Pal-O-Mine Equestrian, Inc. in Islandia, a private, not for profit organization providing a comprehensive therapeutic equine program using horses to facilitate growth, learning and healing for children and adults with disabilities, has announced that it is opening up its Frontline Heroes Wellness Program, initially developed for medical professionals and first responders, to all Long Islanders grappling with the impacts of the pandemic.
Photo from Pal-O-Mine
This includes those who have lost a loved one and anyone who could benefit from participating in some of the program’s various well-being activities.
The Frontline Heroes Wellness Program, which was introduced in May 2020 at the height of the pandemic in New York, includes both virtual and in-person wellness sessions at Pal-O-Mine’s 13-acre working farm. These sessions include reiki, mindfulness, and a wide range of experiences with Pal-O-Mine’s horses and other animals that live on the farm. All sessions are facilitated by licensed social workers, reiki masters and certified equine specialists. The sessions are free through April 30, 2021.
“The benefits of being in nature have been well-documented and include reduced stress and an imparting of calm, connection and solace. It also has been proven that animals and nature together help lower heart rate, blood pressure and muscle tension,” said Pal-O-Mine Founder and CEO Lisa Gatti. “We are proud to be able to support our fellow Long Islanders as, together, we all strive for a return to normal and well-being.”
For more information on Pal-O-Mine or this Grief Program, visit:www.pal-o-mine.org or call, JoAnn Woodruff, Office Manager, at 631-348-1389.
Boomer and Dawson, two resident horses at Pal-O-Mine
Pal-O-Mine Equestrian in Islandia, a private, not for profit organization providing a comprehensive therapeutic equine program using horses to facilitate growth, learning and healing for children and adults with disabilities, is looking to generous and animal loving Long Islanders to help it raise funds to feed its herd over this winter. The organization is looking to raise $6,000 to help cover the cost of hay bales.
Pal-O-Mine’s herd, which includes 22 horses, eats 10 bales of hay each day. Each bale weighs 50 lbs. and costs $10, making Pal-O-Mine’s monthly hay bill $3,000.By helping the organization raise $6,000, this expense will be covered through March 31st.
To show your support, please send a check in any amount made payable to: Pal-O-Mine Equestrian, 829 Old Nichol Road, Islandia, NY 11749 or visit the organization’s website and make a secure donation at: https://pal-o-mine.org/donate/25th-anniversary-fund/?blm_aid=0
About Pal-O-Mine
Founded in 1995 by Lisa Gatti, Pal-O-Mine is a private, not for profit organization providing a comprehensive therapeutic equine program using horses to facilitate growth, learning and healing for children and adults with disabilities, as well as those who have been abused or neglected, veterans and the economically compromised. Pal-O-Mine offers a broad range of programs many of which involve the organization’s herd of therapy horses and livestock. Pal-O-Mine relies on grants and contributions from private citizens, foundations and businesses to help raise funds. For more information on Pal-O-Mine, visit:www.pal-o-mine.org or call: 631-348-1389.
The Gentlemen’s Driving Park is currently overgrown and hidden, but will soon be restored.
Photo by Elana Glowatz
By Elana Glowatz
Officials are on track to restore a piece of Long Island history, bringing an abandoned and forgotten horse-racing site back to life.
The Cumsewogue Historical Society has a ticket to the Gentlemen’s Driving Park from July 4, 1892. Photo by Elana Glowatz
Brookhaven Town finished purchasing a swath of wooded land off of Canal Road in Terryville at the end of 2013, after Cumsewogue Historical Society President Jack Smith discovered the faint outline of the horse track and dug up information about what was once called the Gentlemen’s Driving Park. The town now owns the entire 11-acre site.
Today it’s an overgrown path hidden among trees, but the Gentlemen’s Driving Park used to be a place where Victorian Era bettors watched men race around the half-mile loop — counterclockwise — behind horses in carts called sulkies. It was part of a circuit of harness racing tracks in the Northeast, according to Smith, but likely fell into neglect with the rise of the automobile.
But cars have also helped keep the track viable: Smith previously reported that at least through the mid-1950s, kids raced jalopies around the track, preventing it from becoming completely overgrown.
Smith said on Monday the effort to restore and preserve the track is moving slowly, but there has been progress since the town finished acquiring the property. There are plans in place to clear the track to about 20 feet wide, although leaving larger trees in place, and to move up the southern curve of the oval, he said.
Jack Smith takes a closer look at a wrecked car on the Gentlemen’s Driving Park track around the time he first discovered the forgotten historical spot. Photo by Elana Glowatz
Currently, a small PSEG Long Island facility cuts into that southern tip. Rather than moving the facility or leaving the track incomplete, the town would retrace that small section of track, slightly shortening the loop but completing the oval so as to make a walkable path for visitors.
