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Village Beacon Record

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PSEG Long Island is prepared for the strong winds and heavy snow that may potentially hit the service area Friday night through Saturday.

Depending on how the storm tracks, snow accumulations could range between 6 and 20 inches. The forecast also predicts strong winds with the possibility of peak gusts of up to 65 mph – conditions that could break tree limbs, pull down wires and cause outages.

“PSEG Long Island continues to monitor this nor’easter, and we are prepared to respond,” said Michael Sullivan, vice president of Transmission & Distribution at PSEG Long Island. “We have performed system and logistic checks, and have additional personnel at the ready. However the storm tracks, our crews will safely restore any outages as quickly as these wintry conditions allow.”

More than 900 line workers, tree trimmers, surveyors and other utility personnel will be dedicated to the restoration on Saturday.

During this storm, PSEG Long Island may use an enhancement to its outage communications process to increase the accuracy of estimated times of restoration (ETRs). With this enhancement, customers contacting the Call Center early in the storm may receive an “Assessing Conditions” message rather than an ETR message. This will allow crews to assess storm impact first to provide more precise ETRs. For more information about this new process, visit https://www.psegliny.com/outages/estimatedrestorationtimes.

COVID-19-related storm processes remain in place to ensure the health and safety of employees and the public. To that end, we ask that customers remain in their homes when crews are working nearby. If customers must speak with our crews, we ask them to practice responsible “physical distancing” and remain at least 6 feet away. For more information about how PSEG Long Island continues to live up to its commitment to safety during the pandemic, please visit www.psegliny.com/covid19.

Customers are asked to note the important storm safety tips below and to visit https://www.psegliny.com/safetyandreliability/stormsafety for additional storm preparation information.

Customer Safety:

  • Downed wires should always be considered “live.” Please stay away from them, and do not drive over or stand near them. It is best to maintain a distance of at least 30 feet from a downed power line. To report a downed wire, call PSEG Long Island’s 24-hour electric service number at 800-490-0075 or call 911.
  • Electric current passes easily through water. If you encounter a pool of slush or standing water, stop, back up and choose another path. And remember, downed lines are not easy to see in snow.
  • Never use a generator, pressure washer, or any gasoline-powered engine inside your home, basement, or garage or less than 20 feet from any window, door, or vent. Use an extension cord that is more than 20 feet long to keep the generator at a safe distance.

Stay connected:

  • Report an outage and receive status updates by texting OUT to PSEGLI (773454). You can also report your outage through our app, our website at www.psegliny.com/outages or with your voice using the Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant app on your smartphone.
  • To report an outage or downed wire, call PSEG Long Island’s 24-hour Electric Service number at 800-490-0075.
  • Follow PSEG Long Island on Facebook and Twitter to report an outage and for updates before, during and after the storm.
  • Visit PSEG Long Island’s MyPower map for the latest in outage info, restoration times and crew locations across Long Island and the Rockaways at https://mypowermap.psegliny.com/

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PSEG Long Island

PSEG Long Island operates the Long Island Power Authority’s transmission and distribution system under a long-term contract. PSEG Long Island is a subsidiary of Public Service Enterprise Group Inc. (PSEG) (NYSE:PEG), a publicly traded diversified energy company.

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By Daniel Dunaief

Daniel Dunaief

Even when I’m squinting through a deluge that floods my front windshield, I can see sprinklers on timers, throwing water on lawns drenched with rain.

That image captures the sometimes feckless nature of the routine and periodic token efforts we engage in and that reflect our modern reality.

To that end, I thought I’d share similar similes and phrases to capture the moment.

Like a pencil on an airplane. Sure, pencils are helpful when doing crossword puzzles. On a plane on the way to another country, though, pencils serve no purpose in filling out the necessary paperwork to enter customs. When my family travels, I pack black and blue pens in my carry-on bag.

Like a mask worn around the chin. Exhausted from wearing masks, people have dropped these potentially protective pieces of equipment to their chins, even after they are done eating or drinking. These masks, while visible, are only effective at hiding double chins.

