Ah to sing the song of you, my matron mighty!
My sacred one, my mother.
—from “Delicate Cluster” by Walt Whitman
Happy Mother’s Day from TBR News Media!
TBR News Media
Happy Earth Day from TBR News Media!
‘Kona’ by Ronkonkoma artist Gabriella Grama
See more of the artist’s work at womensharingart.org.
Editorial: Continuing to Serve
At TBR News Media we remain committed in our responsibility to our communities.
That’s why in response to the coronavirus pandemic, and following the advice of health experts, until further notice our office will be closed to the public.
Our employees will be working from home as much as possible. As always, we will be checking our voicemails and emails and answering those messages. So, of course, keep on writing and calling.
If you do see us out in the community, just as we have been doing for more than a week, we won’t be shaking hands and such, but all of us are more than happy to offer you an elbow to bump.
It’s important for each and every one of us in the office to do our best to stay healthy, as we need to be here to give you the news from the local perspective, and if we do run into you, that we don’t pass on anything to you.
When it comes to reporting the news, it will be business as usual. You will see our papers in your mailbox and local newsstands, and our website will be updated with the most recent news related to the COVID-19 situation in between editions.
We will also keep in touch with elected officials, local hospitals, school districts, organizations and more to bring you the most accurate news possible.
This is all unprecedented territory for all of us. However, modern technology will help us get the job done.
For example, just the other day Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D) held an update on the county’s coronavirus response on a conference call with local journalists. With not only telephones, but FaceTime, Skype, and for those who are busy, emails, we will ask questions and track down answers.
As for our office outside the editorial department, our employees will stay connected through text messages, emails and Google Hangouts.
Speaking of joining forces, as always, readers are welcome to send in photos of anything interesting they see during their daily lives around our coverage area, whether it’s a house fire, car incident, wildlife at play or a beautiful sunset.
We would love to hear how everyone is doing during this time of temporary closures. Let’s hear your perspective, whether you’re a parent trying to balance work from home while monitoring your children’s studies, or a student trying to figure out what to do during this time outside of school buildings. Send us 400 words or less, and you may see your words on the Letters to the Editor page. Have more to say? We may just print it as a perspective piece in our news section.
We encourage our readers to keep up on the news, look for those pieces that attribute information to respected health organizations or experts — and heed their advice. That’s not to say there’s a need to overdo it and become panicked. Take the time to read respected and trusted sources, and don’t trust everything on Facebook as there are numerous rumors and falsities going around. Remember, always look toward trusted sources and fact-checking websites to get to the bottom of such rumors.
As we have been for more than 40 years, we will be here for our readers now and in the future.
TBR News Media hosts Reader’s Choice Winners Reception
Special thanks to all who attended TBR News Media’s Readers’ Choice reception! Favorite local businesses were nominated by our readers and the first place winners were celebrated in style at the Three Village Inn with a red carpet, music, food, raffles and an award ceremony on Feb. 5. A wonderful time was had by all!
Photos by Beverly C. Tyler
Harbormen Chorus Return to TBR Office for Valentines Day
Long Island’s own Harbormen Chorus once again came to TBR News Media offices on Valentines Day, Feb. 14 to celebrate the holiday with staff.
More information on the barbershop quartet can be found at: harbormen.org
Holocaust Survivor Irving Roth to Share His Story at Village Chabad
Local residents are invited to the Village Chabad Center for Jewish Life & Learning in East Setauket Feb. 23 to hear the firsthand account of Irving Roth, 90, who survived Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps. Readers of TBR News Media can also receive discounted tickets to the event when ordered Feb. 13 through 16.
“Irving Roth is a true survivor,” said Rabbi Motti Grossbaum of the Village Chabad. “Not only did he physically survive the terrors of WWII, but he lived on with his heart and hope intact. Roth’s presentation is sure to be moving, inspiring and educational for all who attend.”
