoyed by all,” Anker said. “Thank you to the many Tesla Science Center board, staff and volunteers that continue to find creative and exciting ways to share the contributions of the world-renowned scientist and inventor, Nikola Tesla, with our community.”
The TSCW is a not-for-profit organization that aims to develop the site of Nikola Tesla’s last remaining laboratory into a global science center that provides innovative learning experiences, supports the advancement of new technologies, and preserves Nikola Tesla’s legacy.
In July, the organization hosted another event to celebrate Tesla’s 165th birthday.
Earlier this year, they held a “Metal for Tesla” event where people donated previously used metal to raise funds towards rebuilding Tesla’s famed towner on the Shoreham grounds.
For more information about upcoming events and programs or if you’re interested in volunteering at TSCW call (631)-886-2632 or visit teslasciencecenter.org.
The North Shore of Long Island was hit hard when the aftermath of Tropical Depression Ida swept along the East Coast.
While the storm pummeled the Island Wednesday night, the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Suffolk County. Severe flooding headed down Main Street, E Broadway and the side streets of Port Jefferson, causing damage to local stores, the Port Jefferson Fire Department and Theatre Three.
On Wednesday night the fire department responded to numerous water rescue emergencies, and multiple victims were rescued from their vehicles by its High Water unit. They were joined by the Terryville Fire Department and Mount Sinai Fire Department.
According to the PJFD, in some cases, civilians were found on the roof of their vehicles, or trapped within a floating vehicle. Additionally, a landslide took place on Dark Hallow Road, which left the road essentially impassable with nearly 4-feet of mud and debris.
As a result of the landslide, eight families were evacuated from their apartment building due to unstable conditions of the land.
While fire department volunteers made their ways out to help others, they, too, were victims of the storm. The firehouse on Maple Avenue suffered extensive flood damage.
“Our firefighters did an excellent job coordinating multiple rescues,” said Chief of Department Todd Stumpf. “We have a lot of cleanup ahead, but we are fully in service and able to respond to all emergencies.”
He added that fortunately no injuries were reported during the storm.
Down the street, Theatre Three said they had more than three-and-a-half feet of water inside as of Wednesday morning.
Executive artistic director Jeffrey Sanzel said that the theatre has had its fair share of floods throughout the years, and even though they were more prepared for Ida than others in the past, it was still a hard hit.
“This will be two or three days of cleaning,” he said, “But we’ll get it done and you won’t know what happened.”
Water record-setting levels heading too close for comfort to the stage downstairs. Sanzel said water knocked over and carried one of the dumpsters outside, as well as damaged dozens of costumes, furniture and a beautiful, donated upright piano that is now ruined.
Other businesses like Ruvo and Lavender Fields had flood damage and are currently in the midst of cleaning up.
“Port Jeff was hit again with a flash flood of over 7’’ of torrential rainfall,” said Mayor Margot Garant. “While it hit hard, we remain resilient and continue our work with the state emergency office and state agencies on our flood remediation efforts.”
What a difference a month, or two, makes.
The percent of positive tests in Suffolk County on Aug. 29 stood at 5.1% with a 4.7% positive seven-day average, according to data from the Suffolk County Department of Health.
That is considerably higher than just a month earlier, with a 3.2% positive testing rate on July 29 and a 2.7% rate on a seven-day average. The increase in infections for the county looks even more dramatic when compared with June 29, when positive tests were 0.2% and the seven day average was 0.4%.
“With the highly transmissible delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 [the virus that causes Covid-19] circulating, we are urging everyone who is eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible,” Gregson Pigott, commissioner of the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, wrote in an email. “We also advise residents to wear masks when indoors in public.”
With students returning to school during the increase in positive tests, including those who are under 12 and ineligible to receive the vaccination, Pigott explained that he was concerned about the positive tests in the county.
Nationally, the spread of the Delta variant is so prevalent that the Director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Rochelle Walensky at a White House briefing urged people who are unvaccinated not to travel during the Labor Day weekend.
While area hospitals aren’t seeing the same alarming surge towards capacity that they did last year, local health care facilities have had an uptick in patients who need medical attention.
“The increased community transmission is concerning as it is correlating with hospital rates also slowly rising,” Bettina Fries, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Stony Brook Medicine, wrote in an email.
