New proposed EPA regulations may affect the Port Jefferson Power Station, pictured above. File photo by Lee Lutz
By Aidan Johnson
The Biden administration and the Environmental Protection Agency announced proposed regulations requiring most power plants fired by fossil fuels to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 90 percent between 2035 and 2040, or shut down.
This climate rule would likely affect the Port Jefferson and Northport power stations, since they are both fossil-burning plants.
Under consideration for the new standards are carbon capture and storage, or CCS, a method of capturing and storing greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, though this is still not widely practiced.
“CCS has not reached a widespread commercialization stage,” Gang He, an assistant professor in the Department of Technology and Society at Stony Brook University, said in an email. “According to the Global Status of CCS 2022 report by Global CCS Institute, there are only 30 operational projects with a total capture capacity of 42.56 million metric tons — about 0.1% of the total carbon emission in 2022.”
As the global climate crisis continues, the World Meteorological Organization announced May 17 that world temperatures are “now more likely than not” to cross the 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold, recommending policymakers act promptly to reduce carbon emissions and help mitigate the mounting concerns.
Another proposal being explored is hydrogen, a low-emission fuel source which produces power through a process called electrolysis that could move Long Island’s toward a greener future, according to former Port Jeff Village trustee Bruce Miller.
Miller said hydrogen could play a major role in reshaping Long Island’s economic and energy futures as some companies have already started acquiring and selling hydrogen.
“It is hoped [hydrogen] will be an important part of our economy in the near future, and there’s a lot of money being allocated for that,” Miller told TBR News Media in an interview. “I believe that National Grid has the capacity to do this in Port Jefferson.”
National Grid did not respond to a request for comment.
Miller said local plant operators would probably need to modernize the existing power stations to accommodate hydrogen in the future.
Also factoring into this hydrogen equation would be energy demand. While a lot of energy is expected to be received from the Atlantic, where offshore wind turbines are currently being developed, these represent intermittent energy sources, Miller indicated.
Given Port Jeff Harbor’s deepwater port, Miller suggested that hydrogen could be feasibly captured, pumped and stored along existing maritime commercial routes and transported via cargo ships.
While decisions over local power stations remain ongoing, National Grid needs to determine whether it would be worth it to use hydrogen, or whether the electricity generated in the Atlantic would be enough. The municipalities would also need to be on board with repowering the plants.
“We call ourselves a welcoming community,” Miller said. “If that’s the direction that National Grid would want to go in, the village [should] support that.”
While there is a market to extract and sell hydrogen, it needs to be at an affordable price. Although the amount that hydrogen will play in creating a sustainable future is unknown, questions over local plants remain ongoing with the subsequent detrimental effects on the Port Jefferson and Northport tax bases.
Residents are concerned that a proposed house of worship on the property of Timothy House on Route 25A will destroy the historical integrity of the property. The property is known for its ‘allée’ of sugar maples, which have not yet bloomed in this photo. Photo by Rita J. Egan
A packed room full of Head of the Harbor residents gathered last Wednesday, May 17, for a public hearing on the application of the Monastery of Saint Dionysios the Areopagite, also known as the Monastery of the Glorious Ascension, that occupies the historic Timothy House, to build a church on the property.
The monastery, which purchased the house in 2018, is seeking a special-use permit for religious purposes, to build the church, which will be about 3,341 square feet.As previously noted by the The Times of Smithtown (March 30, 2023), Timothy House, constructed in the 1800s, was once the home of former Head of the Harbor historian and architectural preservationist Barbara Van Liew, who died in 2005. The house was built by a descendant of Smithtown founder Richard Smith. In honor of Van Liew, community members passed out buttons with her photo reading, “Save Her Legacy.”
The village board listened to a presentation made by Joseph Buzzell, the attorney for the monastery along with public comments made by the community. A decision has not been made and the next meeting is on June 21. Public comment will be open until then.
Calls for recusal
At the start of the meeting Deputy Mayor Daniel White addressed calls from some community members to recuse himself from the application, as he has a family member in the monastery. He declined to step aside.
“A grandchild of one of my aunts is affiliated with the monastery,” White said. “While I know this individual, who he is, I have not had any significant conversation or other dealings with him in the last 20 years. I am not required to recuse myself here as a matter of law. I believe I can be fair and impartial in the assessment and determination of this application.”
Village Mayor Douglas Dahlgard stood behind White, and said the village is small, and most people know each other.
Plan details
Buzzell said the Monastery has received a letter from the State Historic Preservation Office noting that the house will have “no adverse impact on the Timothy Smith house.” SHPO is requiring the monastery to take photos of the site for documentation purposes.He added that the monks “have, do and will fully maintain the Timothy Smith house.”
The plan does not include any changes or modifications to the actual house.
“This is not an insensitive builder, demolishing a historic structure,” Buzzell said. “Part of the monastery’s proposal from the very beginning is to preserve and maintain the Timothy Smith house. It’s done so in the past, it does so now, it will continue to do so.”
Buzzell said that since the monks purchased the home, they have put over $340,000 into the maintenance of the property including structural repairs to the basement and east wing, emergency repairs to beams and front stoop, along with repairs to the roof, plumbing and sanitary systems, electrical repairs, repairs to leaks in the basement and roof and mold remediation.
The monastery is not presently proposing to widen the driveway, or add new lighting, Buzzell said. The attorney for the monastery said the decision about the driveway came up “late during the SHPO process.”
The foliage along 25A will also stay the same. A school is no longer part of the plan, according to Buzzell.It is proposed the church be situated 271.5 feet from the road and that 36 parking spaces be added to the property.
The project would tie the monks to the house, Buzzell said.
“This ties into the church functionally, to the property functionally, to tie them to the property financially, all of which serves to preserve the Timothy Smith house.”
Dahlgard questioned Buzzell as to if the monastery is able to afford the construction.
“My wife and I have two old houses in the village, and we know all too well the cost and the effort that goes into maintaining these houses including money,” he said.
Dahlgard continued: “Building a new 3,200 square foot church at today’s prices, the way things are, you’re talking somewhere close to a million dollars.” The mayor asked Buzzell if the village could get“assurances that [the monastery] has the ability to fund and finance construction.”
While Buzzell previously agreed toDahlgard’s request to have a building inspector, he said he was “not involved in the financial aspects of the project but wassure” something could be worked out.
