Pictured from left, Three Village Historical Society Executive Director Mari Irizarry, NYS Assemblywoman Rebecca Kassay and The Long Island Museum of American Art, History & Carriages Co-Executive Director Joshua Ruff
New York State Assemblywoman Rebecca Kassay, her staff members, Long Island Museum staff and board members, and fellow government representatives gathered with members of the community at The Long Island Museum in Stony Brook on Thursday, May 15, for a special “Meet Your Elected Officials” event.
This event was coordinated by Assemblywoman Kassay’s office and the Long Island Museum, and was held in conjunction with the museum’s exhibition, Building the Ballot Box: Long Island’s Democratic History, which is part of the Agora New York Voices and Votes project. The exhibit, which explores the history of American democracy, was on display at the museum through May 18.
Suffolk County Legislator Steve Englebright and NYS Assemblywoman Rebecca Kassay.
The event provided attendees with an opportunity to engage directly with local elected officials, including Assemblywoman Rebecca Kassay and Suffolk County Legislator Steve Englebright, while reflecting on the significant role Long Island played in the development of American democracy. Assemblywoman Kassay formally invited local legislative representatives— from the town, county, state, and federal government positions to participate or send staff to table at this event.
“My staff and I are grateful for the Long Island Museum’s collaboration in coordinating such a meaningful event. It was a perfect opportunity to connect with our community and celebrate our shared history,” said Assemblywoman Rebecca Kassay. “This exhibition not only highlights the rich democratic heritage of Long Island but also encourages active civic participation. It was truly a pleasure to engage with the community, offer them resources, and discuss how we can continue to work together for a better future.”
“It was wonderful to be able to join Assemblywoman Rebecca Kassay to greet members of the public at the Long Island Museum against the backdrop of their extraordinary exhibition Building the Ballot Box: Long Island’s Democratic History,” said Suffolk County Legislator Steve Englebright. “It was a privilege to welcome our contemporary voters in the presence of paintings by William Sidney Mount that depict citizens practicing democracy in our community more than 150 years ago.”
“The Museum has been proud to host the Voices and Votes and Building the Ballot Box exhibitions and we so appreciate Assemblywoman Kassay and her office for planning this great forum for conversation with the community, which offered people a relaxed chance to enjoy the project in its final days,” shared Joshua Ruff, The Long Island Museum of American Art, History & Carriages Co-Executive Director
The Building the Ballot Box exhibition is a traveling project that explores the history of voting rights and the democratic process, with stops at 12 museums throughout New York State through 2026. The exhibit highlights the critical role of voting and civic engagement in shaping American society.
For more information, please call Assemblywoman Kassay’s office at 631-751-3094.
'The Mount House', 1854 by William Sidney Mount (1807-1868),
The Long Island Museum of American Art, History, & Carriages. Bequest of Ward Melville, 1977.
By TBR Staff
Art, history, and giving align for a fun time at Long Island Museum’s Mount House (c. 1725) Summer Soirée fundraiser on Saturday, June 7, from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The evening will feature live music by Johnny Cuomo, craft cocktails and delicious food provided by Bliss Restaurant, a 50/50 raffle, and live painting by LIM Development associate Danielle Reischman.
“Our ability to do good programs, important lectures, great exhibitions, all the things people know us for and want to come to visit us for, rely on nights like this one. When you buy a ticket to an event like this, you support the museum and everything we do,” LIM’s Co-Executive Director Joshua Ruff said.
Ticket holders will have the rare opportunity to take part in a guided tour of the first floor of the Mount House in Stony Brook on June 7. Photo courtesy of LIM
Sponsored by Long Island Tent, M&V Limousines Ltd., Pindar Vineyards, and Carol and John Lane, guests will meet at the Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook and then travel by shuttle bus to the the grounds of the historic Mount House, home to American genre painter William Sidney Mount (1807-1868) as well as generations of of his artistically-inclined family.
LIM staff will lead guided tours of the home’s first floor throughout the evening.
“Most of the current footprint of the house was completed by the time that William Sidney Mount’s grandfather Jonas Hawkins (1752-1817) renovated and extended it by the early 19th century,” Ruff said.