Like a concerned automated voice on a customer service line. I have been on far too many calls where it’s clear the company has no interest in allowing me to speak to an actual person. After pushing 18 buttons and waiting through music that makes Kenny G sound like a symphony, a sickly sweet voice tells me how important my call is to “us,” which sounds suspiciously like a corporate version of a dystopian leadership. If my call were truly important, I wouldn’t have to wait over an hour for someone to pick up the phone, tell me she can’t hear me, and suggest I call back later.

Like an expired coupon. Sometimes, I think the coupons I get in the mail have either expired before they arrive or, like a message to Ethan Hunt in the Mission: Impossible movie franchise, will self destruct in five seconds. That way, I’ll get the offer for something that piques my interest, like half off a turkey sandwich, and then I’ll have to pay full price as sympathetic store clerks tell me they’d be happy to throw the expired discount in the garbage, which is really the most they can do.

Like another set of incomprehensible instructions. Do you ever struggle with the directions to assemble something, staring at pictures of objects that often look nothing like the assortment of pieces assembled in front of you? These instructions use vocabulary that doesn’t make sense for objects that aren’t in the packaging.

Like someone else’s garbage when I’m carrying dog poop. My big dog makes huge poops that rival the stink of a train or airport bathroom amid extensive weather delays. While holding my nose, I pass my neighbors’ garbage cans on the street. Tempted as I might be to drop the double-knotted bag into their can, I carry the prized stink bomb back to my own garbage can.

Like a phone going off in a forest. Unlike the question of whether a proverbial tree makes a sound if no one in a forest hears it fall, I’m convinced I would hear a phone going off in a forest, especially if I were in the middle of a nap or about to write the best phrase of my life that the electroshock sound would delete from my rattled brain.

Like another chat with “Jeopardy!” host Ken Jennings. Is it me or does Jennings seem anxious Amy Schneider may threaten to eclipse his record win streak on the show? His conversations with the contestants seem especially stilted and awkward. In an answer that borrows from the game’s format: the adjective Jennings most often uses when he doesn’t know what else to say and he’s run out of forced laughter. The answer: What is “fantastic?”

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By Leah S. Dunaief

Leah Dunaief

Feeling overwhelmed by all the news of the past few days? 

The latest numbers for COVID victims, the mask debates, the possibility of another COVID variant emerging, the Russians military massed around the Ukraine, NATO and its cohesion and response, the Islamic State re-emerging in Afghanistan, North Korean test missiles, escalating inflation, climate change’s latest effects, how the USA is severely divided, the inactions of Congress on voting regulations, death in the NYC subways, and even whether Brady will finally retire, those items and more could do that to you.  

“A newspaper is a mirror. Each day it reflects some segment of the world’s activities.” 

I am quoting Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, former publisher of The New York Times, but the metaphor has been offered by many others. We in the news business capture the events of the moment and provide contemporaneous information, largely without interpretation, for historians to analyze and history voyeurs like me to look back and see who was making news then.

So, in an effort to escape the daily barrage, I checked to see what was happening 100 years ago, at the beginning of 1922. I used as my source front pages from The NYT, compiled by them in a book called, “Page One.” Here is what I found.

“Pope Benedict XV Passes Away Early This Morning; Lingers Hours After World Gets Report of Death; Tributes Paid to the Pontiff by Men of All Religions,” reads the three-tiered, all capitalized headline of the Sunday, Jan. 22, 1922, issue. Other articles on the front page cover different aspects of the main story, including “Men of All Faiths Eulogize the Pope, Protestants Unite with Catholics in Praise of his Great Service to Humanity, and World is Misled by Premature Report of Death; Berlin Started Rumor, Cardinal’s Aide Spread It.”  Immediately notable about the headlines from today’s perspective is, of course, the mention only of men. Women had gotten the right to vote with the passage of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution less than two years earlier. I guess they had not registered on the country’s radar yet as part of the general population. Also on the page is a report that Lloyd George, Britain’s prime minister, looked to the coming Genoa Conference as setting the stage for the world’s path to peace and recuperation, but only if the United States attends and actively participates. He was clearly and correctly concerned about our move toward isolation after WWI. 