“If [the monks] didn’t feel that they could actually build and run that church, I would not be standing at this podium,” Buzzell said.
Parking concerns
Ethan Schukoske, a traffic engineer for the monastery said they host a large morning service on Sundays for approximately 35 to 40 members.
“They don’t expect a large increase of members,” he said. “Obviously they want to have some space … but it’s really a relocation of services in the Timothy House to their nicer facility on site.”
Schukoske said the facility had at most 40 cars entering the property during their Sunday peak period, according to his study, in which he observed traffic flow. He noted a maximum of 21 parked cars on site. When projecting the traffic using industry standard data from the Department of Transportation, a standard church of the same size would generate about an additional 17 cars and 31 parked cars, if projecting a typical church of the same size.
When trustee Jeffrey Fischer pointed out that the study was done in 2021, and it was still at pandemic levels, Schukoske said that around20,000 vehicles travel on 25A each day, so “when you have less than 100 vehicles during the peak hour, it doesn’t have a significant impact.”
Community response
Erica Rinear, who lives next door to the monastery, said at the meeting the monks have always been good neighbors.
“They have been nothing but the most wonderful human beings,” she said. Rinear added that she and her husband used to call the section of 25A near their home “highway to heaven,” as there are a number of churches. She welcomes another.
“My husband just died February 5 of this year,” she said. “I like to think that this church will help me get to him directly.”
Leighton Coleman III, the village historian, had a number of concerns about maintaining the historic integrity of the space. He said the SHPO representative, who penned the approval letter for the home, told him she did not make a site visit to the house. He also was concerned that should the parking lot fill up, cars will be parked on 25A, blocking the view of the house.
Natasha Acker, a neighbor, said when she recently went to work, there were three construction vehicles in front of her. Parishioners have also walked up to her fence line, she said. Finally, she was concerned her home would decrease in value after the construction of the church.
“Say somebody here wants to retire tomorrow,” she said. “It may be years of construction before they’re able to sell their home because nobody wants to buy a home, especially a nice million-dollar historic home, next to a construction area.”
Veterans for Peace Golden Rule sailing into Port Jeff Harbor
The Golden Rule, above, will enter Port Jefferson Harbor tomorrow, May 26, at 6 p.m. Photo courtesy Myrna Gordon
Veterans for Peace Golden Rule will be sailing into Port Jefferson Harbor on Friday, May 26, at approximately 6 p.m. and will be docked at Harborfront Park from May 26-28.
This historic small ship is currently on a journey along the Atlantic coast for educational conversations about peace, nuclear disarmament, clean water and collective consciousness for our environment.
In 1958, as atmospheric nuclear testing heightened the stakes in the arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union, the Golden Rule sailed toward the Marshall Islands aspiring to stop early atmospheric testing.
The Golden Rule was the first sailing vessel in American history to practice nonviolent activism on the high seas 65 years ago and was the forerunner for today’s better-known Greenpeace ships, as well as the template for every kayak, canoe and outboard motorboat that’s peacefully protested anything in the nearly seven decades since.
The Golden Rule helped ignite a worldwide movement to end nuclear testing and led to the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty signed by President John F. Kennedy [D] in October 1963, some five years after the initial action.
The boat has a significant connection to Long Island as its first crew included William Huntington, a Quaker from St. James. In homage to him, a true trailblazer, the Society of Friends, Conscience Bay Quakers Meeting will join members of the Setalcott Nation, the original stewards of our waterfront community, and many other peace and justice organizations in meeting the boat and welcoming its captain and crew.
North Country Peace Group with South Country Peace Group are the sponsors of this event with a special acknowledgment to the Conscience Bay Quakers. We hope everyone can join us.
Myrna Gordon
Port Jefferson
Words matter in immigration dialogue
One of the most beautiful elements of America is diversity. The immigrants who live in our communities contribute to our economy, our culture and our public life. We are a better nation for it.
We have seen a vilification of those seeking asylum at our southern border. This past Sunday, local, state, and federal Suffolk County Republicans held a press conference, announcing a plan to hire legal counsel to block asylum seekers from entering Suffolk County.
Though seeking asylum is legal, county Legislature Presiding Officer Kevin McCaffrey [R-Lindenhurst] said, “We don’t know who’s coming over.” In doing so, McCaffrey implies that asylum seekers are a danger to us.
U.S. Congressman Nick LaLota [R-NY1] differentiated between documented and undocumented immigrants. Both ignore a basic truth: Asylum seekers are fleeing their countries because of climate change, poverty and political violence. They are not seeking to do us harm. Our federal government must provide assistance and address these root causes in our foreign policy. That is the direction we must take, rather than demonizing and “othering” asylum seekers.
Today’s asylum seekers remind me of my paternal grandfather. As a teenager, he fled Odessa [now in Ukraine] after his father, a practicing rabbi, was murdered in Siberia. My grandfather didn’t consider paperwork — he fled to survive. My grandfather may have had a different religion and skin color than the migrants at the border, but their stories and their humanity are quite similar. As a Jew who has had branches of my family tree cut off by political violence, I know that “Never Again” applies to every one of us, including asylum seekers.
Words matter. When our politicians use xenophobic rhetoric like the county Republicans are, it makes all of us less safe. Will the base they have riled up distinguish between which of their neighbors are documented or undocumented? Did the teenager who murdered Marcelo Lucero in Patchogue in 2008 check his immigration status before ending his life? Rather than learning from our history, the county Republicans seem intent on repeating that harm, all in the name of firing up their base for the November elections.
We cannot accept this in Suffolk. We must seek solutions that bring us all together, rather than divide us up. We must expect more from our elected leaders. If they cannot deliver, we must vote them out and replace them with moral leaders who can.
Shoshana Hershkowitz
South Setauket
Concerns about proposedMaryhaven development
The 19 units in Canyon Creek, which were completed in 1999, are directly impacted by any activities on the former Maryhaven Center of Hope site on Myrtle Avenue.
All four Port Jefferson Village trustees have met with several of the Canyon Creek Home Owners Association members on-site, and we expressed to them our overall concerns about the proposed development of the site by Beechwood Homes.
Our biggest concern is the proposed nearly 200 units, on the 10-acre site, to be priced at approximately $1 million each, in buildings that would be allowed to be three stories in height, plus the requirement for two parking spaces per unit.