Meanwhile, most of the patients hospitalized at Huntington Hospital are younger, from children who are transferred to people in their 20s to 50s, explained Adrian Popp, chair of Infection Control at Huntington Hospital/ Northwell Health, in an email.
As schools in the area prepare to return to in-person learning, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University has been coordinating with officials to prepare for a safe return to in-person learning.
“Stony Brook faculty are working with a diverse group of school districts in planning for the upcoming school year,” Sharon Nachman, chief of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Stony Brook Children’s Hospital, explained in an email.
In recent weeks, Stony Brook Children’s Hospital has had few pediatric hospitalizations for COVID-19, with more pediatric positive cases in the outpatient setting.
Area hospitals including Stony Brook and Huntington Hospital continue to have strict guidelines in place for health care workers including social distancing, hand washing and the proper use of personal protective equipment.
Amid increasing discussion of the potential use of boosters, Stony Brook awaits “formal guidance and will continue to follow all DOH directives on vaccine administration,” Fries wrote.
Ida and Covid
Outside of Long Island, Hurricane Ida has the potential to increase the spread of the virus, as larger groups of people crowd into smaller spaces.
The hurricane “may become a super spreader event since vaccination rates in the South are low and people may crowd into shelters or at home indoors,” Popp explained. “I am concerned not only about the hospital capacity in Louisiana, but also of the impact the hurricane can have on hospital functioning.”
Popp cited a loss of power, lack of supplies, and the difficulty for ambulances trying to reach patients in flooded areas.
The Teen Agents of Change Club at Comsewogue Public Library is collecting school supplies to be donated to local students in need. All types of school supplies are welcome. Please drop off donations now through September in the library lobby at 170 Terryville Road, Port Jefferson Station. For more information, please contact Librarian Alison Quinn or Librarian Jenny Cammarano at 631-928-1212.
By Daniel Dunaief
Last Friday around 10:30 am, our son, who just arrived at his freshman dorm 12 days earlier, asked how quickly I could get him on a flight back home.
I dropped what I was doing and searched for flights out of New Orleans. We knew he was in the path of Hurricane Ida and had been hoping, as Long Island had done the week before with Hurricane Henri, that he and the city would somehow avoid the worst of the storm.
His college had provided regular updates, indicating that the forecasts called for the storm to hit 90 miles to their west. That would mean they’d get heavy rain and some wind, but that the storm, strong as it might become, might not cause the same kind of devastation as Hurricane Katrina had exactly 16 years earlier.
By Friday, two days before its arrival, my son, many of his friends, and his friends’ parents were scrambling to get away from the Crescent City amid reports that the storm was turning more to the east.
Fortunately, we were able to book a mid-day flight the next day. An hour later, he texted me and said he might want to stay on campus during the storm, the way a few of his other friends were doing. I ignored the message.
Two hours later, he asked if he still had the plane reservation and said he was happy he’d be leaving.
Later that Friday, another classmate tried unsuccessfully to book a flight, as the scramble to leave the city increased.
My wife and I became increasingly concerned about his ride to the airport, which, on a normal day, would take about 30 minutes. We kept pushing the time back for him to leave, especially when we saw images of crowded roadways.
He scheduled an Uber for 9:30. On Saturday morning at 6 a.m. his time, he texted and asked if he should go with a friend who was leaving at 9 and had room in his car. Clearly, he wasn’t sleeping too much, either.
I urged him to take the earlier car, which would give him more time in case traffic was crawling. He got to the airport well before his flight and waited for close to two hours to get through a packed security line.
When his plane was finally in the air, my wife and I breathed a sigh of relief. We both jumped out of the car at the airport to hug him and welcome him home, even though we had given him good luck hugs only two weeks earlier at the start of college.
After sharing his relief at being far from the storm, he told us how hungry he was. The New Orleans airport had run low on food amid the sudden surge of people fleeing the city. After he greeted our pets, who were thrilled to see him, he fell into a salad, sharing stream-of-consciousness stories.
The next day, he received numerous short videos from friends who stayed during the storm. While we’d experienced hurricanes before, the images of a transformer sparking and then exploding, videos of rooms filling with water from shattered windows, and images of water cascading through ceilings near light fixtures were still shocking.
