We thought that the end was near with the coronavirus, but unfortunately the new Delta variant has people across the country concerned.
While many people — 68% of New Yorkers ages 18 and older — have been fully vaccinated, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said this week that 21 Long Island zip codes have low vaccination rates. The state will spend $15 million to target these communities in an effort to get more people vaccinated.
During his press conference on Monday, Cuomo said that new daily cases have been jumping due to the highly contagious Delta variant of the virus.
Cuomo added that about 75% of adults in the state have received at least one dose of the vaccine, but 25% have not — which is a total of 3.5 million people. Only 0.15% of people in the state who are vaccinated have become infected with the virus.
While things have opened up again, and life seems to be back to normal, the Delta variant can change that quickly. In areas that Cuomo named, which included parts of Rocky Point, Miller Place, Selden, Port Jefferson Station and Lake Grove, the $15 million funding from the state budget will be used to strengthen communication, expand public education and enhance ongoing outreach efforts throughout diverse communities.
But that isn’t enough.
The fact that so many people are choosing not to get vaccinated, and who are not being careful in doing so, is concerning. We understand that there are people who have extreme health issues that prevent them from getting the jab, and we respect that. We understand that everyone has the right to choose to be vaccinated, but when there is a public health crisis that has taken the lives of so many innocent people, how could one not choose to get the shot?
There is a lot of false information out there, and it’s sad to see that no one trusts science anymore. What happened to March 2020 when everyone was in this together? Why did something like a shot to prevent getting sick become so polarizing? Why are people fighting in supermarkets if they choose to wear a mask for protection, and someone who is anti-mask disagrees?
Of all the new and recent COVID-19 cases statewide, 72% come from the Delta variant. Don’t we want to get back to normal? Weddings are finally allowed to include more than 50 people. Meetings are in-person again. We have a lot to look forward to, and it would be so disappointing to fall back to where we were last year because of fear or misinformation.
Protect yourself. Protect your friends and family. This can be prevented.
One day, you wake up and your kids who called noodles “noonies” are getting ready for college.
No, not exactly. It’s a long journey filled with skinned knees, ripped tee shirts — don’t ask — eye rolling and muttering between clenched teeth. Still, here we are, as our kids prepare to move on from the educational minor leagues. Along the way, we went through numerous milestones. Please find below a few of the phases in our journey.
— Deer in the headlights. I’ve seen deer in my headlights. The only difference between them and us when we first brought our children home is that the deer’s eyes are open much wider. We almost instantly became sleep-deprived. Other than that, we had that frozen not-sure-where-to-move feeling, knowing we had to do something, but not exactly sure what or in what order to take care of those needs.
— Hating everyone. People meant well back in the days when our children were young and cried. Numerous people, who didn’t live with or even know our needy infants, offered unsolicited advice about what this scream or that scream meant. Strangers would tell us how our daughter’s cry meant she had gas, was hungry, needed her diaper changed, or was hot or cold. Yes, thanks, those are the options. Thanks for the help!
— Cooking the plastics. Yup, back in the early days, I was so sleep deprived that I put plastic bottles in a pot of boiling water to sterilize them and fell asleep. It wasn’t until I smelled the burning plastic that I realized how long I’d been out.
— Carrying everything: We couldn’t go four blocks without a diaper bag filled with everything, including the special toy each of them needed, diapers, wipes, ointment, sunscreen, bug spray, rain jackets, boots, and extra clothing.
— Straining our backs: Picking the kids up and playing with them was fun when they were under 20 pounds. When they reached 50 and above, holding them the entire length of a ski slope became impossible.
— Crazy sports parents: This phase lasted much longer than it should have. It was only when the kids reached late middle school that I appreciated the fresh air, the sparkling sunlight and the excitement of the moment. Exercise and making friends are the goal. Everything else, including winning, is gravy.
— Giving them space (aka, it’s not about us). As they reached adolescence, our children needed to make their own decisions. Tempting as it was to jump in and redirect them or even to kiss them before they left the car for middle school, we bit our tongues as often as we could, leaving us feeling lonely and nostalgic in our cars as they joined their friends.
— Beautiful naps: Giving them space allowed us to do what we wanted. After years of living our lives while monitoring and helping theirs, we had a chance to do exactly what we wanted, which started with restorative naps.
— Sending them into space. We aren’t putting them in a Jeff Bezos rocket ship or sending them to the International Space Station, but we are preparing to give them an opportunity to explore the world outside our house.