Roth was just 10 years old when Nazi Germany invaded his native country of Czechoslovakia. He suffered through the horrific conditions of Auschwitz and Buchenwald and miraculously survived, emigrating to the United States in 1947. During the first time he returned to Auschwitz in 1998, Roth realized the importance of sharing his story with today’s generation. He has since devoted all his efforts to educating young and old about the perils of anti-Semitism and prejudice.
The evening is catered to all ages and will include a question and answer session following the main presentation.
“It is an honor for us to host Mr. Roth, and we are so fortunate that he has agreed to come to the Three Village area to share his riveting story,” said Grossbaum. “I encourage everyone who can — young and old — to come hear this remarkable person tell his incredible story of courage, faith, and survival.”
Due to limited space, advance ticket purchase is highly recommended and can be purchased at www.myvillagechabad.com. Tickets fees are $20 for advance tickets and $15 for students. A VIP option is also available that includes a reception with Roth, an autographed book and premium seating. Roth will also have copies of his book on sale.
TBR News Media readers can enter code TBR2020 when ordering tickets Feb. 13 to 16 to get a discounted $10 ticket.
Call 631-585-0521 or visit www.myvillagechabad.com for more information.
The center is located at 360 Nicolls Road, East Setauket. The event begins at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
TBR readers enjoy some book talk and food
The Bates House in Setauket was brimming with book and food lovers the evening of Sept. 24.
TBR News Media hosted its 2nd annual Cooks, Books & Corks event at the venue, with 100 ticket holders in attendance to chat with 17 authors and to sample entrées, desserts and beverages from 18 establishments. Cellist Alison Rowe was on hand to provide the background music.
The event was organized to raise funds for a paid intern for TBR’s six newspapers next summer. The intern will be selected from students attending Stony Brook University’s School of Journalism. Ticket holders had the opportunity to stroll through the Bates House to sample food and chat with authors, as well as buy books. A few of the attending writers even took to the stage to describe their works to the audience.
During the event, publisher Leah Dunaief thanked the crowd for attending, and she said after last year’s Cooks, Books & Corks she received many compliments, including that it was a highly dignified event, and she hoped those in attendance found this one just as grand and exciting.
Laura Lindenfeld, interim dean of SBU School of Journalism and executive director of the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science, attended the event.
“What an important time to be involved in journalism,” she said, addressing the attendees.
Lindenfeld said the opportunity to work with SBU journalism students was amazing, and she said they tell “important stories grounded in truth.”
As the author of “Feasting Our Eyes: Food Films and Cultural Identity in the United States,” the interim dean said she couldn’t turn down the opportunity to attend Cooks, Books & Corks. She said those involved were building community, a word she said ties into communication.
“I love the idea that the word communication comes from the word community,” she said. “It’s about a sense of belonging, being together and making meaning together. And I can see that happening in this room here.”
Lindenfeld thanked the attendees for supporting the fundraiser for an intern to have the opportunity to get experience in the field.
“We just want to get them out in the world, telling good stories that make a difference and then help us really be open to change,” she said.
Obit: Lorraine Taylor, former TBR business, feature writer
Lorraine Mary Taylor, 64, was born July 10, 1955, in Mineola, and died Aug. 27 in Keller, Texas.
Lorraine was a freelance editorial writer and recognized nationally and locally with several editing awards, including the prestigious James Beard Award. As a local business and feature writer for Times Beacon Record in New York, she was fondly known by her colleagues as “the writer who needs no editing.”
Lorraine graduated from Hauppauge High School where she earned several honors, including the National Merit Scholarship Award and New York State Regents Scholarship Award. Lorraine earned her undergraduate degree from Cortland State University in New York.
She is survived by her loving husband of 32 years, William L. Taylor; sister, Lisa Rieder and her husband, Raymond; brother, Henry De Pietro and his wife, Monica; nieces and nephews, Kristen Rieder, Michael Rieder and his wife, Kristina, Nicholas De Pietro and Michelle De Pietro; and mother-in-law Martha Taylor. She was preceded in death by her parents, Henry and Florence De Pietro.
Lorraine was a past member of the Keller Garden Club and the New Neighbors of Greensburg, in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. In addition, she enjoyed gardening, crafts, swimming, exercising, walking and spending time with her family.