“The town is in the process of working on the track to restore the track as closely to the original footprint as possible,” Councilwoman Valerie Cartright (D-Port Jefferson Station) said in a statement this week. “There will be some adjustments needed and the town is actively working on that.”
If all goes according to plan, the councilwoman said, the restored track could open late in the summer or early in the fall.
“The important thing is that it will be an oval,” Smith said Monday. “We want to keep some of the historical integrity.”
His goal is to put informational signs around the track that will teach people about its history.
The Gentlemen’s Driving Park is currently overgrown and hidden, but will soon be restored. Photo by Elana Glowatz
The driving park was adjacent to well-known horse trainer Robert L. Davis’ Comsewogue stables, now the Davis Professional Park. After hearing rumors of such a track in Terryville, Smith discovered it by looking at an aerial image of the neighborhood taken during the winter, when the foliage was less dense. He saw the faint shape in the woods near Canal Road and went walking in to find it. Since that visit, he has uncovered a broken pair of Victorian-era field glasses near the finish line on the track’s west side, which may have been dropped and trampled. He also has a ticket from a racing event on July 4. 1892.
Once restoration work is completed, Cartright said the town hopes to work with the historical society and the community “to hold a kickoff event to highlight the track and its history.”
For his part, the historical society president has said he would like to hold a fair in which people will re-enact the late 1800s horse races with vintage sulkies or participate in a carriage parade.
“We can’t be happier that it’s been preserved,” Smith said.
Port Jefferson was crawling with costumed characters and Christmas spirit on Saturday and Sunday for the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival.
Residents and visitors took rides on horse-drawn carriages, met Santa Claus, heard music from the 19th century and checked out a puppet parade.
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A horse-drawn carriage takes people for a ride at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. File photo by Bob Savage
Costumed characters horse around at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
An old-fashioned carriage rides down Port Jefferson's East Main Street at the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Gin Albinson, a Port Jefferson resident, poses in front of Wonderland at the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Dickens characters hang out in front of Danfords at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival is a good time for a marshmallow roast, with Claudette Houasse and Jeff Bender coming all the way from Connecticut. Photo by Bob Savage
Wooden soldiers stand guard over someone eating an ice cream at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Children sing Christmas carols in downtown Port Jefferson at the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
A Dickens character gets cute at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Shine studio dancers boogie at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Costumed women sing Christmas carols at the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival in Port Jefferson. Photo by Bob Savage
People line up to enter the Dickens house at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
A young boy meets a horse at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Sweet Melody Music Studio performers entertain guests at the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival in Port Jefferson. Photo by Bob Savage
The Island Christian Church in Port Jefferson is the spot to hear 19th century music at the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Port Jefferson is hopping with Dickens spirit at the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Santa Claus greets kids on Main Street in Port Jefferson at the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
The Punch and Judy puppet show entertains kids at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
A weaving demonstration gets the party started at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Allison Petrullo, a 9-year-old from Massapequa, makes a candle at the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival in Port Jefferson. Photo by Bob Savage
Teddy McDowell, a 5-year-old South Setauket resident, learns about brewing beer at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Ice skaters crowd the rink at the Village Center at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Dickens characters take a stroll during the puppet parade in Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
A bobby strides through the puppet parade at Port Jefferson's 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival. Photo by Bob Savage
Santa Claus waves to the crowd during the 20th annual Charles Dickens Festival in Port Jefferson. Photo by Bob Savage
Three horses reportedly found ‘emaciated and sick’
One of the horses is so sick, its ribs are visible through the skin. Photo from Suffolk SPCA
The Suffolk County SPCA has charged a Hauppauge woman with animal cruelty after her horses were found to be emaciated and sick.
Helen Malazzo. Photo from Suffolk SPCA
SPCA Chief Roy Gross said that Helen Malazzo, 61, of Hauppauge, kept three horses at a boarding facility at 193 South St., Manorville, that had no running water on the property. After being examined by a veterinarian, one of the horses was found to be so sick and emaciated that he wasn’t sure it would survive without immediate veterinary care, Gross said. The other two horses were also allegedly neglected.
Gross also said that the SPCA seized all three horses and they are now in foster care receiving the proper attention. Malazzo returns to First District Court in Central Islip on Oct. 5.
Gross asked the public to help cover the veterinary care for the three horses by making donations to the Suffolk County SPCA. All donations are tax deductible to the extend permitted by law.