Also mentioned in another article was the storm of protest that ensued in France when General Pétain, a military hero of WWI, was appointed to the cabinet of Premier Poincare as inspector general of the Army. The fear was that his influence on the government’s future direction would be too militaristic. Petain, we know from our vantage point, went on to become the chief of state of infamous Vichy, France, during WWII. Ireland too made the front page in a story of mutual consent by Michael Collins, head of the Irish Provisional Government and Sir James Craig, premier of Ulster, abut boundaries between North and South that predicted ultimate agreement.

In the issue of Feb. 22, 1922, the three-tiered headline featured the fate of the Army dirigible. “Giant Army Dirigible Wrecked; 34 Dead. 11 are Saved; Victims Perish When Roma Bursts into Flames After Fall; Collapse of Rudder Causes Tragedy On Short Trial Flight.” Roma, 410 feet long, was built by Italy for the United States. The subheads go on to explain, “Hits High Tension Wires, Hydrogen Ignites in Norfolk Flight and Flames Sweep Huge Structure. Few Saved by Leaping, One Lieutenant Breaks Neck in Jump—Other Victims Buried in Wreckage, Rescuers Baffled by Intense Heat — Commander Mabry Stuck to Wheel Till Death Came.” This was the greatest disaster that ever befell American military aeronautics, according to the newspaper.

In going back and reading these news articles, we can see how the stage was set for so many future events. Especially interesting to me is to learn of the roles of individual players in what would become world history.

 

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The Public Libraries of Suffolk County recently announced that it reached 2.9 million digital book checkouts on the download platform, Livebrary.com, in 2021.

The site, consisting of 56 libraries in Suffolk County, is one of 121 public library systems worldwide that surpassed 1 million checkouts.

According to a press release sent out by PLSC, this record-breaking milestone illustrates the continued growth and importance of library digital lending of e-books and audiobooks, especially after a prolonged period of building closures due to the global pandemic.

“The Public Libraries of Suffolk County continue to meet the needs of their communities by providing patrons with much-needed access to entertainment and learning opportunities through e-books and audiobooks,” Kevin Verbesey, director of the Suffolk Cooperative Library System, said in a statement.

PLSC has been providing readers 24/7 access to e-books and audiobooks for several years through the Libby app, the library reading app created by OverDrive allowing for readership to grow each year.

Readers in Suffolk County just need a valid library card from a member library to access digital books from Livebrary’s OverDrive-powered digital collection, and can use any device including Apple, Android, Chromebook or Kindle to read or listen.

Comsewogue Public Library in Port Jefferson Station had 125,284 digital book downloads, combined. Of that total, 94,478 were e-books and 30,806 were e-audiobooks. The Port Jefferson Free Library had 51,117 downloads overall, and Emma S. Clark Memorial Library patrons in Setauket downloaded 156,576 e-books, e-audiobooks and e-magazines. 

“Our library’s patrons are among the heaviest users of e-books in the county, and we know that they value the ease, convenience and accessibility that e-books provide,” said Ted Gutmann, director at Emma S. Clark. “Although we love seeing our patrons in the library, not everyone is comfortable or indeed able to get to the library. E-books are a perfect alternative for those who can’t make it out to the library. Also, the convenience of instant access can’t be overlooked. I’ll often find myself at home reading a review or hearing a reference to a particular book that sounds interesting. It’s so nice to be able to just log on and download the book and start reading right away.”

Middle Country Public Library had 98,285 downloads in 2021. 

“Over the past seven years, we have seen a steady increase in our downloadable materials,” said Sophia Serlis-McPhillips, director of MCPL. “We weren’t surprised that the numbers spiked during the pandemic, we were however, pleased that our patrons were able to access library materials such as e-books and e-audios either for recreational or educational purposes during that time. We also saw an influx of new library card applications, presumably new users seeking to access Livebrary.com.”