Canyon Creek is located on close to 10 acres and has 19 units. We would hope that the village Board of Trustees would change the zoning to include a requirement of an equal density in the adjoining property. Our quiet and peaceful neighborhood will be detrimentally impacted with the proposal now before the board.
The proposed development plan calls for preserving the old building on the former Maryhaven site, but Beechwood is seeking concessions from Port Jefferson Village to change the zoning code to allow for increased density of residences on the site. The consensus among the homeowners is that while there are positive considerations for preserving the historic building and converting it for residential and recreational use, as proposed by Beechwood, the allowance of an incentive of increased units and taller structures as a tradeoff is absolutely detrimental to the Canyon Creek community.
There are numerous serious adverse impacts on our community from such a development so close to our backyards: loss of privacy, noise, change in ambience of the surrounding area, increased traffic, water runoff into properties and many more.
We as a community are very concerned that there appears to be a rush to change the code to allow the development of a property that would be inconsistent with the surrounding area without submitting an environmental and traffic study for full public review and comment.
We recognize that the board’s only role is to alter the zoning code, and we hope that they will take into consideration how all of Port Jefferson will be impacted, as well as the devastating impact it will have on Canyon Creek.
Maybe it’s the mayor and school board that lack that vision and understanding. The community wants answers. Port Jefferson currently spends over $50,000 per student, well above other districts. Our enrollment is declining, with graduating classes projected to drop to near 60 students by 2031.
Taxes are already projected in the school district’s current financial plan to increase 34% by the 2027-28 school year. After the LIPA glide path expires in 2028, taxes would double if the plant is closed. Mayor Garant said “The norm is like another 10-year glide path to give you a chance to settle into another loss of revenue.” [“Powering down?” May 18, TBR News Media]. Really, another glide path — what norm?
Over 10 years, Shoreham saw its LIPA taxes — which represented 90% of its budget — drop 10% per year. There was no further assistance. If the mayor knows where Port Jeff would get yet another glide path, please let us know the source, and have their representatives confirm it. And will this white knight also provide additional benefits for Northport and Glenwood Landing, which are on similar glide paths to Port Jefferson?
As an alternative to hoping for a magical rescue, let’s plan appropriately and realistically, with every option considered before we are asked to commit to another long-term bond that would effectively remove several options from consideration. Let’s find out if other districts would be interested in a merger or tuitioning our students. Let’s have an impartial consultant analyze the numbers and determine what our taxes would be with LIPA gone if we continue alone, or with a merger or some combination.
Also, let’s discuss whether the opportunities for our projected 60-student per grade high school enrollment would be greater, and at less expense, in a merged or tuitioned district.
And will the mayor and school board please stop discounting the feasibility of a merger based on our current school tax rate being so much lower than neighboring districts. That projected rate is 190.11%, according to PJSD’s Summary of Estimated Revenues in the 2023-24 Draft Budget, an increase from 178.46%. Take out LIPA’s assessed value and by my calculations the rate jumps to 330.37% which is equal to or greater than surrounding districts.
Our vision and understanding needs answers.
Robert J. Nicols
Port Jefferson
The reality of closing local generating plants
Your editorial and lead article [TBR News Media, May 18] both address the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed stringent limitations on power plants’ emission of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide that cause the climate change we already see here.
The EPA’s proposal is consistent with the existing state Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act that mandates similar reductions in New York state of fossil fuel generation and its replacement with renewably generated electricity.
Both TBR pieces recognize that the Northport and the Port Jefferson plants cannot continue for too many more years to be powered by natural gas.
Your editorial correctly challenges local governments and school districts that have been subsidized by tens of millions of dollars annually that are indirectly paid by other Long Island residents through the taxes on these greatly overassessed properties to start “imagining a future in which those subsidies no longer exist.” These entities should certainly seek state aid to ease this transition, but that is not a long-term solution.
There could be other uses for these sites that are robustly connected to the grid, such as for landing power cables from offshore wind farms, or massive batteries to store electrical energy during times of low renewable generation.
Bruce Miller, former Port Jefferson Village trustee, suggested two possibilities for continued onsite electrical generation. One would be continuing to burn natural gas, while adding equipment to capture the resulting carbon dioxide. This possibility ignores the known substantial leakage of methane — a powerful greenhouse gas — at the well, and all the way to the generating plant. Such carbon dioxide removal equipment does not now exist at scale, and would be rather expensive.
He also suggests burning hydrogen to produce electricity when renewable generation cannot meet demand. Such “green” hydrogen would be produced during the summer from water using renewably generated electricity, stored in large quantities, transported here by pipelines that could not leak even small amounts of climate-changing hydrogen, and burned to produce electricity. The main combustion product would be harmless water. However, the oxides of nitrogen and other polluting combustion products would have to be removed before being released, adding to the cost of the electricity generated.
There are no certain answers to continued use of these sites for electrical purposes to replace lost tax revenues. Just the opposite is true: The higher the taxes on any new facilities, the more expensive will be their operation and less likely they would be built here.
Peter Gollon
Huntington
Editor’s note: The writer was a LIPA trustee from 2016-21.
EPA power plant standards are cost prohibitive
The EPA’s proposed rules for cutting emissions are so onerous that older generators, like Northport and Port Jefferson as well as hundreds around the country, will be shut down because the expense to upgrade would be prohibitive.
These power stations have operated since the 1960s with incredible reliability and cost-effectiveness. They have blessed Long Island and the communities that host them with tax income and life-sustaining, consistent energy. The developed world survives on this.
A main difference between our society and the third world is their lack of affordable, reliable energy. It is also a matter of survival. One can broil in the heat and freeze in the cold. One can starve for lack of food and water. One can die from inadequate health care facilities and resources.
Note well that these power plants have operated within EPA pollution regulations. Now the EPA is moving the goalposts. Companies, towns and cities that have relied on the energy for our civilization will be in mortal danger.
It is extremely difficult, costly and lengthy to site, plan, permit and build a new power station. The real estate is gone. The possibility of rebuilding an old power station to new standards, repowering, may not be cost-effective, especially if there are the preferential power purchase agreements that put wind and solar electricity ahead of fossil fuel generation.
