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John Kennedy

By Aramis Khosronejad

At the historic Bethel Hobbs Community Farm, the last standing farm in Centereach, the 9th annual 4-mile Run the Farm event was held Saturday, Aug. 12. 

The run, initially created to help support the farm and its mission of supplying organic food to food pantries, has become an eclectic event for the local area, featuring participants who are competitive runners to casual strollers. 

Ann Pellegrino, president of the community farm, took pride in the success of the farm and the run. “The more hands we have, the more mouths we can feed,” she said. “It’s a community effort. Every year we’re just growing and growing.”

The run was originally an idea introduced by Brookhaven Town Clerk Kevin LaValle (R), who represented the area in District 3 on the Town Board from 2013 to 2023. Amid some financial struggles nine years ago, LaValle proposed organizing a run to raise money and introduced it to Pellegrino.

The farm “isn’t just something to remember our history by, but also something the community can rally behind and the mission of Hobbs Farm,” LaValle said. 

As a native of the hamlet, LaValle referred to Hobbs Farm as “the centerpiece of Centereach.” The run has been growing in popularity with each passing year. Now, it’s become a local staple.

“The run brings more awareness,” Pellegrino said. “It helps spread the word of what we’re doing, and people get interested.”

Town Councilman Neil Manzella (R-Selden) added to this sentiment. He attended the family-friendly event with his two children, who participated in the fun-run race. “For me, it’s about showing my kids what a community should be,” he said.

The event was replete with food stands and other activities. Suffolk County Comptroller John M. Kennedy (R) and his wife, county Legislator Leslie Kennedy (R-Nesconset), also joined the fun.

“We’ve attended many of the runs and also been here for some of the other events they host,” John Kennedy said, noting how much he and his family appreciate community events such as the run. He added that Hobbs Farm represents a “hidden jewel here in Centereach.”

Since 2008, Peter Castorano has been a member of Hobbs Farm as a volunteer, caretaker and tenant. Pellegrino considers him part of the farm family. 

“To work with Ann is great,” Castorano said. “She’s a superwoman, always doing something.” 

While reminiscing over how Hobbs Farm started, they began talking of the Rev. Gregory Leonard. While trying to persuade the Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, which owns the property, to let her use the land for farming, Pellegrino got help from Leonard. 

“We all just became family,” Pellegrino remembered. She said she became very close with him and his late wife, Sandra Leonard. 

The Rev. Leonard retired in 2021 from the Bethel AME Church in Setauket. He remarked on what Hobbs Farm symbolizes for him. “It’s the church and the community working together to create something,” he said.

Bethel Hobbs Farm holds a rich history. The previous owner was Alfred Hobbs, and the farm had been passed down through his family for generations. According to Leonard, who knew Hobbs passingly, he was “a man involved with his community.” 

Castorano spoke of Hobbs’ passion for his family land and how defiant he was against the farm being sold. As a result, the farmland lay dormant and unused for a few years until Pellegrino began her mission. 

“Years ago, I was a single mom with three kids,” Pellegrino explained, reflecting upon her incentives for beginning this project. “I was working two jobs. … There were times when I had to go to food pantries to feed my kids.” 

Now, Hobbs Farm itself supports and supplies over 15 food pantries with nutritious and organic produce, feeding local families in need.

Suffolk County Comptroller John Kennedy, above. Photo by Rita J. Egan

The comptroller’s seat is not the glamor position of the county government. Yet, it is an important office that demands our respect and interest. TBR News Media supports Kennedy’s reelection campaign this November.

Having faith that the officials will handle our tax dollars responsibly lies at the core of what it means to participate in representative government. Administrative in its nature, the comptroller’s office conducts financial monitoring and audits, among several other essential tasks. 

Kennedy appreciates this responsibility. He embraces it fully and carries enthusiasm and focus into that office which we can respect and admire.

Having served in the post for two terms, he has the experience and institutional insight to execute his duties well. He brings to the comptroller’s office a firm understanding of finance and a knowledge of the law rooted in his background as a lawyer.

In his interview with TBR News Media, Kennedy warned of possibly serious financial strife by 2024. If an economic downtown is in the cards for Suffolk County residents, then it is in our interest that our comptroller understands the office and can adapt it to meet the needs of the changing circumstances.