The highest-circulating title Livebrary readers borrowed in 2021 for both e-books and e-audiobooks was “The Four Winds” by Kristin Hannah. The top-circulating genre — romance — represents the most popular in a vast catalog that also includes mystery, biography and autobiography, children/young adult and more. 

In Smithtown, 9% of the total downloads for the entire county came from The Smithtown Library with 266,304 digital downloads in 2021. 

“The Smithtown Library is happy to know that our patrons continue to see the value of their library in the Smithtown community,” said Robert Lusak, director. “Our aim is to not just be about providing materials from the physical collections inside our buildings, but to also provide access to digital materials. We believe that e-books and audiobooks are equally as vital to our service program.”

Long Island Health Collaborative library study

These numbers also come just as the Long Island Health Collaborative released the results of a two-year study which examined health and social support issues encountered by public library staff and the patrons they serve. The survey proved that public libraries are essential to Long Islander’s health and wellness.

The LIHC, a coalition of 300-plus organizations all involved in improving the health of Long Islanders, helped coordinate and partially fund the research. 

Public health researchers from Stony Brook University and Adelphi University interviewed library staff at randomly selected libraries throughout Long Island during December 2017 and February 2020.

They found that there was a difference between the needs and program offerings based on the socioeconomic status of the neighborhood in which a library is located. Libraries in lower-resourced communities generally ran more basic social assistance programs and those in higher-resourced communities offered more enrichment/leisure-type programming.

Researchers said they were not surprised at the results, as social determinants of health — those factors outside of medicine that influence an individual’s health — account for nearly 80% of health outcomes. These factors include education, poverty, access to transportation, safe and affordable housing, health insurance coverage, and access to nutritious and affordable foods, among others.

Starting with a list of 113 public libraries, 18 libraries in Suffolk County (from 26 randomly selected) and 14 libraries in Nassau County (from 27 randomly selected) consented to participate in the Long Island Libraries Qualitative Research Project.  

A total of 96 interviews were completed, recorded and transcribed. Approximately three staff members at each library were interviewed, and the transcribed interviews were coded based on themes that emerged from the interviews across sites.  

This resulted in a coding schema with 11 categories and many subthemes within each category.

“Public libraries are hidden gems in our communities,” said Janine Logan, director of the LIHC. “They are a trusted resource. Increasingly, public libraries play a key role in delivering some of the health and social support services an individual requires to live his/her best life.”

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Pollytia Panagiotou, MD

Pollytia Panagiotou, MD, has joined North Country Primary Medical Care, an internal medicine practice in Stony Brook Medicine’s expanding network of community practices and physicians located at 43 Radio Avenue in Miller Place.

Board certified in both internal medicine and obesity medicine, Dr. Panagiotou’s approach is to control disease with medicine and lifestyle changes to help her patients lead healthy lives and empower them to avoid preventable conditions. “We are very excited to have Dr. Panagiotou be a part of our community physician network,” said Juan Carlos Bucobo, MD, FASGE, President of Stony Brook Medicine Community Medical Group. “Dr. Panagiotou is a bright, energetic primary care physician who is a breath of fresh air to the beloved community of patients previously cared for by Dr. Dhillon. Her experience in obesity medicine and primary care will be a great benefit to our patients.”

 Dr. Dhillon provided care in the community for more than 20 years until his passing in early 2021.  

 “I am very excited to join Stony Brook Medicine and continue the legacy of patient-centered care that Dr. Dhillon provided,” said Dr. Panagiotou. “It is indisputable that he left a noteworthy impression on his patients and I will strive to do the same. My goal is to inspire patients to achieve a higher level of health and provide the care they are accustomed to at North Country Primary Medical Care.”

 Dr. Panagiotou received her undergraduate degree in psychology from Montclair State University and her medical degree from St. George’s University School of Medicine. She then completed her residency in internal medicine at Overlook Medical Center. Dr. Panagiotou is fluent in Greek and has a working knowledge of Spanish.