Although the house does not contain any original early artifacts or furniture, it does still boast the small markings that Mount painted on the side of the kitchen fireplace’s mantel.
Additionally for one night only, artwork and other materials from LIM’s archives, the largest repository of Mount artifacts in the world, will be on display.
“This is a great opportunity for people to see the inside of the [Mount] house, a community and historical treasure in our own backyard. Having all the resources related to Mount in archives and art collection, it is a good chance to tell the story in full,” Ruff said.
That narrative incorporates not only W.S. Mount, but his relatives: brother Shepard Alonzo Mount and niece Evelina Mount, both of whom were artists in their own rights. Some of their work will be included in the showcase.
The Mount family, particularly William, maintained strong personal and artistic ties to the Three Villages. Many of his famous works— Left and Right, The Power of Music, Long Island Farmhouses — feature local people and places, forever immortalized through his painting.
Mount’s art gives a sense of community that transcends time. The LIM strives to offer a community — one that fosters education, enrichment, an appreciation of art, and an insight into our past.
In an effort to support these endeavors, the LIM has a number of fundraisers throughout its fiscal year. Among them are a winter gala in November and an upcoming spring golf classic, held on Monday, May 19, at St. George’s Golf and Country Club in East Setauket. The format of its third major fundraiser, generally held in June, varies.
Such overtures are now particularly necessary and significant.
“It’s a challenging fundraising environment for all cultural arts institutions and nonprofits across the country. The type of work and programming and exhibitions that we bring to the community are things that people cannot get anywhere else,” LIM’s Co-Executive Director Sarah Abruzzi said.
LIM’s $134,000 Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant was recently terminated by the federal government, potentially critically hampering its ability to create a new exhibit. The grant was supposed to support Riding Towards Justice, an interactive, immersive, accessible exhibition designed around the circa 1885 street car in the carriage museum, as well as an interpretative plan to teach people about transportation.
“Receiving the termination letter was obviously a blow,” Ruff said. “We believe in making the carriage museum a more accessible place for visitors. We are redoubling our commitment to being the best place we can be for the public…we rely on support, we need our community to come together and help us, and this is one of the ways that they can.”
This symbiotic relationship with its patrons allows the museum to develop engaging, unique programs and exhibitions that enrich and inspire visitors. The Summer Soirée is one way for people to contribute to the continuation of LIM’s services.
“It is an opportunity for everyone to get together to focus on the things that are good in the world, to spend some time learning more about local history, and a really important American artist. We are doing something great for and with the community,” Abruzzi said.
Tickets, which must be purchased in advance, are $125 each. Sponsorships are also still available. For more information or to RSVP, visit www.longislandmuseum.org.
The newly naturalized citizens with their certificates. Photo by William Stieglitz
From left, LIM co-executive director Joshua Ruff, Judge Bianco, Judge Choudhury, Judge Wicks (speaking), Judge Bulsara, Judge Scarcella. Photo by William Stieglitz
The presentation of the colors, by members of the Stony Brook and Nesconset fire departments. Photo by William Stieglitz
The new citizens with their friends and families. Photo by William Stieglitz
The new citizens after being naturalized. Photo by William Stieglitz
Gelinas students Jordan and Ada singing the national anthem, with the presentation of the colors behind them. Photo by William Stieglitz
Dr. Rahul Tripathi (Behind him, L to R_ Judge Bianco, Judge Choudhury, Judge Bulsara, Judge Scarcella). Photo by William Stieglitz
2nd Circuit Judge Joseph Bianco speaking to the crowd. Photo by William Stieglitz
Attendees taking the Naturalization Oath. Photo by William Stieglitz
Gelinas Student String Quintet. Photo by William Stieglitz
By William Stieglitz
Fifty citizenship candidates originating from 29 countries gathered with their families at Stony Brook’s Long Island Museum to be naturalized as U.S. citizens the morning of May 7. The countries of origin spanned five continents, including nations such as Ecuador, Israel, Nigeria and Taiwan.