He will be home for at least six weeks, as the city and the school work to repair and rebuild infrastructure. During that time, he will return to the familiar world of online learning, where he and new friends from around the country and world will work to advance their education amid yet another disruption from a routine already derailed by COVID-19.
We know how fortunate he was to get out of harm’s way and how challenging the rebuilding process will be for those who live in New Orleans. When he returns to campus, whenever that may be, we know he will not only study for his classes, but that he and his classmates will also contribute to efforts to help the community and city recover from the storm.
By Leah S. Dunaief
Rarely do I sort the jumbled contents of my drawers. With a burst of energy, I did just that the other day, and I was rewarded with an archaeological find. There, toward the back, where I had clearly put it for safekeeping, was a $25 United States Saving Bond that had been given to my husband in 1950.
Curiously, it happened to be exactly on the day and month of our second son’s birth many years later. But I digress.
Back to the matter of the bond. What to do with this bit of Series E antiquity?
First thought was to bring it to my friendly banker, who searched for the serial number on the web and found it was worth $147 and change today. OK, not too bad, since it originally cost $18.75. At least the gift has kept up with inflation.
Next were the requirements for cashing the bond. That has proven not to be so simple for a couple of reasons. First, there is another name listed as the recipient on the front. It is that of his mother. The name on the face of the paper reads this way: that of my husband OR that of his mother. Whoever gave him the bond probably thought it was a good idea to have the parent involved as a backup. After all, my husband was just a teenager then. So, not only do I have to supply key information about my husband, like social security number and death certificate. I also have to produce the names of my mother-in-law’s parents, the county in which she died, her last residence, along with her social security number and her date of death in order to get her death certificate. Well, that’s not happening. At least not without some huge sleuthing.
At this point, kudos to my banker, who will not give up. And we do have a couple of lucky breaks here. She was born in the United States, so presumably, a death certificate can be found. Further, one of my husband’s siblings and his wife thankfully are still alive, with both retaining every single brain cell. They could tell me where she lived and her parents’ last name. They had no idea of her social security number, nor could they recall where she died. My daughter-in-law, called in to help, was able to use the internet and found her date of death.
Another kink in the thread is that the last name of both is misspelled, with an extra ‘f’ on the end. The gifter did not know their correct spelling. My brother-in-law assured me she did not spell their name that way. I don’t know how much of an obstacle that will be in this age of computer exactness.
The biggest challenge remaining is to determine in which county she died. She lived in Queens, she may have died in a Manhattan hospital, or she may have been living in an adult home in Nassau County, near her daughter, at the time of her death. I will be paying $23 and some change in order to file for a search of that elusive certificate. Perhaps I will have to do that three times.
This is not about money now. I know both those people listed on the bond would want to be made whole lo these 71 years later. I owe it to them to continue the search. Besides, as my banker explained, this is the first such conundrum he has been presented with, and he will learn from it and know how to deal with the next one.
For my part, I will consider any money I should ultimately receive, as the 1936 Bing Crosby song goes, pennies from heaven.
After announcing earlier this month that Rhode Island-based hospitality management firm, TPG Hotels, Resorts & Marinas had bought Port Jefferson’s Danfords, many have been wondering what this means for the iconic hotel, spa and restaurant in the heart of the village.
Robert Leven, chief investment officer of Procaccianti Companies, the overseeing group of TPG, said that because the transaction happened in the midst of its busy season, nothing is going to change just yet.
“We haven’t made a lot of changes at this point,” he said. “We just stepped in to get our systems set up and try to get everybody on board successfully. I think it’s been reasonably smooth, and it’s been going well.”
According to Leven, TPG began talking to The Crest Group in February 2021 to take over Danfords, The Waterview at Port Jefferson Country Club and The Club steakhouse.
“The deal took a long time to get done,” he said, due to the size of the transaction and all the entities included.
While Leven can’t speak for The Crest Group, he said that the COVID-19 pandemic hit the hotel industry hard.
“When this is not your core business, and particularly an operation like this, which is hotels, significant food and beverage, a spa, a country club, a marina, there a lot of things going on here,” he said. “I just think it was a lot for them to stay on top of and with the combination of the pandemic, it probably made them say, ‘OK, you know, maybe now’s the time for us to go in another direction.’”
But the new owners are excited for what they can bring.