The practice is currently accepting new patients and has office hours Monday through Friday. For more information, call 631-821-8911.

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Chart shows COVID-19 hospitalizations during the three waves. Image from the New York State Department of Health website

Phew!

The dramatic and steep rise in positive infections caused by the ubiquitous omicron mutant of the original COVID-19 strain is declining almost as rapidly as it climbed.

As of Tuesday, Jan. 25, the seven-day average for the percentage of people who tested positive for COVID in Suffolk County stood at 12%, which is well below the 25.9% for the same seven-day average who tested positive just two weeks earlier, according to figures from the New York State Department of Health.

Those numbers, which have been declining on a daily basis, are likely to fall even further, experts said.

“The omicron wave appears to have crested in Suffolk County and New York State, but not in other parts of the country,” Dr. Gregson Pigott, commissioner of the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, wrote in an email.

Public health officials attribute the welcome decline to several factors, including the increasing use of boosters, the adherence to mask guidelines and the reduction in travel and group gatherings.

“The numbers will decline slowly and steadily from the teens to single digits,” said Dr. Sunil Dhuper, chief medical officer at Port Jefferson’s St. Charles Hospital.

Sean Clouston, associate professor in the Program in Public Health and the Department of Family, Population and Preventive Medicine at the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, added in an email that the “decline appears real and the timing suggest that the holiday period was, again, the main driving factor in the higher rates. We are likely on the other side of this wave.”

The omicron variant, which has involved milder symptoms for many of those infected, has also resulted in fewer hospitalizations.

The increase in hospitalizations is “not proportionate to the rise in cases” Pigott explained. “Our hospitals were overwhelmed when SARS-CoV-2 first hit our area [in 2020]. That has not been the case for the delta wave or the omicron wave.”

Indeed, the increase in the percentage of people who are vaccinated and boosted has helped reduce the need for emergency medical services at hospitals.

Among fully vaccinated people in the state of New York, 0.23% of the population 12 and over has been hospitalized, according to the New York State Department of Health.

That trend also holds true in Suffolk County area hospitals, public health officials said.

“We are seeing significantly reduced number of adults admitted with COVID who have had vaccines and especially those who had vaccines plus boosters,” Dr. Sharon Nachman, chief of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Stony Brook Children’s Hospital, explained in an email. “We suspect that the booster augments your initial immune response, lasting at least six months.”

While vaccines and boosters help prevent hospitalizations, they do not ward off all potential upper respiratory infections, Nachman added. Getting a primary series and a booster is “critical” to reducing the risk of more significant health effects from any potential infection.

The age range of people who are hospitalized has decreased, particularly during the third wave. In the first exposure to the Wuhan strain, a majority of those who needed critical medical care were over 65, particularly before the vaccine was available.

During the omicron wave, however, there is a “noticeable shift between the ages of 18 to 49,” Dhuper said. While the proportion of people as a whole in this group may be lower, in part because people in this age range may not have as many underlying medical conditions, the total number hospitalized is still higher because of the broader spread of the virus.

People in that younger age bracket are “the major shift,” Dhuper said.

The infectiousness of omicron also created a strain on hospitals, as health care workers, even those who were asymptomatic or had minor symptoms, were testing positive.

“We had never seen the number of staff members that were out during the first or second wave,” Dhuper said. Even though the number of people hospitalized wasn’t as high, the overall health care workers available to help care for the population “really stressed our system.”

In the prior waves of the pandemic, the Catholic hospitals were able to do load balancing, in which they shifted patients to hospitals that had the bed space and health care workers.

Toward the latter half of the omicron wave, such maneuvers weren’t as easy to manage in part because of the staff shortages caused by positive tests.

Discharging people earlier and using effective but limited supply monoclonal antibody treatments for eligible patients that reduce the severity of symptoms helped reduce the strain on the system, Dhuper added.

In terms of protecting the population, Dhuper urged residents to consider the benefit of vaccines and boosters.

“The majority of patients hospitalized in the intensive care unit are unvaccinated,” Dhuper said.