The idea to hold the ceremony at the museum began with its new Building the Ballot Box exhibit, which chronicles the history of democracy on Long Island. “That project really was something that got us thinking about the possibility,” explained LIM co-executive director Joshua Ruff, noting that the Eastern District Court had held similar ceremonies at Sagamore Hill and Fire Island National Seashore. The museum then worked with the district court, alongside the Honorable Robert A. Katzmann Justice for All: Courts and the Community Initiative and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to bring the event to fruition.
The ceremony, held on the lawn outside the carriage exhibit, began with the “presentation of the colors” for the American flag by members of the Stony Brook and Nesconset fire departments, followed by Paul J. Gelinas Junior High students singing the national anthem. A student string quintet, also from Gelinas, provided further music throughout the ceremony led by Magistrate Judge James Wicks.
Judge Wicks led the group in the call and response of the naturalization oath. The event featured four other judges, including Judge Sanket Bulsara, who led the group in the Pledge of Allegiance; Judges Nusrat Choudhury and Louis Scarcella, who distributed the naturalization certificates; and Second Circuit Judge Joseph Bianco, who attended as the keynote speaker.
Bianco told the new citizens that this ceremony was not about them losing their connections to their countries of origin, but about adding something new. “You should always hold close to your hearts your native land, its people [and] its customs… that is an extremely important part of who you are deep in your soul.” He emphasized that they should regard the United States as being as much their country as anyone else’s. “Don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise. As of this day, your citizenship stands equal to that of every single other American.”
He encouraged attendees to become active citizens by voting in elections and aiding those less fortunate. “The truest measure of what we would call a great nation,” he said, “is how that nation treats those who are most in need — the most vulnerable, the most voiceless among all of us.” The League of Women Voters was in attendance as volunteers and said they registered about 20 people to vote.
Bianco, lastly, related his own family’s history of immigration, telling the stories of how his grandfather immigrated from Italy in the 1920s to pursue a better life, and how one of the newest members of his family, his 11-year-old son George, was adopted from China. “He’s a naturalized citizen just like you.”
Bianco elaborated on the opportunity the country gave him, and said, ”This nation provides a path for its citizens willing to take the freedom and opportunity bestowed upon them, work hard, and then watch their world light up,” he said as the clouds that had hovered all morning parted above the crowd. “Just like that sun.”
The event’s final speaker was one of the 50 newly naturalized citizens himself, Dr. Rahul Tripathi. A physician from Stony Brook Hospital, he spoke about how he immigrated from India when he was just 11 months old. “I grew up entirely in The United States,” he said. “This country raised me. I went to school here, learned how to navigate two cultures, and carried with me a quiet awareness that while I might have been born elsewhere, my future was being built here every day.”
Tripathi spoke too on the demanding nature of his job, and what his personal experiences allowed him to bring to the role. “In my training, I’ve had the privilege of caring for patients who remind me of my own family, immigrants whose first language isn’t English, who are trying to understand a complex health care system while also trying to make rent or get their children to school. I’ve been able to sit beside them not just as a doctor, but as someone who sees them, who understands the quiet bravery it takes to start over in a new country, and call it home. ”
Each new citizen was gifted a one-year membership to the museum and had the opportunity to explore the buildings. “We just want as many people as possible to come and take advantage of what we have to offer the community,” said co-executive director Sarah Abruzzi, emphasizing the museum’s variety of rotating exhibits and programming. “We do this for the community. We want everyone to feel that this is their museum.”
For many of the attendees, the path to citizenship was long. “In the past when I’ve talked to people after this ceremony, you hear numbers like 10 years, 12 years, 15 years,” said Bianco. “So that’s why there’s this joy.” Nurjahan Akter, originally from the UK, said it took her almost 10 years to become a citizen alongside her husband. Isaac Parra, another of the newly naturalized, came here from Colombia when he was 19, and is now 28.
“I left a lot behind,” said Parra. “All my family, my friends. I really had an established life back there. So it was definitely scary not knowing what was going to happen. And I’m glad it worked out this way.” He added that “it is definitely possible” for those who want to achieve the same goal. “I would encourage anyone who is seeking citizenship to apply as soon as they can.”