— Looking at the calendar differently. With both of them on the way to their futures, we can choose places to visit that didn’t interest them. We can visit these places when school is in session, which should mean lower costs for us.
— Telling other people how to take care of their kids: With our free time, we see parents struggling with young children. We, of course, know better. Or maybe not.
At this time of renewed attention to COVID-19, I recommend escapism. I have managed it, and this is how I did it. I immersed myself in two books, one after the other. They weren’t great classics, just hand-me-downs from a person whose reading tastes I respect. He gave me both books, and like a magic carpet ride, they took me to a different time and place with interesting characters for travel companions.
I enjoy historical fiction, and interestingly enough, both books use the siege of Leningrad by the Nazis during World War II as a critical context for their plots. Although we are being laid siege today by a malevolent virus, that act of war almost exactly 80 years ago was far different. Hitler wanted to bomb the city into oblivion, believing that Eastern Europeans were worthless, and survivors were to be starved to death. The German army was under orders not to accept any truce offer that might be extended to them by the city leadership. The siege began on Sept. 8, 1941, and ended, after 872 days of torment, on Jan. 27, 1944. The pre-war population of about two and a half million was reduced at the end to about 800,000 by extreme famine, disease and artillery strikes, one of the most destructive blockades in history. To make matters even worse, that first winter saw temperatures plummet as low as – 40 degrees. The dead piled up in the streets. There were even instances of cannibalism. The survivors were marked forever.
This is a major catalyst of the first book, “Winter Garden,” by best-selling author, Kristin Hannah. It is the story of the relationship between a mother and her two daughters, and between the daughters themselves, that bears the aftereffects of what has been termed by historians as attempted genocide in Leningrad. Anya is a cold and disapproving mother to her children, and they feel cast out to survive emotionally, each in their own way as they grow up. The glue that holds the family together is the father, and when he becomes terminally ill, the dysfunction of the women is clearly revealed. The writing is dramatic and manages to sustain a heart-rending pathos as the plot builds. I tried to keep a dry eye as I read, but in vain. Each continuing episode tugged at my heart and my tears flowed anew with just about every chapter. The surprise ending is a stunner.
Having barely recovered from Hannah’s epic story, I plowed into “City of Thieves,” by David Benioff. Unlike “Winter Garden,” in which the siege of Leningrad is considered for its profound and intergenerational consequences half a century later, Benioff’s main characters deal with the horror as it is unfolding. Seventeen-year-old Lev and 20-year-old Kolya somehow manage to make this into a coming-of-age story, with some laugh-out-loud dialogue even as they are fighting to survive. But don’t be misled. This account of the tragedy of Leningrad is, if anything, more brutal for its contemporaneous setting.
The two young men, through a bit of incredible yet somehow acceptable events, are sent off by a Soviet colonel amidst a starving city in search of a dozen eggs. It might as well be the holy grail for Arthurian medieval knights. In the course of the quest, they see and sometimes experience some of the individual terrors of the siege in what Benioff claims is historically accurate fashion. Benioff has delineated the plot according to specifics in Harrison Salisbury’s book, “The 900 Days,” and Curzio Malaparte’s “Kaputt.”
The latter, a novel published in 1946 by an Italian war correspondent, is about the descent of European civilization on the Eastern Front during World War II, and the former, written in 1969, is by the respected American journalist detailing the definitive story of the prolonged battle. Benioff cites them as sources for his novel.
They were hardly light reading, these two books my friend gave me, but they certainly kept my attention. They also taught me a bit, as good books do.
Coach Ken Eriksen with members of Team USA softball team. Photo by Jade Hewitt from USA Softball
Coached by 1979 Ward Melville High School graduate Ken Eriksen, Team USA softball team ran out of walk-off magic in the gold medal game Tuesday.
After coming from behind to beat Australia, 2-1, and then Japan by the same score in the last two games before the final, Team USA couldn’t rally to beat Japan in the gold medal game, falling 2-0.
Coach Ken Eriksen during practice with Team USA. Photo by Jade Hewitt from USA Softball
Eriksen, who had a successful college baseball career, has extensive softball coaching and playing experience, including as the current head coach of the University of South Florida for over 24 years. He has had several roles with the national team over the years, including as an assistant on the 2004 Olympic team that won gold in Athens. He became head coach of Team USA in 2011.
Members of the local athletic community expressed their admiration for the coach and his involvement at the Olympic games.