The rate of people who were unvaccinated and hospitalized with COVID-19 in the week ending on Dec. 11, which was the highest figure for 2021, was 91.1 per 100,000 people in the population, compared with 4.1 per 100,000 among the vaccinated, according to the New York State Department of Health.

“Those are amazing numbers in terms of the role of vaccines and how it’s protecting people from getting hospitalized and dying,” Dhuper said.

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Residents rally in front of the H. Lee Dennison Building in support of IR 1964 on Jan. 24. Photo by Rita J. Egan

On Jan. 24, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D) and county Legislator Kevin McCaffrey (R-Lindenhurst), who serves as the Legislature’s new presiding officer, reached an agreement regarding a county redistricting debate that has been ongoing for months.

The agreement, according to a press release from Bellone’s office, “paves the way for an open and fair process for adopting new legislative district maps and ensures an increase in the number of majority minority legislative districts in Suffolk County.”

At press time, a special meeting of the Legislature was being held to vote on an amendment in the County Charter. If approved, it will extend the period of time needed for the reapportionment commission to file new redistricting maps until Aug. 1. The legislators will also vote on new legislation “establishing a requirement that any maps drawn and adopted ahead of the 2023 legislative elections shall include no less than four majority minority legislative districts,” according to the press release.

The statement further explained that the bipartisan reapportionment commission will hold at least 10 public hearings to enable each town in Suffolk County to take part before maps are developed. After maps, which would include 18 new legislative districts, are agreed upon, at least two more meetings will be held.

“I am pleased to announce an agreement with the presiding officer that guarantees an unprecedented four majority-minority legislative districts in Suffolk County through a transparent redistricting process that is legally sustainable,” Bellone said. “Given the importance of ensuring fair representation for communities of color and looming legal challenges to the proposed map in IR 1964, we cannot leave to chance anything short of ensuring equitable representation, reflective of the county’s diversity, in our legislative district map.”

Republicans had begun legislation to rescind the Democrats IR 1964 redistricting reapportionment map bill that was passed Dec. 31 by the Legislature, when Democrats still held the majority in the county legislature. The Republicans are currently in the majority, 11-7. A lawsuit was also filed against the plan by Republicans, while the bill awaited Bellone’s signature or veto.

The county executive said he will work with the Legislature on the new agreement, which he feels will “commence a fair redistricting process that provides for significant public input in preparation for the next county election cycle in November 2023.”

The decision was made on the same day that local community advocacy groups joined forces at the H. Lee Dennison Building in Hauppauge in search of fair representation for all Suffolk County residents.

The representatives, with a letter in hand signed by the members of the advocacy groups as well as elected officials and representatives of local Democratic committees, were urging Bellone to sign IR 1964. After a brief press conference, the representatives hand delivered the letter to the county executive’s office.

Among the speakers at the rally was Beverly Dean of the Brookhaven Rosa Parks Democratic Association.

“We must do this,” Dean said. “We must have this bill signed. The Suffolk County Legislature came together on Dec. 31, and put into action what we needed and they passed it. We need our county legislators that we elected to sign this into law today.”

Shoshana Hershkowitz, founder of Suffolk Progressives, and others at the rally felt a Republican redistricting plan would be gerrymandering. After the agreement between Bellone and McCaffrey, Hershkowitz released a statement.

“We are disappointed that despite the widespread support for IR 1964, including nonpartisan organizations like the League of Women Voters, County Executive Bellone has chosen to make a deal behind closed doors with Presiding Officer McCaffrey,” she wrote. “Quite frankly, given Mr. McCaffrey’s legislative record, trusting him to honor the promise of equitable redistricting is highly questionable.”

Comments from the Jan. 26 Suffolk County Legislature meeting were not available at press time.

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Rob Sproston in his Marine uniform. Photo from Rob Sproston

“If you’re willing to put yourself and your dreams on the line, at the very least you’ll discover an inner strength you may have not known existed.” — Kurt Warner, Super Bowl quarterback and Hall of Famer

These words from this noted athlete who lived through a life of adversity, also identify the strength, character, humanity and resiliency of Baiting Hollow resident Robert “Rob” Sproston. 