One of the Kaeli Kramer Foundation’s horses that lives at Brookhaven’s Wildlife and Ecology Center. File photo
Brookhaven’s Wildlife and Ecology Center in Holtsville and the Kaeli Kramer Foundation will host a 5-kilometer walkathon on Saturday, April 25, to help care for rescued horses.
Registration, which costs $20 per person, begins at 9 a.m., and the walk kicks off at 10 a.m. Individuals, families, or teams that raise $50 and more do not have to pay the registration fee. Prizes for most enthusiastic walker, creative team and money raised will be awarded. There will also be entertainment, such as raffles, Help-a-Horse puppet show and face painting.
The Kaeli Kramer Foundation, which houses unwanted horses and provides humane education classes at the center, is competing for one of five $10,000 grants from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
For more information, or to pre-register for the event, visit www.kaelikramerfoundation.org/pledge or call 516-443-9861. A rain date is set for April 26.
Instructors and riders from The Knox School’s Interscholastic Equestrian Association team. Photo from Virginia Riccardi
Despite extreme weather and limited practice time, the Knox School’s Interscholastic Equestrian Association team displayed grit and determination on Sunday, March 1st in the Regional Finals qualifier at Island Hills Stables in Middle Island.
Knox riders from all across the North Shore competed in regionals.
Gabrielle Schneider and Julia Russo both placed 6th in their team classes. Grace Hayden came in 4th in her team class and 4th in her individual class, and Nicolette Lombardi placed 5th in her team class and 2nd in her individual class.
The 2nd place award for Lombardi made her eligible for the Zone II semi-finals at Alfred University on March 15th, where she was the first rider for Knox to qualify for Zones.
“Nicolette is an exceptional equestrian and lacrosse player and has been riding at Knox for over four years in our Community Riding Program and our camp equestrian programs,” Debbie Moore, Knox’s equestrian program director and instructor, said. “We are all so very proud of her.”
Other regional participants were Kyle Persaud, Madison Licalzi, Heather Feiganbaum and Casey Sherlock.
A ticket to a race at the Gentlemen’s Driving Park in Terryville on July 4, 1892. Photo by Elana Glowatz
Long Island’s last harness horse racing track is a step closer to being preserved, after the Brookhaven Town Board voted last week to spend $1.18 million from its land acquisition fund to purchase almost 6 acres of land at the site in Terryville.
Once the town closes on that property, it will own the entirety of the 11-acre plot off Canal Road at Morgan Avenue, less than half a mile east of Route 347.
The Gentlemen’s Driving Park is now an overgrown path in the woods, but during the Victorian Era it was a place where bettors gathered as men raced the half-mile loop counterclockwise behind their horses in carts called sulkies. The track, which was part of a circuit of harness racing tracks in the Northeast, was adjacent to the Comsewogue stables, which were owned by well-known area horse trainer Robert L. Davis and are now the Davis Professional Park.
Now that the town is acquiring the rest of the site, Cumsewogue Historical Society President Jack Smith said in a phone interview last Thursday that he would like to partner with the parks department to clear the track and he would like to “develop programs and events that are appropriate for the site to educate” visitors. He gave examples of placing signs around the track detailing its history so that people may learn while walkingaround it, and holding an annual fair with vintage sulkies re-enacting the horse races from the late 1800s or participating in a carriage parade.
Councilman Steve Fiore-Rosenfeld, who was a driving force behind the site’s acquisition, said last Thursday that preserving the track is important from an environmental standpoint as well — maintaining open space helps replenish the underground aquifer from where the area gets its drinking water.
Councilman Steve Fiore-Rosenfeld and Cumsewogue Historical Society President Jack Smith on a recent trip to the Gentlemen’s Driving Park in Terryville. Photo by Elana Glowatz
In addition to working with the historical society to preserve the track, the councilman said he would like to see a stewardship agreement with the Woodcrest Estates apartments, which abut the property. Fiore-Rosenfeld said the senior residents could use the track, “a relatively tranquil place,” to go for walks without having to go into the street.
Smith discovered the Gentlemen’s Driving Park a few years ago using Google Earth. He said in a previous interview that he had heard rumors of a racing track in the area, and while looking at the aerial view of Terryville he saw a faint oval shape in the woods off Canal Road. The next day he was walking on the 25-foot-wide path in the woods.
The track is mostly whole — a Long Island Power Authority right-of-way cuts into its southwestern curve.
The historical society president reached out to Fiore-Rosenfeld and the two have since worked together to preserve the site.