Another consideration is China, Russia, India and the Global South in general are building fossil-fueled power plants, including coal, at a breathtaking rate — hundreds a year. Decarbonization of New York state and the U.S. power plant emissions will have no effect.
Furthermore, wind and solar power operate on average about 20% of the nameplate capacity of generation. Spinning reserves are mandatory. Battery backup, aside from the huge expense, child labor and devastation to the environment in obtaining rare earths, may work for a few hours. Where is that coming from if Northport, Port Jeff and other power stations are closed?
Planet Earth, throughout its billions of years, experienced much higher temperatures and CO2. In fact, the Holocene period, with the greatest explosion of flora and fauna in history, flourished with way higher temperatures and CO2. Life adapted and thrived. In fact, thousands of scientists confirm there is no CO2 crisis.
Buy some candles if this goes through.
Mark Sertoff
East Northport
Have you seen my wife?
If you live in the village of Port Jeff, I’m sure you have.
The kids and I, however … not so much. Since my wife, Kathianne Snaden, became village trustee in 2019 and deputy mayor in 2021, I sometimes think village residents get to see her more than we do.
When I get home from work, my first question to the kids is, “Where’s Mom?” Their answer in that typical teenage voice is usually, “At a meetinggggg… .”
It seems like my wife is always at a meeting. Board meetings, trustee work sessions, union negotiations, meetings with business owners, meetings with residents, meetings with Suffolk County Police Department brass, and on and on the list goes. When what she does as deputy mayor comes up in conversation and she explains all that she actually does here in the village most residents respond with some variation of “wow, I didn’t realize that you did so much.” All the nice flowers you see planted this week … Kathianne personally worked with the garden center and the parks department to make that happen and so much more.
Kathianne makes so many positive safety and quality-of-life improvements here in the village it would be difficult to list them all in under 400 words.
On top of all that, I think one of the things that really sets Kathianne apart is her willingness to meet with people, be approachable and be open to any inquiry from residents. On more than one occasion, Kathianne and I have been out in the village and she will post online where we are and anyone who wants to talk can come down and sit with us, whether we are at the Farmers Market, watching our kids play at Rocketship Park or even out to dinner. Kathianne makes herself available to everyone.
As a business owner, I recognize the drive and positive spirit my wife has to get anything done that she sets her mind to, and I’ve seen her do it. As a Port Jeff resident, I’m thankful for the great ideas, programs and initiatives she has brought to the village that benefit us all.
As a husband I’m so proud — she impresses me every day. And while it means I (and the kids) still won’t see her that much at home, I urge everyone to vote for Kathianne Snaden for mayor so she can continue to excel for us here in Port Jeff.
William Snaden
Port Jefferson
Sheprow will put residents first
It’s time for a change of direction in Port Jefferson. That’s why I’m proud to endorse my long-time friend, Lauren Sheprow, for mayor.
I’ve known Lauren since our days at Scraggy Hill Elementary. She’s always been bright, dedicated, focused and, most importantly, a great friend. As a single mom, she raised three wonderful children while pursuing a career that ultimately led to her becoming chief media relations officer at Stony Brook University.
I know running for mayor wasn’t in Lauren’s plan. But when she became a village trustee, she saw major decisions being made without any input from residents. So she did what Lauren always does — started asking the tough questions. The concerns she raised, however, even when they identified a potential conflict of interest or a question of ethics, were frequently met with denial or simply ignored. That’s part of the reason she decided to run.
With deep roots in Port Jeff, Lauren has a vision that’s focused on putting residents first. She wants to bring best business practices back, increase transparency and put an end to closed-door decision-making. Lauren is a communications professional and as mayor will work to improve our relationships with the business community — as well as our town, county and state governments — to ensure we’re making the most of all our resources.
She’ll also put an end to wasteful spending. On day one, Lauren will seek board consensus to enlist the expertise of a forensic accountant and an administrative consultant to help bring fiscal responsibility and operational excellence to Port Jefferson.
If, like me, you’re ready for new leadership and a fresh start for the village, I urge you to vote for Lauren Sheprow as our next mayor.
April Quiggle
Port Jefferson
Exploiting bail reformis not a solution
In response to my letter on bail reform [“Eliminating bail reduces recidivism,” TBR News Media, May 4], Jim Soviero takes exception to my use of the term “crocodile tears” [“Local crime exposes bail reform dangers,” May 18] to describe his professed concern for “minorities” that “tragically . . . continue to suffer disproportionately from violent crime.”
This was not an attack on his person or behavior, or an attempt to question the sincerity of his political beliefs. My point was that it seems a trifle presumptuous for Soviero, who is white, to proffer ending bail reform as a cure for the suffering of “minorities” when they themselves overwhelmingly disagree.
The larger point is that exploiting bail reform to excite fear and division for political gain is the worst possible way to actually address the underlying issues behind violent crime. Bail reform isn’t something that was just dreamed up by “leftist think tanks” as Soviero puts it. It was to address a very real problem he ignores, namely, the inequity of a system that condemns people who have not been convicted to days, weeks or even months in jails such as Rikers Island, for, in effect, the crime of being poor. As I noted in my May 4 letter, it is overwhelmingly supported in the minority community. If it’s so harmful to them there’s a very simple remedy— they can vote out their representatives who support it.
Soviero scoffs at the data presented by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice study I cited, surrounding the word “data” with scare quotes. Naturally, since the data doesn’t support his contention that bail reform is terrible, he would much rather rely on anecdotal evidence that seems to. And for every horror story he could cite where someone was harmed by a person arraigned and released without bail, I could cite a horror story of someone who committed suicide or whose life was damaged beyond repair by being held in jail for days or weeks without being convicted. The point is, this is no way to formulate criminal justice policy. If we don’t use data, what do we use? Who can cite the most sensationalized anecdotes?
New York City Mayor Eric Adams [D], whom Soviero approvingly cited in his original letter denouncing bail reform, recently termed fixing it a “bumper sticker slogan.” Adams is right. Instead of politicians weaponizing this issue for political gain what we need is reasoned discussion of underlying issues. The problems with the criminal justice system are much deeper and more entrenched beyond the obsession with this one issue.
David Friedman
St. James
Editor’s note: This correspondence on bail reform is now closed.