“For one of our former student athletes to be coaching on the highest stage possible in the world is something we’re so proud of,” said Kevin Finnerty, athletic director of the Three Village Central School District. Eriksen’s role shows “that our students, through hard work, effort and time can” reach their goals.
Joseph Burger, who has been coaching softball at Ward Melville for seven years, appreciated the connection between Eriksen and the high school.
“When you have a Ward Melville graduate coaching the Olympic team, that sheds a great light on the sport and what we’re trying to do here,” Burger said. “This is very positive for the program.”
Burger appreciated how Team USA showed sportsmanship at the end of the loss, which, he said, reflects well on the coach.
Burger, who posted the Team USA softball schedule on the high school softball team’s Instagram page, said the games set a great example for his players.
The Olympians are “aggressive toward the ball,” he said.
Rising Ward Melville junior third baseman and team captain Alicea Pepitone watched the gold medal game.
“They played their hearts out this whole series in the Olympics,” said Pepitone, who would like to play in college. “They should be proud, even though it didn’t go down the way they wanted it to.”
Pepitone thought it was “awesome” that Coach Eriksen attended Ward Melville. She recalls watching softball in the Olympics in 2008.
“I want to be one of those girls on that field and wearing that jersey,” she said.
Reached by email before the final game, Eriksen responded to TBR’s questions from Tokyo.
TBR: Who were some of your softball mentors growing up in Setauket?
Eriksen: My coaching mentors from Long Island were Russ Cain at Gelinas Junior High School and Coach Everett Hart. They were both tremendous teachers. They both taught the game, and you would never know you were up by 10 or down by 10. They treated and respected the game as it should be … a teaching platform for life.
TBR: Have you emulated any of the coaching patterns you observed as a player?
Eriksen: Most definitely. It’s all about the players’ ability to be prepared for any situation and trust them to react to the situations.
TBR: What is the best advice you received as a player?
Eriksen: Trust your preparation. Less is more.
TBR: Do you use that advice with the players on USA softball?
Eriksen: Every day.
TBR: Is the sport of softball any different than it was during the age of Jennie Finch?
Eriksen: It’s more competitive worldwide now than it was prior to 2008. You can see that by the competition in the last four World Championships and the 2021 games.
TBR: Does the sport require any different skill sets?
Eriksen: Absolutely as it does comparatively to baseball.
TBR: How is USA softball any different from softball in the rest of the world?
Eriksen: The expectations sometimes are unrealistic in respect of not thinking it’s a global game.
TBR: Does your team or does the program emphasize specific skills that differentiate it from softball in the rest of the world?
Eriksen: Not really. Everyone spends an inordinate amount of time trying to be flawless.
TBR: What is different about coaching and playing?
Eriksen: It was easier to play! Only had to worry about me!
TBR: Have you had to learn different skill sets as a coach than you had as a player?
Eriksen: Obviously when you are dealing as a manager in any organization there is a “human hierarchy of needs” that each player presents to you as a coach. When you have a unit that is together for years, you better understand the people first.
TBR: Was it challenging to coach and play softball without anyone in the stands?
Eriksen: Not really. When you are locked into the moment, all noise is irrelevant in the heads of elite athletes.
TBR: Was the team able to provide the energy and excitement that the crowd might normally offer in the context of a more typical softball game or season?
Eriksen: We bring it every day regardless. That happens when you wear U-S-A on the front of your jersey.
TBR: What’s next after the Olympics?
Eriksen: For me … getting away from the spotlight. Won’t be hard. I love the “game,” but it’s a game. It’s not my whole life. The old saying … “gone fishing.”
TPG Hotels, Resorts & Marinas — a Rhode Island-based hospitality group with hotels and resorts across the country — announced last week that it acquired Port Jefferson’s Danfords Hotel, Marina & Spa, located on the harbor in the village.
Originally established in 1986 as Danfords Inn, it boasts 92 guest rooms and suites. Its marina features more than 100 slips and over 1,000 feet of side to tie with the capacity to accommodate vessels up to 250 feet in length. Hotel stayers and locals visit its onsite restaurant and lounge, WAVE.
Some of the buildings on the property date back to the 1800s, when Port Jefferson was a bustling shipbuilding community.