On March 31, 2020, Riverhead police officer Sproston was responding to a domestic incident of a young woman who was assaulted by her boyfriend with a knife. Her car was then stolen by the man.  

On his way to the Baiting Hollow Country Club, Sproston was picking up lunch for the officers working on Main Street within the heart of Riverhead. As he was heading north on Osborn Avenue, not too far from Youngs Avenue, he heard the call of this developing incident, where the stolen car was heading westward toward his direction.

As the officer was trying to figure out the situation from the information that was being reported on his radio and preparing to be in pursuit of the subject, his life would forever be changed. Driving at a high speed with his sirens blasting and lights flashing, Sproston was trying to do his job in handling this delicate situation.  

Rocky Point High School graduates, Matt Staker, Rob Sproston and Anthony Montalbano. Photo from Rob Sproston

As he headed up Osborn Avenue, another driver made a left onto Youngs Avenue, and he tried to move his police vehicle around the car.  

Making the left, the driver drove directly into Sproston’s car, and the officer crashed into a chain-link fence. A pole shot through his windshield, hitting him through his face. Horribly injured in his car, the officer was near death before the first responders made it to the scene. 

The life that Sproston led before the crash helped him prepare for this life-altering moment. As a young man, this “all-American kid” was always armed with a big smile and a can-do attitude. He was an active member of the Rocky Point Fire Department, played several years of varsity lacrosse on the Rocky Point High School team, and is a proud alumnus of the Class of 2010.  

During his youthful years, Sproston enjoyed riding his quad with his friends within the powerlines behind the McDonald’s in Rocky Point. And he understood the practice of hard work through the intricacies of installing residential roofs with his father Billy.

In 2014, Rob Sproston began his career path by entering the Suffolk County Police Academy at the Grant Campus of Suffolk Community College in Brentwood. After graduation, he was hired as a part-time police officer for the Town of Riverhead.  

Right away, he learned about the makeup of the community and believed that it was a good experience toward his professional growth within the field of law enforcement. While Sproston was not yet a full-time officer, he was thankful to gain this experience to work with the police, and to learn about the various challenges of this difficult job.

In 2016, with the prospect of being a full-time officer, he always wanted to serve this country and entered the United States Marine Corps.  

As a 22-year-old, he was an older recruit who understood the importance of getting through the difficulties of military training for each day. Always a positive figure, he worked well with the other recruits to make it through their daily routines at Parris Island, South Carolina. 

Sproston always believed that if you did not “embrace the suck,” that it would be difficult to make it through the hardships of training and the discipline of the Marines.  

After he completed this training, Sproston was sent to Camp Geiger, North Carolina, where he learned how to become proficient within infantry training, weapons and tactics. Currently, he is with the Marine Corps Forces Reserve in Garden City, where he serves in an infantry sniper platoon, spends time in the field and enjoys the camaraderie of being in the military.  

While he is proud of his time in the Marines, Sproston is glad to be serving closer to home, to be near his job, friends and family.

Before joining the service, he took the police exam to gain a permanent full-time position within a Suffolk County law enforcement department. He was eventually placed on a lottery and picked by the Riverhead Police Department in 2017.  

Always willing to serve his nation and community, he was extremely pleased to be in uniform through the police and military. As a regular officer, Sproston patrolled the busy traffic and commercial areas of Route 58. This assignment offered him the chance to gain important knowledge of the local citizens, and the types of crimes that are common within this part of Riverhead.  

And so on the day of the crash in March 2020, this police officer was near death, and right away the local fire department was dispatched to respond and provide aid. Service runs deep through the Sproston family, as his father Billy was one of the local fire and emergency support that arrived on this call.  

At this point, his father did not know that his son was the officer in the wrecked vehicle as he approached this scene. Senior fire officials tried to keep his father away as they prepared to move him to Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead.  