A scene from the 2023 Paws of War Car Show. Photo by Rita J. Egan
A scene from the 2023 Paws of War Car Show. Photo by Rita J. Egan
A scene from the 2023 Paws of War Car Show. Photo by Rita J. Egan
A scene from the 2023 Paws of War Car Show. Photo by Rita J. Egan
A scene from the 2023 Paws of War Car Show. Photo by Rita J. Egan
A scene from the 2023 Paws of War Car Show. Photo by Rita J. Egan
Paws of War and the Fabulous 50s and 60s Nostalgia Car Club hosted a car show on Sunday, May 21, at Nesconset Plaza.
The organizations raised $25,000 to support local veterans and first responders in the Long Island community. The car show included vintage, classic and custom cars, live music, hot food, 50/50 raffles and more.
The proceeds from the event will help Paws of War provide injured veterans and first responders with a companion dog that will be trained to become a service dog through the organization’s service dog training classes.
Tyler Mileti (top), Bryana Sulinsky (left) and Stephanie Braun (bottom) stop Hills QB Sami Heyman. Photo by Steven Zaitz
Melissa O'Connor avoids the flag pull attempt of Hills DB Olivia Hamilton. Photo by Steven Zaitz
Jahniya McCreary scores the game's first touchdown from two yards out as Julianna Mooney (right) cannot get the flag in time. Photo by Steven Zaitz
Half Hollow Hills quarterback Sami Heyman splits Stephanie Braun (left) and Melissa O'Connor. Photo by Steven Zatiz
In leading the Hauppauge Eagles flag football team to a perfect regular season, freshman quarterback, middle linebacker and punter Taylor Mileti virtually never stepped off the field.She will now have to wait 10 long months to step back on it.
After beating Longwood in the opening round of the playoffs last Thursday, Half Hollow Hills rolled into town and shut out the Eagles 13-0 on Monday in the Section XI semi-final game. Hauppauge’s inaugural season ended after 12 straight wins and a League I regular season title. They were the number one seed coming into this playoff tournament and Hills was seeded fourth.
Mileti’s father Steve is the Eagles head coach.
“They have a very good team over there and they earned that victory,” said Coach Mileti. “They played a good man coverage, and the ball just didn’t bounce our way today.”
Half Hollow Hills has a two-way superstar of their own in Jahniya McCreary. Aside from scoring both Hills touchdowns, McCreary had seven flag pulls, an interception, and a sack from her middle linebacker position. The Lady Thunderbirds defense gave Mileti and her offense no room to breathe for most of the afternoon.
“We came in hungry and had a mission to win,” said the senior McCreary. “We remembered what happened the last time we played them and did not want that to happen again.”
Hauppauge beat Half Hollow Hills 6-0 on April 14 when Mileti scored a late touchdown on a 50-yard run.
“Jahniya is one of the best players on Long Island,” said Hills head coach Michael Lupa. “She flies to the ball on defense and is a threat to score from anywhere on the field on offense. She was the most valuable player of the game tonight.”
After a scoreless first half, McCreary scored on the T’Birds opening possession of the second half when she took a wildcat snap and sliced up the middle for a two-yard touchdown run. McCreary had six catches for 140 yards on the day, including a bomb of a touchdown from 48 yards from quarterback Sami Heyman to seal the game with under six minutes remaining. Heyman, who like Mileti is also a freshman, was 7 for 12 for 185 yards on the day.
But it was the Thunderbird defense that set the tone in this tilt.
“They had a fast pass rush which made it difficult to complete passes,” said Taylor Mileti. “We had such an amazing season and we all worked so hard to get to this point. Losing this game definitely hurt but it’s just one game and we will come back and work hard next season to get to the next level.”
As Half Hollow Hills (13-2) prepares to take on Patchogue-Medford for the Suffolk County Championship on Thursday, Mileti, along with her disappointed teammates, will need to step away from the field — finally.
Immigration advocates during a May 23 press conference at the William H. Rogers Legislature Building in Hauppauge. Photo by Raymond Janis
A nationwide debate over immigration, coupled with the end of Title 42, is sending shockwaves through Suffolk County.
Title 42, a COVID-19 pandemic-era federal immigration policy that expired earlier this month, enabled U.S. Border Control agents to swiftly expel asylum seekers on public health grounds. The end of the procedure has led to a spike in new migrants entering the country, with many directed toward New York City and, possibly, Long Island.
Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) has identified three SUNY campuses, including Stony Brook University, for migrant housing, Spectrum News NY1 reported on Tuesday.
NYC received more than 900 migrants daily over several days, Mayor Eric Adams (D) told CBS News “Face the Nation,” Sunday, May 21. It is an influx, the mayor suggested, that has overburdened the city’s budget and facilities. Adams called upon Hochul and counties throughout the state to assist his city, referring to the requested relief as a statewide “decompression strategy.”
“New York City is the economic engine of the state and the country,” he said. “We believe the entire state should participate in a decompression strategy, and it’s unfortunate that there have been some lawmakers and counties that are not carrying on their role of ensuring that this is a decompression strategy throughout the state.”
Tensions swelled on the same Sunday morning during a press conference at the William H. Rogers Legislature Building where immigration advocates clashed with Republican lawmakers.
Suffolk County Legislature Presiding Officer Kevin McCaffrey, at podium, with Republican officials during a press conference at the William H. Rogers Legislature Building on Sunday, May 21. Photo by Raymond Janis
Suffolk County Legislature Presiding Officer Kevin McCaffrey (R-Lindenhurst), standing alongside U.S. Congressman Nick LaLota (R-NY1) and Republicans from across levels of government, criticized the city’s policies, affirming that Suffolk County is not open to new asylum seekers.
“New York City made a conscious decision to call itself a sanctuary city. Suffolk County did not,” McCaffrey said.
U.S. Congressman Nick LaLota during the May 21 press conference. Photo by Raymond Janis
He added, “The residents of Suffolk County have already dealt with the financial costs of the pandemic and the historic inflation because of the failed policies of the state and federal government. We cannot stand by and allow the residents of Suffolk County to further burden the failed policies of the Biden, Hochul and Adams [Democratic] administrations in dealing with this crisis.”
McCaffrey stated the federal government’s vetting process is inadequate, so “we do not know who’s being sent into this county,” noting the potential strain upon law enforcement is still undetermined.
He described the expected cost of food, shelter and related medical and school expenses as “daunting,” saying that financial assistance from the federal and state governments would be “a mere drop in the bucket compared to what it would actually cost” to accommodate these requests.