“Danfords Hotel, Marina & Spa in Port Jefferson is a remarkable destination located in one of the highest barriers-to-entry markets in all of North America,” said Robert Leven, chief investment officer of Procaccianti Companies, in a statement. “Danfords is a perfect fit as we accelerate the growth of our recently launched marina platform. We have several more acquisitions in the pipeline and intend to have a significant concentration of East Coast marina properties by the end of 2021.”
The transaction is one of three acquisitions in the last seven months in TPG’s newly launched marina platform. In Rhode Island, TPG acquired both Dutch Harbor Boat Yard in Jamestown this June, and Champlin’s Hotel, Resort and Marina on Block Island in December 2020. The latter property is currently undergoing extensive renovations as part of a comprehensive improvement plan.
“It is not common to find the perfect buyer, but in this case we have achieved success,” Enrico Scarda, managing partner of The Crest Group, said in a statement.
Additionally, as part of the transaction, TPG will also manage catering operations at The Waterview restaurant located at the Port Jefferson Country Club.
TPG will embark on a property improvement plan at Danfords, including resortwide modernization, which includes the lodging and slip reservation systems and a full renovation of the resort’s guest rooms.
Additional renovations and improvements are also planned for the marina facilities.
The Crest Group was unable to further comment by press time.
Reese Tiller, right, with his physician Dr. Laura Hogan, division chief of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology and director of the Pediatric Oncology Survivorship Program at SBCH, during the July 27 10th anniversary event. Photo from Stony Brook Medicine
Stony Brook Children’s Hospital gathered doctors, nurses, physicians and staff to celebrate their 10th anniversary of pediatric care this Tuesday, both in person and virtually.
Throughout the years, SBCH has provided innovative research, clinical trials and breakthrough techniques to benefit pediatric patients. The hospital has more than 180 skilled pediatric specialists who cover more than 30 specialties.
“We have a long history of caring for children, and it was with the generational knowledge and passion that we made the commitment to create an institution that would better meet the needs of nearly half-a-million children in Suffolk County,” said Maurie McInnis, president of Stony Brook University.
Even during the pandemic, SBCH had pediatric investigators on duty, researching the effectiveness the COVID-19 vaccine has on children.
During the event, photos were displayed showing the history of Stony Brook Children’s Hospital. Photo from Stony Brook Medicine
Holbrook high schooler Reese Tiller attended the event and shared his experience with the children’s hospital that helped treat him when he had a cancer diagnosis.
After a soccer accident left Tiller with a concussion, it was SBCH who found out through testing that he had a large mass on his chest which was discovered to be leukemia.
“I was extremely confident that Reese was in the best place and was only going to get the best care possible,” said his mother Jaimi Tiller.
The Tiller family expressed their gratitude for SBCH and the effort it put into curing Reese’s illness. The hospital kept the family, including Reese, informed on every update possible.
“The second I got there, I felt loved and cared for,” Reese said.
The transition to the children’s hospital was easy for the Tiller family and despite being there for treatment, the overall feeling of the hospital was welcoming for all.
SBCH has become a vital part of the academic and clinical mission of SBU and Stony Brook Medicine, which aim to provide the highest quality of education and training.
With the dedication and passion of Stony Brook’s health care workers, SBCH has become a regional and national leader in children’s health care, and the first children’s hospital in the nation that created a center for the treatment of pediatric multiple sclerosis.
“You should all be proud of the outstanding clinical quality and breadth of services Stony Brook Children’s provides,” said Dr. Margaret McGovern, vice president for Clinical Programs and Strategy for SBM. “For me personally, it has been an honor to work with all of you and see your dedication and passion for improving children’s lives has been a daily inspiration.”
A new website dedicated to addiction and mental health resources has been unveiled to provide residents with easy-to-access services for those who are struggling.
On Thursday, July 22, Suffolk County legislator and chairwoman of the county Legislature Health Committee, Sarah Anker (D-Mount Sinai), joined county Department of Health Services Commissioner Gregson Pigott, county Division of Community Mental Hygiene Services Director Cari Faith Besserman, together with members of the county Department of Information Technology and the county Addiction Prevention and Support Advisory Panel outside the William H. Rogers Building in Hauppauge to announce the launch of the website suffolkstopaddiction.org.
The webpage was created by Resolution No. 34-2021, introduced by Anker and unanimously passed earlier this year.
The legislation directed the county Department of Information Technology and the Department of Health to collaborate to create a comprehensive webpage dedicated to addiction, mental health, substance use disorder prevention and rehabilitation services. The webpage features sections that include important emergency numbers, substance use disorder and mental health information and resources, and a list of treatment providers compiled by the county Division of Community Mental Hygiene Services.