For more information on the Long Island Museum, you can visit its website at https://longislandmuseum.org.
For information on how to apply for naturalizstion visit www.uscis.gov.
Last chance to view Building the Ballot Box at the Long Island Museum. The exhibit closes on May 18. Photo courtesy of LIM
By Heidi Sutton
On International Museum Day, Sunday, May 18, the Long Island Museum in Stony Brook is partnering with The Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington and the Whaling Museum in Cold Spring Harbor to celebrate the important roles museums and other cultural institutions play in our communities.
At the Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook, visitors can enjoy free admission to the museum from noon to 5 p.m., special “I Love Long Island Museums” buttons (while supplies last), and receive 10% off your purchase at the Gift Shop. This will also be the last day to view Building the Ballot Box: Long Island’s Democratic History and the Colors of Long Island student art exhibition in the History Museum. www.longislandmuseum.org
At the Heckscher Museum, 2 Prime Ave., Huntington, visitors will enjoy free admission to view exhibitions Robert Graham Carter: The Art of Reflection and Long Island’s Best 2025 from noon to 5 p.m. Take home a free button and tote bag too while supplies last. www.heckscher.org
And over at the Whaling Museum, 301 Main St., Cold Spring Harbor, visitors will receive a complimentary pin for every paid admssion, library passes included from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Available in five different designs, the special pins are the Museum’s way of thanking the community for their support. Visitors can view the Monsters & Mermaids exhibit, make up-cycled ocean crafts, take part in a Release the Kraken scavenger hunt and tour the museum’s exhibits. www.cshwhalingmuseum.org
Mother’s Day isn’t just about the cards, flowers, or fancy gifts—it’s about spending quality time with loved ones. Here are some fun and affordable ways to celebrate mom on the North Shore this weekend.
Mother’s Day at the LIM
Spend a lovely afternoon with Mom exploring the Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook on Sunday, May 11 from noon to 5 p.m. Visit the Building the Ballot Box and Colors of Long Island exhibitions, the state of the art Carriage Museum, and stroll the beautiful grounds dotted with art installations, gardens and historic buildings. Free admission for mothers and grandmothers all day! 631-751-0066
Open Weekend at Benner’s Farm
Benner’s Farm, 56 Gnarled Hollow Road, East Setauket will be open to the public on Saturday, May 10 and Sunday, May 11 from noon to 4 p.m. Come visit a real working farm! See sheep, goats, and chickens, ride the Big Swing and see the new babies born this spring. Admission is $12 adults, $10 seniors and children. 631-689-8172
Portraits at the Vanderbilt Museum
Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum, 180 Little Neck Road, Centerport offers live watercolor portrait paintings in the courtyard by local artist Sara Marie Martin on Saturday, May 10 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Your custom watercolor portrait will be painted within 10 minutes! Fee is $20 per 5″ x 7″ (up to 4 people per painting) payable via cash or Venmo on site.*General admission required. www.vanderbiltmuseum.org.
Mother’s Day at the Whaling Museum
Treat Mom to a special day at the Whaling Museum, 301 Main St., Cold Spring Harbor with free admission with a paid ticket on Saturday, May 10 and Sunday, May 11 from 11a.m. to 4 p.m. Plus, enjoy a weekend of Mother’s Day crafts. 631-367-3418
Mother’s Day at The Hatchery
Celebrate Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 11, at the Cold Spring Harbor Fish Hatchery & Aquarium, 1660 Route 25A, Cold Spring Harbor from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Free admission for Moms when accompanied by their children. 516-692-6768
The Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook presents Shirley Chisholm, Unbossed & Unbowed on Friday, May 9 in the LIM’s Carriage Museum’s Gillespie Room at 7 p.m.
Don’t miss this award-winning solo show created and performed by Ingrid Griffith, telling the largely unheard story of Shirley St. Hill Chisholm, a Brooklyn-born politician of immigrant parents, who, in the 20th century, was the first African-American woman to win a seat in Congress and run for President.