“We cannot allow the federal [government] and state to pass on these costs to the residents of Suffolk County,” McCaffrey added.
LaLota criticized New York City’s sanctuary city designation, tying the influx of asylum seekers to unresolved issues at the U.S.-Mexico border.
“We here in Suffolk County are 2,000 miles from the southern border, but we are to become a border county because of the Biden administration’s failed border policies and the sanctuary city policies of New York City,” the congressman said.
Protesters storm a press conference at the William H. Rogers Legislature Building in Hauppauge on Sunday, May 21. Photo by Raymond Janis
Throughout the Sunday morning press conference, the speakers heard steady chants from the gallery opposing their efforts. “No hate. No fear. Immigrants are welcome here,” the protesters cried in unison.
Two days later, at the same county complex in Hauppauge, the immigration advocates held their own press conference Tuesday morning.
“For far too long, Suffolk Republicans have denied Long Island families — particularly those seeking asylum — the freedom to thrive,” said Elmer Flores, advisory board member of the Long Island Immigration Clinic. “People seeking asylum are individuals, children and families that deserve to live in peace and live free from danger, which is why exercising their human and legal right to seek safety in the U.S. should be protected.”
Minerva Perez, executive director at OLA [Organización Latino Americana] of Eastern Long Island, during a May 23 press conference in Hauppauge. Photo by Raymond JanisMinerva Perez, executive director at OLA [Organización Latino Americana] of Eastern Long Island, suggested the vetting process for asylum seekers is adequate, noting the possible regional economic benefits of expanding the workforce.
“Asylum seekers can work — they are given work permits,” Perez said. “If anyone’s noticed, there’s also a labor shortage in Suffolk County. Do the math.”
Ivan Larios, manager of organizing and strategy for the Long Island branch of the New York Immigration Coalition, appealed for the acceptance of new asylum requests on humanitarian grounds, noting the harsh conditions from which many are fleeing.
“Immigrants are already a part of our community and make Long Island richer and better because of their economic, social and cultural contributions,” he said. “People seeking asylum are individuals, children and families fleeing danger and persecution in exercising their human right, a legal right to seek safety in the United States.”
Despite these appeals, the county Legislature introduced a procedural motion on May 23 to appoint a special counsel “to pursue any and all legal options available to protect the unfunded location of any asylum seekers in Suffolk County,” McCaffrey said.
A vote on the motion is expected during the Legislature’s June 6 meeting.
While for now, the pandemic is officially in the rearview mirror, according to the World Health Organization, it’s worth considering what we can and can’t blame on COVID-19. For starters, here are a few things that aren’t the fault of the pandemic.
— A favorite sports team’s defeat. Every team had to deal with COVID-19. The pandemic didn’t affect my team’s best athletes any more than any other team’s stars.
— The weather. It’s going to rain, and it’s going to be too hot and too cold. That happened before the pandemic, and it’s going to happen afterward. Global warming, if anything, might have slowed slightly as more people stayed home each day.
— Unrequited love. Authors throughout history have found this topic particularly appealing. A would-be romantic goes out into the world with a proverbial heart filled with affection and admiration. Cupid hits that person with an arrow, creating a wellspring of dedication and devotion toward someone who doesn’t return the favor. The pandemic might have made it harder to know where we stood with each other, but unrequited love will continue to cause problems and lead to sad-but-relatable romantic comedies.
— Bad grades. We all have moments when we don’t study enough, the right way, or even the right material. The pandemic might have made it harder to focus or to care about theorems or memorizing dates, but it’s not the fault of the virus. It might have been tougher to concentrate in those early days, with dogs barking, parents yelling into Zoom calls, and people dropping off food at our front door.
— Anger in Washington. This is one of the easiest to dispel. Did you pay any attention to the vitriol coming out of the nation’s capital before 2019? It’s not as if the parties suddenly decided fighting each other was more valuable than getting anything done or compromising. The words under the Washington DC license plate shouldn’t read “taxation without representation,” which refers to the fact that residents pay taxes but don’t have federal representation. Instead, it should read: “Grrrrrrrrrrr!”
— Biased journalism. As a member of the media, I understand the frustration with the written and spoken words on TV and in print. The left hates Trump; the right hates Biden and ne’er the ‘twain shall meet. The pandemic didn’t pour gasoline on that dumpster fire. Media organizations staked out their territory prior to the pandemic and have remained more faithful to their talking points than many people do to their own marriage vows.
Okay, now, what about the things we can blame on the pandemic.
— Mental health strain. While the pandemic may be gone, we haven’t wrapped our arms around the mental health impact. We spent way too much time on our phones, making us feel simultaneously connected and disconnected while the pool of frustration continues to get deeper.
— Educational gaps. Students will never get back those days and the lessons they missed during the pandemic. Classes condensed their syllabi, lowering requirements and expectations for each class and for graduation. Students of all ages missed lessons and assignments that might have inspired them and that would have helped them reach previous educational requirements.
— Social graces. A first-grade teacher recently told me that their school still can’t bring all the first-grade classes together. When they do, the students argue about resources and space. Prior to the pandemic, students from several classes could easily play together. Hopefully, that will change as the students age and fill in gaps in their ability to interact.
Even as we hope to move past the pandemic, we can’t ignore the difficult reality, forcing parents, teachers, children and members of society to relearn lessons about acting and interacting. No, we can’t take cues from Washington, but maybe we can overcome deficiencies exacerbated by the pandemic.
This past weekend was both fabulous and exhausting. We drove nine hours down to Virginia to celebrate with my granddaughter as she graduated from college, and with my son and daughter-in-law, her parents, who helped make it happen. Both sides of the family were represented, and we were all in, cheering, laughing, eating, strolling and talking, talking, talking for two days straight, not counting our travel days.
We were certainly not alone enjoying this milestone. I never saw so much traffic on the roads between here and Virginia, both going and coming, and we theorized it was all those families and all those graduates driving the highways on this college graduation weekend in May.
The joy of a graduation from college spans generations. Those who seemed to feel the accomplishment most, perhaps, were the families of first-generation graduates, whose members would often boast to anyone listening, “She’s the first to graduate.” We all cheered, clapped, and if we could, whistled during those 30 seconds when our loved one crossed the stage, was handed the diploma, smiled for the camera, then returned to his or her seat.