Photo by Julianne Mosher
“I want to thank the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, the Division of Community Mental Hygiene Services and the Department of Information Technology for their tireless work they put into creating this webpage,” Anker said. “With the concerning rise in addiction and mental health issues after a challenging year, our hope is that this webpage will help increase the accessibility of the possibly life-saving resources that are available through the Suffolk County Health Department and improve our ability to reach those who are in need of help in our county.”
Anker sponsored the resolution in response to the growing opioid and substance abuse epidemic in the county and across the U.S.
During an October public hearing, Victoria Sunseri, a Suffolk County constituent in the medical field, noted that it was difficult for providers to locate mental health and/or addiction resources for their patients. The panel members echoed the importance of providers being able to connect a person to treatment options and for residents to find important information in a user-friendly way. In response, Anker facilitated the creation of the webpage singularly dedicated to addiction and mental health resources and services.
“Throughout the pandemic, we have received a surge in calls from individuals seeking mental health resources from crisis intervention to addiction rehabilitation,” Sunseri said. “This mental health hub will serve to empower individuals by reducing the time and frustration they might experience while seeking help appropriate to their needs and by streamlining reception of services through increasing the salience of who does what, where and how.”
This comes just days after the county Legislature convened July 12 to consider and vote on certificates of necessity concerning settlements with several defendants in the county’s pending opioid litigation. These certificates were approved promptly after legislators met in executive session to discuss details related to the litigation.
On Feb. 3, 2015, county legislator and current presiding officer, Rob Calarco (D-Patchogue), introduced legislation to establish a six-member committee to determine the viability of legal action against drug manufacturers and ascertain Suffolk’s costs due to the over-prescription of opioids.
Following this study, Calarco spearheaded the resolution that authorized the special counsel to commence legal action(s) against all responsible parties. The law firm of Simmons Hanly Conroy LLC was retained, on a contingency basis, to represent the County of Suffolk in this complex litigation.
Suffolk County was one of the first three counties in the United States to act against opioid manufacturers in 2015. The counties of Orange and Santa Clara in California and the city of Chicago took similar action in that same period. These settlement dollars will be used in accordance with any requirements outlined in relation to such settlement and, in all likelihood, will be put toward educational programming, treatment and other related efforts to remedy the impacts of this crisis.
According to a Calarco press release following the July 12 special meeting, settlements were approved with Rite Aid of New York $1.5 million; CVS $3.5 million plus the additional amount of $500,000 if certain settlements are reached with other defendants; Walmart $3,062,500; Walgreens $5 million; Johnson & Johnson a sum between $8.4 million and $19.8 million over 10 years “to be used for restitution and abatement and agreeing not to manufacture, sell or promote opioids going forward”; and between approximately $10.4 million and $19.6 million over nine years from the Purdue/Sackler family.
Photo by Julianne Mosher
“When we began to experience this crisis, it quickly became apparent that our constituents were being overprescribed opioids, and this negligence is what led to the widespread addiction in our community,” Calarco said. “Pharmacies had a responsibility to track the distribution of these medications carefully. Their failure to do so furthered the impact of this crisis by allowing individuals to pharmacy shop to obtain more of these powerful drugs. The pharmaceutical companies and their affiliates knew that they were pushing a highly addictive drug that was unsafe for long-term use. Yet, they proceeded anyway, all in the name of turning a profit.”
He added that while these settlements cannot repair the damage done or bring back those who we lost to the grips of this epidemic, it has already made a substantial impact. Doctors are now prescribing medication differently, and two of the major manufacturers of these dangerous medications will cease production for good.
“With this settlement, we are going to have substantial resources that we’re going to be able to put into this epidemic that’s been plaguing our county for so long, and to be able to make sure that our residents had the ability to get connected to treatment services to prevention services,” Calarco said at last Thursday’s press conference. “There are windows of time, where you have clarity, and you recognize that you need help. … We need to make sure that we have the resources there for you at those windows, so you can take advantage of that help. That’s what this resource guide is about — it’s about making sure that you know where to go.”
Tara Salay at her studio in Setauket. Photo by Rita J. Egan
Tara Salay is a big believer in the natural healing aspects of yoga.
Tara Salay at her studio in Setauket. Photo by Rita J. Egan
The former physical therapist turned yoga instructor specializes in teaching yoga to those with chronic pain and pelvic health issues. Recently, she opened a business in Setauket.