Lorraine requested that all donations should be sent to The Oncology Care Unit, Texas Health HEB Hospital, 1600 Hospital Parkway, Bedford, TX 76022.
Obit: Denise Peters, former TBR editor
Denise Mary Peters, 69, of Alamo, California, died Sept. 4.
Denise graduated from Christ the King High School in Middle Village in 1967 and then attended Katharine Gibbs Secretarial School, graduating early and with honors. She could type 140-plus words per minute and was a skilled wordsmith. Denise was a former lead reporter and managing editor for The Port Times and The Village Beacon in the early ’90s.
Denise stayed in contact with friends from grade school in Middle Village where she attended St. Margaret’s School along with her five brothers. She moved out to California in 1996 where she married her beloved husband, C. Larry Peters, June 19, 1999. She was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Denise was an avid reader, an extraordinarily talented writer, a connoisseur of music, a fanatic pet protector and the most caring person you could ever meet. She was always thinking and worrying about others and never about herself. If you called her and needed help for any reason, she would drop everything she was doing to be there with you.
Denise was a true angel. She never met a person who didn’t become a devoted friend, whether she knew it or not. Her stories and enthusiasm were endless, and so were the laughs. Denise always found herself in the funniest of situations. Whether she was traveling around the country or traveling around the block, she would come back with the most unbelievable stories. Denise had a gift of making everyone feel like they were the most important person in the world. She had a heart as big as Texas. She is missed beyond words and will never be forgotten.
Denise was preceded in death by her parents, Thomas Francis McDonnell and Mary Collette McDonnell, and her brother, James Charles McDonnell. She is survived by her loving husband, C. Larry Peters, 75, of Alamo, California; her son, Vincent Thomas Alfieri, 43; and his wife, Jordana of Hastings-on-Hudson; her daughter, Maria Lynn Alfieri-Vongphakdy, 40, and her husband, Boualay, of Danville, California; her brothers, John McDonnell, 58, and his wife, Patty of Lyndhurst; Thomas McDonnell, 63, and his wife, Janice of Elmhurst; Daniel McDonnell, 65, and his wife, Marcia of Tolland, Connecticut; Kevin McDonnell, 71, of Lakewood, Colorado; and her aunt, Katherine McCauley, of St. James. She is also survived by her sons, Marc Peters and his wife, Liz; Sean Peters and his wife, Julie; and Jonathan Peters; her grandchildren Covin, Sage, Jordan, Peyton, Hayden, Allyson, Kelsey K, Connor, Cole and Claire; dozens of cousins and scores of nieces and nephews from all over the country.
Visit www.oakparkhillschapel.com for the online guest book.
Obit: Marilyn Tunney, former Village Times employee
By Elizabeth Tunney
Marilyn Tunney, 86, a longtime resident of Setauket died peacefully Sept. 2.
Marilyn was born to the late Helen Ekenberg and Joseph Talbot Nov. 13, 1932. She and her late brother John Talbot were raised in Cedarhurst. Marilyn attended St. Joseph’s boarding school in Brentwood where her faith, Christian spirit and the friendships she made would last her a lifetime.
She met her beloved husband, John Tunney, in 1949, and in 1956 they married and spent the next 60 years together calling Setauket their home. Marilyn was a devoted and selfless mother to John (Mimosa), Beth (Charlie), Peter (Amy) and David (Christine). She was also the proud and loving grandmother of Olivia, David Jr., John IV, Duke, Arthur and Sonnet.
Family was everything to her and she devoted herself entirely to their happiness.
Marilyn spent 25 years working at The Village Times newspaper in the classifieds department where she found great joy in her work but more importantly cherished her friendships.
The family is very grateful for all the loving and thoughtful care of all those at Jefferson’s Ferry who cared for her over the past few years. She led her life with grace, thoughtfulness and honesty and was loved by all that knew her sweet soul.
A funeral Mass will be celebrated at St. James R.C. Church in Setauket Sept. 13 at 10:45 a.m.