The story follows 10-year-old Shirley as she returns to the U.S. after being separated from her parents during the Great Depression. Her years with her grandmother in Barbados deeply shaped her Caribbean heritage, influencing her bearing, speech, and self-expectations. Shirley Chisholm’s childhood reveals how race and gender were meant to limit her, yet she chose to fight for the disenfranchised, overcoming immense barriers to rise in politics.
Unbossed and Unbowed dramatizes the Civil Rights era, the unrest of the 1960s, and the patriarchal system she challenged—struggles that still resonate today. Through visuals and music, the play captures the economic, political, and social upheavals from the 1930s to the early 1970s. While all characters bring strong voices, it is Shirley Chisholm’s narrative that delivers the story’s powerful message.
Tickets are $30, $25 members. To register, visit www.longislandmuseum.org or click here. For more information, call 631-751-0066.
This program is part of “A New Agora for New York.”
Geraldine Ferraro with Ivan and Leah S. Dunaief.
Photo courtesy Leah Dunaief.
By Leah S. Dunaief
Leah Dunaief, Publisher
Frankly, we are concerned. The tariffs on Mexican and Chinese goods are worrisome. But especially for the print journalism industry, the one on Canadian imports could be deadly.
We get much of our newsprint, on which we send you the local news, from Canada.
We have already endured a significant increase in printing costs because our old printer closed shop and new printers, with whom we have no seniority, are considerably more expensive. So we have not been our happy selves.
That is until Tuesday evening, when I had the good fortune to see a documentary film called “Geraldine Ferraro: Paving the Way” at the Long Island Museum in Stony Brook.
Now Geraldine Ferraro was the first female to be a Vice President nominee on a major national party Presidential ticket. She ran with Walter Mondale in 1984 against Ronald Reagan, as the Democratic candidates for the top offices in the land, and while they lost, she was an inspirational leader.
She inspired women to run for political office. She also inspired men and women to believe their dreams were achievable. She was a true trailblazer.
Her story is told by her older daughter, Donna Zaccaro, a filmmaker in her own right, and Andrew Morreale, talented editor. It was produced in 2011, the year Geraldine Ferraro died. Before reaching that pinnacle, Ferraro’s lifebegan with a hardscrabble childhood after her father died when she was 8. Encouraged by her mother, she went on to become a lawyer, then District Attorney in Queens, followed by election to Congress, to her eventual nomination for Vice President.
She changed the way people thought of the role of women in American politics at a time when Women’s Liberation was beginning to roar.
It is a moving tribute by not only her daughter, but also commentary by leading political figures. They included President George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush, Vice President Walter Mondale, President Bill Clinton, Secretary Madeleine Albright, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Senator Barbara Mikulski, Senator Olympia Snowe, Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi, ABC reporter Cokie Roberts, former Wall Street Journal reporter Al Hunt, Republican campaign consultant Ed Rollins, and Eleanor Smeal, President Feminist Majority Foundation.The list reads like a Who’s Who of political operatives of that era.
Geraldine Ferraro was the keynote speaker at the 1985 New York Press Association Convention, and we got to know her a bit then. We marveled at her ability to connect to each person. This was the 40th anniversary of her run for vice president, and her struggle for women’s rights is as pertinent now as it was then.
Lou Reed and Paul Simon will be honored on March 9. Photos courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
By Rita J. Egan
Music lovers will experience two distinctive sounds during the Sunday Street Concert on March 9 at The Long Island Museum.
Local singers Gene Casey; Caroline Doctorow; Andrew, Andie Juliette and Cole Fortier; Bryan Gallo; Ray Lambiase; Russ Seeger; and Hank Stone will come together to commemorate the music of two legends — Lou Reed and Paul Simon. Both are inductees in the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame.
Andrew Fortier said he finds Simon and Reed to be polar opposites.
“I also think they’re both geniuses and brilliant and really that’s the fun discovery of it all,” he said.
Producer Charlie Backfish said during the concert, titled Lou Reed & Paul Simon: Two Songwriters from Long Island, the artists will each perform one song from Simon’s catalog and one of Reed’s songs. Simon, 83, and Reed, who passed away in 2013 at the age of 71, both have ties to Long Island.