The St. James resident said working as a physical therapist for five years she regularly advised patients with chronic pain and pelvic issues to take yoga classes. Unfortunately, many patients couldn’t find a class that helped them. Before the pandemic, she began to think about opening a yoga studio that would cater to these individuals, but as businesses had to shut their doors due to state mandates, Salay took to the virtual classroom to introduce her business.
“It was the push that I needed in a way because I had all the plans before, and then I was, like, I have the time now let me just do it,” she said.
With COVID-19 restrictions being lifted, Salay eventually was able to rent a space part-time and then a month ago began renting full-time and opened up her studio in the Port Jefferson Chiropractic building on Route 25A near Washington Street. Right now, she doesn’t have a name for the studio and operates under her name. Her goal is “to bring awareness of how yoga can help people who are dealing with chronic conditions.”
Chronic pain and pelvic issues are common. Salay said issues in the pelvic area range from problems for both women and men with the bladder, actual pain in the pelvis, sexual dysfunction or even bowel issues. She added some people will go to physical therapy with pelvic pain and will feel better, but then will face a stressful situation and the issues will return.
“That’s why yoga is really great for it, because it works on the mind-body connection and teaches them how to relax those muscles so they’re not tensing up every time that they’re stressed out,” she said.
“My teacher training was just so transformational for me personally that I just wanted to transition. I just want to dedicate myself to doing yoga. I’ll use my knowledge as a PT but this is what I’m doing now.”
— Tara Salay
The instructor said yoga is more than different poses but also about breathwork and meditation, and many are hesitant because they think they can’t handle the poses, which sometimes look difficult.
“We can make it work for your body,” Salay said. “There’s more to yoga that I think people aren’t aware of, and they think that you have to have a certain body type or be flexible or be able to get into these crazy positions to do yoga, and that’s definitely not true at all.”
With her physical therapy experience, she said she has a deep understanding of the body, and she can guide her clients to help keep them safe. Salay has been practicing yoga for more than 10 years, and when she decided she wanted to open a yoga studio took the classes to become a teacher. Originally, she thought she would incorporate her yoga training into her physical therapy, but the reverse happened.
“My teacher training was just so transformational for me personally that I just wanted to transition,” Salay said. “I just want to dedicate myself to doing yoga. I’ll use my knowledge as a PT but this is what I’m doing now.”
In addition to opening a yoga business, the 30-year-old is planning her wedding to her fiancé, Scott, later this year. She said to balance everything she has some help with planning the wedding that she is keeping on the small side, and she meditates every morning to center herself for the day and stay positive. For those trying to open a new business while juggling life’s responsibilities, she has advice.
“Take one step at a time and have a set schedule and try your best not to overwhelm yourself,” she said. “I was trying to do two blogs a week. I had to do one a week. It was setting my priorities on where I really needed to spend my time and making that clear.”
Currently, Salay offers private lessons or classes for small groups by appointment only. She said, as her clientele grows, she would like to offer set classes targeted toward certain conditions such as pelvic pain or osteoporosis.
The studio is located at 416 Main St., Setauket. Classes are still available online for those who may not be comfortable practicing in public just yet or may not live nearby. For more information, visit her website: drtarasalay.com.
Frederick J. Gumbus “Pop”, 97 years old of Port Jefferson, died May 9.
He was born May 5, 1924, in Stony Brook, the son of Anetah and Joseph Gumbus.
Fred served in the U.S. Navy from 1942-1945 and was stationed in Okinawa. He was a tail gunner who flew a B24 bomber. Fred was a retired machinist – Mill Right for LILCO.Fred was a 73-year member of the Port Jefferson Fire Department, where he was an ex-captain and honorary chief of Hook and Ladder Company 1.
Left to cherish his memory are his daughters Betty and Carol; his sons Fred Jr, John, Henry and Frank; 12 grandchildren; 25 great grandchildren; and many other family and friends.
His parents along with his wife, Geneva, who was his high school sweetheart, preceded him in death. His son Joseph passed away shortly after.
Services were held at Bryant Funeral Home May 16. He was afforded full military honors at Cedar Hill Cemetery in Port Jefferson.
Arrangements were entrusted to the Bryant Funeral Home of Setauket. Visit www.bryantfh.com to sign the online guest book.