Finally, Kennedy outlined his “nuts and bolts” political philosophy, arguing that politicians often ignore the most pressing issues due to partisanship and tribalism. We agree with this assessment and ask that he continues to apply this approach, keeping the county government running smoothly.

We appreciate Kennedy’s openness, eagerness to express himself and desire to serve. In this year’s election for Suffolk County Comptroller, TBR News Media strongly supports John M. Kennedy Jr. for reelection.

Suffolk County Comptroller John Kennedy Jr. (R) and his wife Legislator Leslie Kennedy (R-Nesconset). Photo by Kyle Barr

Less than a month ago, Suffolk County Comptroller John Kennedy Jr. (R) was still debating whether he would run this year for Suffolk County executive. 

On Feb. 11, Kennedy stood shoulder to shoulder with other top Republican leaders to announce his running for the top county office.

“None of us forgets who we work for, and that’s the taxpayer,” Kennedy said. “We will stop the hemorrhaging, stop the bleeding. We will cut up the credit cards, start to pay our debts and bring life back to Suffolk County.”

John Kennedy Jr. (R) points to the county’s loss in bond rating. Photo by Kyle Barr

Kennedy, along with other county Republicans, has been consistent in attacking county Executive Steve Bellone (R) for the current state of the county’s finances, pointing to a drop in bond rating from A3 to Baa1 on the Moody Rating Scale since 2015. In a Jan. 31 article by TBR News Media, Eric Naughton, Suffolk’s budget director, said while the county’s bond rating has dropped, Kennedy was “overstating” the impact. He went on to say Moody’s, which gives the bond grades to municipalities, was only looking at the past and not the future. 

Kennedy has called for a 90-day top to bottom look at the county’s offices to see which ones can be pruned, which employees can be shuffled around and what belts can be tightened. He also called for an end to excessive spending, while cutting county fees and reducing the size of the county’s red light camera program. He said he was especially concerned with delays in payment to public employees and to contractors.

“We don’t pay our daycare providers on time, we don’t pay anybody on time,” the comptroller said. “We make them all our bank.”

John Jay LaValle, the Suffolk County Republican committee chairman, said during a phone interview the party is throwing its weight behind the current county comptroller. So far two other Republicans have announced their candidacy, including Legislator Rob Trotta (R-Fort Salonga). LaValle said former police officer Larry Zacarese, who previously ran for Suffolk County sheriff in 2017, was also considering running on the Republican ticket. 

The Republican committee chairman said he would ask the current candidates to sit down and work out their differences, saying a primary could do damage to the party’s chance to win.

“If we do a primary, we give the executive seat to Bellone,” LaValle said.

Kennedy announced his plan to run for office at the H. Lee Dennison Building in Hauppauge, surrounded by U.S. Reps. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) and Peter King (R-Seaford), along with many other elected Republicans. King ran again for his position alongside Kennedy in the 2018 electoral season.

“If we do a primary, we give the executive seat to Bellone.”

— John Jay Lavalle

“He ran us all into the ground — I’ve never seen a harder working campaigner,” King said.

Trotta said during a phone interview he would be willing to sit down with Kennedy and the Republican leadership, potentially to drop his candidacy if he agrees with what he hears.

“I welcome John Kennedy to the race, this is what democracy is all about, and no one knows more than John about what a financial mess the Bellone administration has created,” Trotta said.

Kennedy has worked in public office for years, working with current Brookhaven town supervisor Ed Romaine (R) when he was county clerk before being elected to the Suffolk County Legislature in 2004. He then later ran for and was elected to the Suffolk County comptroller position in 2014, boasting at the time he was vastly outspent by his opponent on the campaign trail.

Bellone’s office came out the gate swinging as Kennedy’s candidacy was announced.

“No one has opposed government reform or voted to increase spending and debt more than John Kennedy,” said Bellone spokesperson Jason Elan in a press release. 

“Under [Bellone’s] watch, I have seen red light cameras pop up over intersection after intersection, finding new ways to put their hands in their pockets,” Zeldin said during Kennedy’s campaign announcement.

Kennedy was also joined by his wife Legislator Leslie Kennedy (R-Nesconset), who is running again this year for re-election. Both husband and wife said partially it took so long for him to announce his candidacy because of the concern one’s campaign fight could affect the other’s.

“It was a weighing process for both of us,” Legislator Kennedy said. “It’s about what he can do to make it better here so that everybody can afford to stay.”