Born in Brooklyn, Reed graduated from Freeport High School in 1959 while Simon graduated from Forest Hills High School in Queens in 1958.
Reed played guitar and was a member of a doo-wop group in his younger days, while Simon, along with classmate Art Garfunkel, joined forces first as the group Tom and Jerry. The duo would go on to record simply as Simon and Garfunkel and recorded hits such as “I Am a Rock” and “Scarborough Fair” before Simon pursued a solo career. Reed also embarked on a solo path after being a member of the rock group Velvet Underground for five years.
The artistic paths of both accomplished singers and songwriters would cross in 1980 when Simon wrote and starred in One Trick Pony. Reed played a record executive in the same film.
Backfish said he chose the two artists for this show because of their ties to Long Island as well as their musical genres, which are “rather different, although they share some common roots.”
He added that the two, in addition to graduating from Long Island high schools and appearing in a movie together, both had an interest in Doo Wop. According to Backfish, their interests in the genre continued throughout their careers.
“Obviously not every recording, but there are elements of it in their music, and especially in their early years that kind of intrigued me,” he said.
Ray Lambiase, who chose Reed’s “Pale Blue Eyes” to perform, said as he was deciding on a song from the singer’s catalog, especially from Velvet Underground, “I was struck by how — as quirky as his recordings were — you can still pick up an acoustic guitar, and they still have the fundamental elements of a well-written song.”
Lambiase said finding a Simon song is as challenging as picking a Reed song. He added that many of Simon’s songs can be musically challenging.
“Paul Simon is such a terrific guitar player that a lot of his songs are difficult to play,” he said.
“There are some songs that are simpler than others, but he was a very sophisticated guitar player, and also his chord patterns were much more sophisticated than what we would think of as traditional folk singers.”
Lambiase will perform “Paranoia Blues” from Simon’s first solo album, which he feels will be a fun song compared to some of his more serious pieces.
“It might be a good idea to break things up and show that he had a humorous side, too,” the performer said.
Caroline Doctorow, who will sing Simon’s “The Dangling Conversation,” which she recorded on her “Dreaming in Vinyl” album, and Reed’s “Sunday Morning,” said it’s important for performers to try to sound different than the original artists.
“You want to add something to your interpretation,” Doctorow said, adding it can be “challenging in a really wonderful way.”
“I’m so happy that Charlie does these shows,” she said. “It’s a nice opportunity to just spread your wings a little bit in a way that you might not otherwise.
Andrew Fortier agreed that the concert series and Backfish’s WUSB-FM radio program “Sunday Street” take performers and listeners on a journey, introducing them to singers they may have never considered.
He added he feels the audience will enjoy hearing both artists’ music and that fans of one will find the other songwriter’s work fresh and new. Fortier and his children, Cole and Andie Juliette, were on a road trip listening to some of Simon’s and Reed’s work to look for songs that resonated with them.
“The truth of it is that it is really fun when you dive into an artist that you really aren’t that familiar with, because you really can dig deep, and you really get an appreciation for what they do,” Fortier said.
Andie Juliette Fortier added, “It’s always interesting. It gives you a chance to get to know each artist a little bit more and really explore parts of their catalog you maybe wouldn’t normally listen to.”
Singer/songwriters Lou Reed and Paul Simon, pictured here in their high school yearbooks, will be honored during the March 9 concert. Photos courtesy of Charlie Backfish
After listening to Simon’s and Reed’s work, Andrew Fortier decided to sing Simon’s “Still Crazy After All These Years” and Reed’s “Satellite of Love.” Andie Juliette Fortier will perform “Kathy’s Song” by Simon and “I’ll Be Your Mirror” by Reed. Cole Fortier has chosen Simon’s “Hearts and Bones” and “Going Down” by Reed.
The Fortiers are looking forward to hearing the other performers’ interpretations, too.
“There’s always surprises,” Andie Juliette Fortier said. “It’s always nice to hear how people interpret different songs and put their own style on it.