Danfords is one of three acquisitions within the last nine months in TPG’s newly launched Marina platform. TPG has also acquired two Rhode Island businesses: Dutch Harbor Boat Yard in Jamestown this June; and Champlin’s Marina & Resort on Block Island in December 2020. The latter is currently undergoing extensive renovations as part of a comprehensive property improvement plan.
Leven said that TPG is planning on giving the Port Jefferson resort a facelift, as well. First on the list of to-dos include upgrading scenery outside with new plants and flowers, and improving other parts of the hotel’s exterior.
“What we’re really going to be focused on is guest rooms and doing a pretty significant upgrade and redo of them,” he said. “We hope to modernize them, freshen them up and bring it sort of to current design standards to elevate the product. … It’ll be a pretty significant transformation from what exists there now.”
Their goal is that people are getting an appropriate product for what they’re paying.
Leven added that while capital had been spent previously on the public areas and in the restaurant side of the resort, he believes the guest rooms had “kind of lacked the attention.”
But because of the transaction finalizing in the middle of their busy season, the upgrades to its 92 guest rooms and suites won’t start until the off-season, to be completed next year.
That being said, the food and beverage side of the resort, including WAVE restaurant at Danfords, The Club and The Waterview, will also stay the same for at least the next year.
“We’re doing some things like analyzing the menus and some of the processes in the food and beverage operation to see where we can do things differently or better,” Leven said.
The Sikaflex “Quick and Dirty” Boat Building Competition and Race finally came back to Port Jefferson after a long-awaited year.
Hosted by the Long Island Seaport and Eco Center, the 10th annual competition took off this past weekend on Aug. 28 and 29. Originally scheduled for the previous weekend, it was postponed due to rain and winds caused by Tropical Storm Henri. The 2020 event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sponsored by the Sika Corporation, a supplier of marine adhesives and sealants, the event provides would-be boat designers and builders a chance to showcase their creative skills and talents.
Throughout the weekend, visitors could watch two-member teams, working under a time limit of five hours, build their boats in the parking lot of Harborfront Park next to Bayles Boat Shop.
Not only did the contestants have to finish constructing their makeshift boat within a few hours, but they were also expected to assemble it using a meager supply of plywood, plastic cable ties and Sikaflex sealant — no nails or screws allowed — and make sure the boat wouldn’t sink in Port Jefferson Harbor.
Len Carolan, the event’s coordinator, said during the boat race at 2 p.m. that it had been “a wonderful weekend.”
“Everybody seems to be enjoying themselves,” he said. “The weather’s been great for us, and we’ve had a lot of newcomers. Everyone’s having fun.”
Two of those newcomers were Allyson and Richard Nuss, who just moved to Port Jefferson village from Setauket this summer. The duo decorated their blue cardboard boat with paw prints to give a shout-out to their small business, The Social Hound Dog Park and Hotel located on Belle Mead Road.
Richard said that while walking past the Bayles Boat Shop every other night over the last few weeks, they have gotten to know the workers there. The shop encouraged the couple to build their own boat for the race and they immediately said ‘yes.’
“We’re trying to be part of everything,” Allyson said. “We thought it would be like a cool thing to do.”
Not the competitive types, they had just two goals.
“All we wanted was 1, not to sink; and 2, not to come in last,” Allyson said.
And while seven boats raced around the pier, dozens upon dozens of spectators cheered the teams on from the beach.
“It’s getting bigger every year,” Carolan said. “And having it around the dock, it’s a perfect spot.”
Originally, he added, three more teams were set to build, but could not make the new date after the storm last weekend.
“Seven teams are usually the average,” he said. “And I think we’ll have at least a dozen next year.”
The event ended with an awards ceremony, where guest judge Mayor Margot Garant helped announce first, second and third place winners, as well as best design.
“The Sikaflex boat build and race is a great day to raise awareness about the LISEC organization, which is one of our founding partners down here at the maritime campus at Jeanne Garant Harborfront Park,” the mayor said. “They do wondrous things in that boat shed building, and it’s a great way to see the community connect with them, and the contributions they make.”
Garant said the turnout of viewers was “phenomenal.”
“I think this was the biggest turnout I’ve seen,” she said.
Following the award ceremony, LISEC raffled off a special item made at the Bayles Boat Shop — a 14-foot stand-up paddle board.
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