A group of gelada monkeys in Ethiopia. Photo from Jacob Feder
By Daniel Dunaief
Timing can mean the difference between life and death for young geladas (an Old World monkey species). Geladas whose fathers remain leaders of a social group for as much as a year or more have a better chance of survival than those whose fathers are displaced by new males under a year after they’re born.
New males who enter a social group can, and often do, kill the young of other males, giving the new male leaders a chance to impregnate the female members of their social group who might otherwise be unable to conceive.
Jacob Feder
The odds of a new male leader killing a young gelada are about 60 percent at birth, compared to closer to 15 percent at around a year of age, according to researchers at Stony Brook University (SBU).
Additionally, pregnant gelada monkeys often spontaneously abort their unborn fetuses once a new male enters the group, as the mother’s hormones cause a miscarriage that enables them to dedicate their resources to the future progeny of the next dominant male.
At the same time, the survival of females depends on becoming a part of a group that is just the right size.
Jacob Feder, a graduate student at SBU, and Amy Lu, Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology in the College of Arts and Sciences at Stony Brook, recently published a paper in Proceedings of the Royal Society B that explores the ideal group size that optimizes the longevity of females and the number of their offspring.
The researchers discovered a Goldilocks effect. By studying the behavioral and group data for over 200 wild geladas over the course of 14 years, they determined that a mid-size group with five to seven females has the greatest benefit for their own fitness and for the survival of their offspring.
“There tends to be a trade off” in the dynamics that affect female geladas in different groups, Feder said. Females in the biggest groups face a higher risk of takeovers and takeover-related infanticide, since males are more likely to try to dominate a part of larger social groups where they have greater reproductive opportunities.
By contrast, individuals in the smaller groups may live on the periphery of a multi-group dynamic. These females are less protected against predators.
In their native Ethiopia, geladas are vulnerable to leopards, hyenas, and jackals, among others.
For the females, the survival of their offspring depends on the ability of males to remain in the group long enough.
“The male turnover is one of the major drivers of their reproductive success,” explained Feder.
Researchers have seen new males enter a group and kill infants born from another father. The infants, for their part, don’t often recognize the need to avoid new males, Lu said.
When males enter big groups, females often have to reset their reproduction.
Groups with about nine to 11 females often split into units of four to seven, Feder said. A new male might become the leader for half of the females, leaving the remaining male with the other half. Alternatively, new males may take over each group.
The pregnant females who are part of a group with a new male will spontaneously abort their offspring about 80 percent of the time, as females “cut their losses,” Feder said
About 38 percent of females live in a mid-sized group that is close to optimum size.
Gelada charm
According to Feder and Wu, geladas are a compelling species to research, Feder and Wu said.
Feder found his visits to the East African nation rewarding, especially when he had the opportunity to watch a small female named Crimson.
An important part of daily life for these primates involves grooming, where primates comb through each other’s hair, remove insects and, in many cases, eat them.
Crimson, who was a younger member of the group when Feder started observing geladas, didn’t have much grooming experience with this activity. Instead of running her hands over the body of her grooming partner, she focused on her mouth. Her partner’s wide eyes reflected surprise at the unusual grooming choice.
One of the favorites for Lu was a monkey who has since passed away named Vampire. A part of the V group, Vampire was taller and bigger than most adult females. She displaced male geladas, some of whom were larger than she, almost as often as they displaced her.
“If you go out in the field enough, you know the individuals pretty well,” Lu said. “They all have their own personalities. Some of them walk in a different way and react to situations differently.”
A resident of Centereach, Feder grew up in northern Connecticut, attending Wesleyan University as an undergraduate, where he majored in music and biology. A bass guitar player, Feder said he “dabbles in anything with strings.”
In fourth grade, Feder read a biography of Dian Fossey, which sparked his interest in biology.
While he has yet to combine his musical and science interests with geladas, Feder said these monkeys have a large vocabulary that is almost as big as chimpanzees.
Lu, meanwhile, started studying geladas as a postdoctoral researcher. They’re a great study species that allow scientists to ask compelling questions about reproductive strategies. “At any point, you can follow 20 social groups,” Lu said.
Lu, whose two children are four years old and 16 months old, said she has observed the similarities between human and non-human primate young.
“Babies throw tantrums, whether it is my child or a gelada infant protesting being put on the ground,” she described in an email. Gelada infants use a sad “cooing” sound. Sometimes, the sad cooing sound is real and sometimes “they just get what they want.”
Frederick J. Gumbus “Pop”, 97 years old of Port Jefferson, died May 9.
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