Lambiase said he enjoys the “insights from the different steps of the journey of their personal growth and journeys” when he performs an artist’s work at a Sunday Street concert.
“I think that’s a really big part of the show to humanize the artists by taking their songs and reducing them to their core essentials, and keeping some insight into their journey, because every musician, especially people with careers as long as Paul Simon and Lou Reed, there’s a beginning, a middle and the later part.”
Doctorow said older songs usually stir up a sense of nostalgia, and she hopes audience members will remember the music, and the songs will bring back memories while they connect with them in a new way.
“It’s like that Hugh Prestwood song — called ‘The Song Remembers When,’” she said. “You hear these songs from your youth, and you remember things that you might not normally remember. It just sort of washes over you, and in difficult times like we’re in now, the songs comfort people.”
Sunday Street Concert Lou Reed & Paul Simon: Two Songwriters from Long Island is produced by Charlie Backfish and is a not-for-profit collaboration with WUSB-FM, The Greater Port Jefferson Arts Council and The Long Island Museum.
The show takes place on Sunday, March 9 at 5 p.m. in The Gillespie Room at The Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook. Advance sale tickets are $25, plus a service fee, through March 7. Tickets at the door are $30, cash only. For more information, visit www.sundaystreet.org.
Kicking off a new free film series, Film@LIM, the Long Isand Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook in partnership with the Greater Port Jefferson Northern Brookhaven Arts Council will screen Geraldine Ferraro: Paving the Way in the Carriage Museum’s Gillespie Room on Tuesday, March 4 at 7 p.m.
Enjoy an inspiring film about Geraldine Ferraro’s historic Vice-Presidential nomination, and the first full profile of the trailblazing woman who helped change the face of American politics forever.
Geraldine Ferraro: Paving the Way is a feature-length documentary about the life of the trailblazing woman who made history in 1984 as the first female Vice Presidential nominee on a major national party Presidential ticket.
The film profiles Ferraro’s journey from an impoverished childhood, the struggles she endured while growing up, and the hurdles she faced and overcame both professionally and personally in order to achieve what no woman had done before.
A primary focus of the film is Ferraro’s public service and political career, from District Attorney in Queens, NY, and later member of Congress, to the emotional night of her Vice Presidential nomination and the tough campaign that followed. Though the Mondale-Ferraro ticket was ultimately not elected, the film explores how Ferraro’s nomination and her conduct during that campaign changed the national perception of what was possible for women.
The film features never-before-seen archival footage and stills, intimate interviews with Ferraro, and commentary by many leading political figures, both Democrat and Republican, as well as journalists who covered her campaign.
The screening will be followed by a talk from Donna Zaccaro, Geraldine Ferraro’s daughter and the film’s director and producer.
Admission is free but registration is preferred by visiting www.longislandmuseum.org/events or click here.
The Long Island Museum (LIM), 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook presents the 26th Annual Colors of Long Island Student Art Exhibition, opening on February 20. This highly anticipated exhibition provides a platform for hundreds of young artists from across Long Island to display their work in a professional museum setting.
‘Peanut Butter Jelly Time’ by Kelly Cabasso
Art teachers from public and private schools, spanning grades pre-K through 12, were invited to submit up to two pieces of student artwork. The exhibition’s theme, “Colors of Long Island,” encourages a broad spectrum of interpretations—some students reflect on Long Island’s scenic landscapes, while others highlight the cultural diversity that makes the region so vibrant. This year’s exhibition features a dynamic mix of media, including watercolor, sculpture, pencil, ink, oil pastel, photography, and digital art.
“With over 278 students participating, this exhibition is a testament to the remarkable talent and creativity of the young artists on Long Island,” said Samantha O’Rourke, Senior Educator at the LIM. “Each piece reflects not only the students’ artistic talent but also the dedication of art educators who inspire and guide them. It’s always incredible to see how young artists use their work to tell stories, share perspectives, and express their individuality.”
The Colors of Long Island Student Art Exhibition will be on view in the Art Museum from February 20 through May 8, 2025. For more information on programs and exhibitions, visit longislandmuseum.org