Rob Sproston’s face was practically ripped apart from the crash and he lost two pints of blood. He was stabilized at Peconic Bay and was airlifted to Stony Brook University Hospital, where he received major surgery and treatment toward the reconstruction of his face. For two weeks, he was in an induced coma. His father was at his side during this entire ordeal.

Rob Sproston in his Marine uniform. Photo from Rob Sproston

Speaking about these harrowing events, the son was completely reserved as he identified this near-death incident and his amazing recovery.  

This young man still has minor nose-and-mouth surgery ahead, but his iron spirit completely demonstrates his unyielding resolve to continue a normal life. 

Always an active citizen to help his community through the police and to defend our nation within the Marine Corps, Sproston has overcome several obstacles to return to duty. His professional and personal goal was achieved on July 1, 2021, when he was cleared by the police department to return to limited duty. He is looking forward to getting back into a sector car to be in the field.  

Outside of the police, Sproston has resumed his life by working out in the gym and being cleared by a Navy doctor to return back to his infantry platoon. He is looking forward to the challenge of attending sniper school and being around his fellow Marines — always flashing a big smile.

Longtime Rocky Point High School social studies teacher and coach, Christopher Nentwich, said it best about Sproston’s positive qualities: “He was an ‘old-school’ student who was loyal, dedicated, hardworking and with a great sense of humor. I recommended Rob to several members of the police department and believed that he would be an outstanding addition to serve and protect the community of Riverhead.”

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

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A sign outside Infant Jesus Church in Port Jefferson welcoming pro-life activists this week. Photo by Julianne Mosher

Catholic parishioners across Long Island who support the pro-life movement rallied this week to support of the March for Life held in Washington, D.C.

According to Infant Jesus R.C. Church parishioner Kevin Crowley, in the past Catholic parishes in both counties have usually sent busloads of protesters to the nation’s capital every year, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic they had to bring the rally closer to home.

On Friday, Jan. 21 — the day of the D.C. event — Crowley said that nearly 90 people gathered inside the Port Jefferson church to participate in a three-part event: an early Mass, the rally which featured three different speakers and, then to finish, the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.

Crowley said that because the pandemic has made it impossible to send buses to the March for Life in Washington, D.C., this Friday, Jan. 21, the Diocese of Rockville Centre is sponsoring parish activities. These activities are intended to show support for the March for Life which will take place simultaneously in Washington — its 49th year.

Along with St. Louis de Montfort R.C. Church in Sound Beach and the Joan of Arc Council of the Knights of Columbus in Port Jeff, those who would typically be with the thousands down in Washington stayed local. The plan originally was for gatherers to rally on the front lawn of the church, just below the Sacred Heart statue, but Friday’s freezing conditions moved the group indoors.

The March for Life is an annual march to the Supreme Court of the United States that began in 1974 — a year after the landmark abortion decision in Roe v. Wade. This year’s theme in Washington was called “equality begins in the womb.”

This comes as the Supreme Court looks to reconsider the Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992) decisions that had written the right to abortion in the federal constitution.

According to Crowley, who is a retired Suffolk County First District Court judge, the State of New York has already codified a nine-month abortion right into state law and will be considering adding an assisted suicide law during the coming legislative session.

Pro-life activists are hopeful that Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which was argued before the Supreme Court in December, will overturn or weaken Roe v. Wade. The decision on the consequential abortion case is expected by this summer.

Crowley added in the past more than five dozen people would take a bus to participate in the big rally, often having to deny people for lack of seats. The last time the group was able to attend was January 2020 — right before the coronavirus hit us locally.

The 2021 rally was canceled as it was in the heart of the pandemic, and 2022 looked hopeful. But Crowley said that because of the omicron variant, it was better to play it safe, but to also express their support that all human life — especially that of an unborn, the aged, the poor, the differently abled and the terminally ill — starts from conception to natural death, and that services should be available to women in situations that were unplanned or not ideal.

“We’re looking to the future,” Crowley said. “The positive things to help women in crisis pregnancies — not just during, but after.”

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