Predictably, we heard lots of speeches. Those who received honorary doctorates, the president of the college, the chancellor, the student representative, the keynote speaker, all addressed the graduating class and their guests with words of wisdom that, as I recall from my graduation, were promptly ignored. For us then, the tone, however, was hopeful and positive.
This time, though, there were two differences that I heard. The first was a recognition that the world for these young people had changed, both physically and societally. The country was sadly divided, and climate change was altering the globe. People were not listening to each other. That they might enjoy better lives than their parents because their future was bright was never mentioned.
These graduates had their lives and their studies interrupted by the pandemic and were captive of their computers for part of theirlearning. The message was that they had lost out in their four years, lost the easy camaraderie of uninterrupted campus life and the person-to-person contact with their classmates and professors. There was some reference to overcoming challenges and resilience, but on the whole, there was none of the usual comments as to how this next generation was going to make the world a better place. It seemed the goal was just to cope.
The other difference from the educators was, to me, defensive. Stressed was the need and importance of education. Of course, they were preaching to the choir. But still, the comment rang out, “When you have forgotten all [the facts] that you have learned, what you will have left is education.” More than once, the reference was to having learned how to think analytically as being the major benefit of their college years.
I did get a kick out of one dean, who referred in her talk to the various world events that had occurred during the past four years. We listened attentively because we all experienced them. And when she was concluding, she confessed that almost the whole speech had been written by ChatGPT. We laughed but not without a tinge of concern for future college students.
As always, at graduations, it is a happy and also a sad time for the graduates. There is a lot of “goodbye.” They are leaving behind those they had come to know and places that had become as familiar to them as their dorm rooms: where they shopped for food, where they retreated to study, where they played volleyball, where they enjoyed their “midnight snacks” that were probably well beyond midnight.
Our granddaughter keenly felt the yin and yang of moving on. She tried to spend time with us even as she was drawn to the gatherings and parties on campus of her friends and roommates. I wanted to tell her that this time was a beginning, more than an end, and that she would be taking the best with her into the next chapter.
But I didn’t. She had already heard enough speeches.
This week’s shelter pet is Linx, a four year-old Male German Shepherd who was taken in to the Smithtown Animal Shelter as a stray and never claimed. He is highly intelligent, well-mannered and is always in the mood to play fetch! He requires a very active home that will meet his mental and physical stimulation needs. Linx is a good-natured dog that needs a strong owner who will provide him with some structure and companionship. Linx should only be adopted into a pet-free and child-free home with an experienced German Shepherd owner that will respect his personal space.
If you are interested in meeting Linx, please call the shelter to schedule time to properly interact with him in a domestic setting, which includes a Meet and Greet Room, the dog runs, and a Dog Walk trail.
The Smithtown Animal & Adoption Shelter is located at 410 Middle Country Road, Smithtown. Visitor hours are currently Monday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Sundays and Wednesday evenings by appointment only). Formore information, call 631-360-7575 or visit www.townofsmithtownanimalshelter.com.
Hauppauge United Methodist Church Photo by Corey Geske;
By Corey Geske
The headstone of Alfred Griffin
Trustees of the Hauppauge Rural Cemetery connected to the Hauppauge United Methodist Church have sponsored marble markers for previously unmarked graves of Civil War veterans. The first inscribed is for Alfred Griffin, a Landsman, U.S. Navy, former enslaved and self-emancipated Black man whose first name and record were previously unknown. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs engraved and delivered the government headstone to be placed at his gravesite. Cemetery Trustees and the Society of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), a non-profit fraternal organization, plan a graveside rededication ceremony on Saturday, June 17 at 10 a.m. at the cemetery adjacent to the Church. That weekend precedes the federal holiday of Juneteenth, which marks the end of slavery in the U.S. in 1865.
Built in 1806, the Hauppauge church and its cemetery in the township of Smithtown were listed in 2020 on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. The Hauppauge Rural Cemetery includes veterans from as far back as the Revolutionary War through today. The cemetery’s Civil War markers tell of young Wessels Payne (1844-1864) killed at Fort Harrison, VA by a Rebel sharpshooter and Daniel O. Hubbs (1835-1862), who died on the USS Horace Beals near Fort Jackson, LA, blockading Confederate ports in Gulf waters where Alfred Griffin escaped enslavement and joined the U.S. Navy.
Fought to be free to fight
Since his death 125 years ago, generation to generation at the church remembered that Mr. Griffin [first name unknown] made his escape from enslavement and fought in the Civil War. Cemetery Trustees have long sought to identify Mr. Griffin’s full name. Their oral history provided enough clues for me to reconstruct his life story in my 2021 report “Enslaved, Escaped, Emancipated, Enlisted,” referenced by Veterans Affairs and on file with the State of New York Office of Historic Preservation.
Searching for Mr. Griffin’s identity
My search for Mr. Griffin’s first name and life dates across seventy years of census data extended to possible family in the Hauppauge area. In 1900, one possible relation, age 10, named ‘George Griffin,’ was boarding at a Hauppauge home next door to a brick mason west of the church. The 1900 and 1910 censuses, recording parental birthplaces, documented George’s father as born in Florida and Alabama, respectively, suggesting he may have been an enslaved brick mason working at U.S. forts built from millions of bricks near Pensacola, FL. It began to look like George’s father could be Mr. Griffin. In 1920, George was living in Bay Shore and veterans’ records brought to light his full name, ‘George Alfred Griffin’ (1890-1974), offering two potential first names for his father.
Relying on church history relating Mr. Griffin was a veteran, I located an ‘Alfred Griffin’ born in Pensacola, FL in the ship’s crew of the USS Circassian’s 1863 muster rolls posted by the National Parks Service. His veterans pension [November 23, 1895] was subsequently located, with his mark signed at Smithtown to his statement, “My correct name is Alfred Griffin . . . I do not write. . .” When census data, military records, and newspaper primary sources were put together, they provided answers once lost to enslavement.
The previously “unknown” Alfred Griffin was born circa 1828 and died December 11, 1897. Mr. Griffin’s just-identified Brooklyn Daily Eagle obituary [December 13, 1897], described him as a mechanic and brick mason, “highly respected . . . in the community,” but did not mention his Navy service. Now, Mr. Griffin’s ‘ship’ has been set right by the Hauppauge church’s collective memory, proved to correspond directly to his life.