“This was not some backwoods, good ol’ boy, local kind of thing. This was a big deal for its time,” Smith said last winter, as the town was still working to acquire the rest of the property. He called it the NASCAR of its day and said, “This was an era when the horse was king. The horse was everything to everyone,” including transportation, sport and work.
The historian has uncovered a few artifacts, including a pair of Victorian-era field glasses near the finish line on the track’s west side. They were broken, likely after being dropped and trampled. Smith also has a ticket from a July 4, 1892.
Ironically, the rise of the automobile likely caused the track’s demise, but cars also helped preserve the track so it could be discovered today. According to Smith, local kids raced jalopies at least through the mid-1950s, which prevented the track from becoming completely overgrown. Those kids left signs of their activities — around the track there are rusty frames of wrecked cars.
“Maybe we should keep one there as a monument,” Smith said last Thursday, with a laugh. “In a strange way we owe a lot to those kids.”
Past Councilman Steve Fiore-Rosenfeld and Cumsewogue Historical Society President Jack Smith on a recent trip to the Gentlemen’s Driving Park in Terryville. File photo by Elana Glowatz
It’s been some 130 years, but the half-mile loop the horses raced is still visible, though it’s coated in layers of leaves.
The path in the woods is all that remains of the Gentlemen’s Driving Park in Terryville, where local bettors once gathered to watch men race in carts called sulkies behind horses, or compete on bicycles or even on foot.
Cumsewogue Historical Society President Jack Smith said the track is one of the last known of its kind in the Northeast. He discovered the hidden gem a couple of years ago using Google Earth: After hearing rumors that such a track existed off Canal Road, Smith looked at an aerial view of the hamlet and quickly noticed a faint oval shape cut into the woods. He visited the spot with his wife, Pam, the next day and walked the length of the track.
Brookhaven Town has already acquired about half of the 11-acre plot since Smith alerted Councilman Steve Fiore-Rosenfeld about the track and an effort to preserve it began two years ago. Fiore-Rosenfeld (D-East Setauket) said the other half is owned entirely or almost entirely by one family, and the town is discussing an acquisition with them so it can preserve the site.
Starting in the 1880s, horses would race in heats throughout an entire afternoon at the Terryville site and the attendees would gamble modest amounts. The horses would take a few minutes to go counterclockwise twice around the half-mile track, which was part of a larger circuit of driving parks. It was adjacent to the Comsewogue stables, of which Robert L. Davis, a well-known area horse trainer, took ownership. The stables are now the Davis Professional Park.
“This was not some backwoods, good ol’ boy, local kind of thing. This was a big deal for its time,” Smith said. He called it the NASCAR of its day and said, “This was an era when the horse was king. The horse was everything to everyone,” including transportation, sport and work.
A ticket to a race at the Gentlemen’s Driving Park in Terryville on July 4, 1892. Photo by Elana Glowatz
Eventually, however, the excitement petered out — the automobile was likely the track’s downfall.
“People were more enamored and more excited with racing automobiles than they were with racing horses,” Smith said.
At least through the mid-1950s, local kids raced jalopies around the 25-foot-wide track, which helped preserve it, preventing it from becoming completely overgrown.
“A lot of this has just been pure luck,” Smith said, referring to the fact that the track was still visible and he was able to find it. He pointed out that if the Google Earth satellite image had been taken not in the winter but during the summer, when the trees had leaves, he would not have been able to see through them to the track beaten into the ground and would not have known it was there.
It was also by luck that Smith found a pair of Victorian-era field glasses. He had been searching for horseshoes with a metal detector near the finish line on the west side of the track when he came upon them. They were broken, likely dropped near the finish line and trampled.
Smith said he cleaned them using toothbrushes and compressed air.
Other artifacts he has are a ticket from a July 4, 1892, race and news articles that mention the track. He does not have photos of the track in use, but he believes they are out there somewhere.
Fiore-Rosenfeld said during a visit to the track that one reason he is interested in preserving the driving park is to make a place where residents can recreate. With it abutting the Woodcrest Estates apartments, he said, it is a natural place to create a public space.
The councilman said, “It’s a miracle that it’s still here” and it’s mostly whole.
In addition to the track being overgrown, a Long Island Power Authority right of way cuts into its southwestern curve. Hurricane Sandy also tore some trees out of the ground, so there are a few obstacles in the way of those who wish to walk it.
As the town waits to acquire the remainder of the track to ensure its future, Smith pieces together its history. A stump could have been part of a guard rail on the border of the track and the infield — inside the racing loop — was clear of trees so viewers could see across to the other side.
It’s hard to picture the Victorian-era scene, Smith said, “but these were local guys and horse racing was their passion.”