Freed ‘off Mobile’
USS Huntsville, 1859. Watercolor (1945) by Erik Heyl for his book Early American Steamers. Courtesy Naval History and Heritage Command.
On July 6, 1861, twelve weeks after the Civil War began, two Black persons, ’Alfred’ and ‘George,’ were granted their independence off Mobile, AL. When brought aboard the 860-ton U.S. Steamer Huntsville, part of the Union’s Gulf Blockade Squadron patrolling the Confederacy’s coastline from Key West, FL to Mexico, Commander Cicero Price (1805-1888) effectively emancipated them.
Entered into the muster roll as “Supernumeraries” added to a crew already at its prescribed number of 64, Alfred and George were protected as part of the ship’s complement. Implementing the July 4, 1776 Declaration of Independence proclaiming “all men are created equal,” and eighteen months before President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation freeing the enslaved, future Commodore Price wasted no time putting pen to paper. He had already fought for emancipation, having seen the horrors of enslavement before the Civil War, when serving on the U.S. Africa Squadron blockading enslavers’ ships on the Atlantic enslavement trade’s dreaded Middle Passage that transported kidnapped African people to enslaved labor.
Eyewitness to ‘Freedom’s Fortress’
‘Alfred’ added the surname ‘Griffin’ to his person when officially enlisting aboard the Huntsville on November 25, 1861. He soon saw action fighting the Confederacy. Off Mobile Bay, Christmas Eve, 1861, Huntsville engaged in an hour-long battle turning back the Florida, a steamer of superior force challenging the Union blockade, followed in January 1862, with Huntsville assisting in capturing a rebel schooner, again off Mobile.
Then, on December 9, 1863, in one of the most internationally famous Union Navy victories of the Civil War, Alfred’s next ship, the USS Circassian, captured the British blockade runner Minna near Wilmington, NC, severing an international lifeline supplying the South’s ironclad fleet. The Circassian towed its prize to the Virginia coast, where Alfred Griffin saw the Union’s Fort Monroe, the so-called ‘Freedom’s Fortress,’ granting sanctuary to thousands of escaping enslaved people, many joining the Union Army.
Brick mason builds in Smithtown
Mr. Griffin was honorably discharged in New York, the Huntsville’s port of launch, when that ship was decommissioned in 1862. He reenlisted in the Navy and served as a Landsman into 1864. After the war, he returned to New York and became a resident of Brooklyn, working as a ‘boss’ brick mason, described in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle as doing the work of two men, setting 4,000 bricks in a day.
Mr. Griffin and his family moved to Smithtown in the early 1880s apparently influenced by Rev. Henry Highland Garnet (1815-1882). At age fifteen, after having escaped enslavement, Garnet was given sanctuary in 1830, at the Smithtown home of Epenetus Smith II (1769-1832) before it was moved.
In a Brooklyn sermon of 1879, Garnet said of Epenetus’s son Samuel Arden Smith (1804-1884) then in attendance, “if I have ever been useful to you or to the world, it was greatly owing to him; and I desire those of my friends who feel so disposed to come up to this stand and be introduced to him.” Garnet, a renowned abolitionist, would be the first Black speaker to deliver a sermon before the U.S. House of Representatives, marking Congressional passage of the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing enslavement; the new law of the land proclaimed December 18, 1865.
In the early 1880s, Mr. Griffin appears to have built his home of brick in Smithtown Branch south of Main Street on Hauppauge Road (Route 111), neighboring Samuel Arden Smith. The Smith family inherited the fortune of merchant A.T. Stewart (1803-1876), including his Garden City Company brick business, which supplied bricks used in Smithtown, likely by Mr. Griffin.
Later moved east on Main Street to the Smithtown Historical Society grounds, the ‘Epenetus Smith Tavern’ where Garnet received sanctuary in 1830, was originally located north of Main, proximate to today’s Town Hall near where the Smithtown Branch Methodist Episcopal Church was then located, and where Mr. Griffin’s funeral was held.
Smithtown’s freed enslaved men and women would regularly meet about a block south and in 1910, their descendants would build Trinity African Methodist Episcopal Church on New York Avenue. Alfred Griffin was a prosperous mechanic, skilled brick mason known for his business ethic, and member of the fraternal organization of Free and Accepted Masons that worked to build the African American community after the war.
Alfred Griffin’s known descendants
Alfred Griffin married Mary Dixon (c. 1850-aft. 1897-before 1900), whose father born in the West Indies was possibly enslaved. Their children included Mary (c. 1873-unknown); Corie (c. 1876-c. 1899), and George Alfred. Corie Griffin Jackson had three children born in Hauppauge: Alonzo, Paul, and Cora.
Little is known of ‘George,’ rescued with ‘Alfred’ in July 1861, both assigned the singular job of “steward” aboard the Huntsville, suggesting, perhaps, that Alfred brought a young son on his journey to freedom. We do know Alfred Griffin’s son born in 1890 in Smithtown Branch, was named ‘George Alfred Griffin.’
A U.S. Army veteran Of World War I, George, a carpenter, married Minnie Mitchel (c. 1889-aft. 1938), a widow with two daughters, Daisy and Marguerite. The Griffins’ daughter, Jean, was born c. 1927. In 1918, Minnie was a founder of Bethany Baptist Church, built near the Griffins’ home, likely with George’s expertise, and dedicated in 1921, becoming First Baptist Church on Second Avenue in Bay Shore.
About the author:Independent historian Corey Geske of Smithtown has identified lost titles of Hudson River School paintings mistitled on museum and library walls, as well as internationally known, yet forgotten owners and architects of Smithtown’s historic structures. Since 2016, to generate incoming grant money for downtown Smithtown, she has proposed recognition of historic places, notably through a new National Register Historic District focused on the c. 1752 Arthur House, identifying it as the home of Mary Woodhull Arthur, daughter of Washington’s chief spy, Culper, Sr. She prepared the report resulting in determination of the Smithtown Bull as Eligible for the National Register (2018) and wrote the successful National Register nominations (2019) for the Byzantine Catholic Church of the Resurrection and its Rectory, and with SHPO, for the Hauppauge United Methodist Church and Rural Cemetery (2020).
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