The Village Times Herald - April 20, 2023

The Ward Melville Heritage Organization and Stony Brook Village Center hosted Spring Appreciation Day on

April

Attendees enjoyed live music by Brenda and Burke, The Mustang and Shelby Club of Long Island car show and Rocking Horse Farms petting zoo at the free event. The WMHO’s Youth Corps also held scavenger hunts with prizes in the early afternoon. Photos by Rita J. Egan

Community coming together to beautify Stony Brook train station

In celebration of Earth Day, community groups throughout the Three Village are joining forces to clean up Stony Brook train station Saturday, April 22, from 10 a.m. to noon, and are seeking volunteers to help.

The North Suffolk Garden Club, along with Three Village Community Trust, Three Village Civic Association, Three Village Chamber of Commerce, The Stony Brook School, Brookhaven Town Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich (D-Stony Brook), Long Island Rail Road and Suffolk County Legislator Kara Hahn (D-Setauket) have been working on cleaning up the station since last summer.

The group weeded beds, cleared invasive plants and planted Long Island native species, adding decorative boulders, a stone walkway and trimmed trees after landscaped beds at the station became overgrown.

The civic association has long taken an interest in maintaining the station grounds, and the North Suffolk Garden Club had the desire to “honor the legacy of famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted on the bicentennial year of his birth.”

As a result, the Stony Brook Train Station Beautification Committee was born, with members from several local organizations. Herb Mones, land use chair of the civic association and president of the community trust, with Leighton Coleman III and Frances Pistell of the garden club, lead the committee.

“The work is going to continue,” Mones said “So we’re kind of kicking it off a little bit on Earth Day by trying to spruce up the

station a little bit more, removing any of the winter damage, cleaning out the beds, trimming and celebrating.”

The garden club assisted in the planting and committed funds, and the civic association obtained a grant from PSEG. Local resident and landscape designer, Emily Riley of The Stony Brook School, helped design the site and Steve Antos, owner of Setauket Landscape Design, assisted. Hahn and legislative aide Alyssa Turano advised and networked with LIRR. The Town of Brookhaven Highway Department helped with debris removal, and Kornreich kept the project on track, Mones said.

In the past, turnout has been so large for these kinds of events, it has become overwhelming, Mones said. He also wants to ensure all of the hard work of the garden club is protected.

“The North Suffolk Garden Club is very particular,” he said. “They’ve done a lot of these plantings and they want to make sure that they don’t get trampled or abused because they’re relatively small. They will become larger and larger as the years go by. We’re trying to make it so that we don’t do something that’s out of control.”

Members of Three Village Civic Association, North Suffolk Garden Club, Three Village Community Trust, The Stony Brook School and Three Village Chamber of Commerce will be in attendance Saturday and ask that anyone who would like to help brings a pair of gloves, trash bags and garden tools. For more info, call 631-942-4558.

—Compiled by Leah

Chiappino

The VILLAGE TIMES HERALD (USPS 004-808) is published Thursdays by TBR News Media, 185 Route 25A, Setauket, NY 11733. Periodicals postage paid at Setauket, NY and additional mailing offices. Subscription price $59 annually. Leah S. Dunaief, Publisher. POSTMASTER: Send change of address to P.O. Box 707, Setauket, NY 11733.

NYC may soon announce Center for Climate Solutions winner

BY DANIEL DUNAIEF DESK@TBRNEWSMEDIA.COM

feature dormitories and housing and provide space for New Yorkers and visitors to discuss climate change.

UNIVERSITY

The New York City Mayor’s Office and the Trust for Governors Island may soon announce the winner for the global competition to create the Center for Climate Solutions.

In October, Stony Brook University was announced as a finalist for the ambitious project. Northeastern University and the City University of New York and the New School were the leaders of the other bids.

A multidimensional environmental effort designed to educate the public, offer climate solutions and ensure equitable climate solutions, the competition, which was launched in 2020 by former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D), is expected to create over $1 billion in economic impact and create 7,000 permanent jobs.

The winner or winners will create a space on the island that features views of the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge with several key features. The center will provide a way to study the impacts of climate change, host a living lab that provides entrepreneurs and nonprofits that can test and showcase their climate solutions, serve as an urban center for environmental justice organizations,

Partners on the Stony Brook proposal include Brookhaven National Laboratory, International Business Machines, Georgia Institute of Technology, Pace University, Pratt Institute, University of Washington, Duke University, Moody’s Corporation, Rochester Institute of Technology, SUNY Maritime College, Oxford University, URBS Systems, General Electric and other business, nonprofit and on-Island partners.

The proposals offered ways to support interdisciplinary research focused on urban adaptation, urban environments, public policy, environmental justice and public health.

At the same time, the finalists offered educational programs for students all the way from K-12 through graduate and adult education.

The center will provide workforce training opportunities, incubators and accelerator spaces for nonprofits and entrepreneurs working on climate and public programming.

The selection committee that is choosing the winners includes representatives from the Trust for Governors Island, Mayor Eric Adams’s (D) Office of Climate and Environmental Justice, the Mayor’s Office of Equity and the New York City Department of City Planning.

“New York City is facing some of the most complex climate adaptation challenges in the world,” Kizzy Charles-Guzman, executive director of the Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice, said in a statement when the finalists were

announced last October. “The Center for Climate Solutions will bring together actionable science, community-based partnerships and innovative and equitable solutions to communities on the frontline of the climate crisis.”

Above, conceptual rendering of the proposed Center for Climate Solutions on Governors Island. Photo from New York City

Three Village BOE approves budget, tables restructuring decision

BY MALLIE JANE KIM DESK@TBRNEWSMEDIA.COM

EDUCATION

Three Village Central School District Board of Education unanimously approved a $230.9 million budget for the 2023-24 school year, paving the way for a community vote on May 16.

The board gave its approval of the budget — a 3.07% increase — at a meeting Wednesday, April 12.

The proposed budget stays within the district’s state-mandated maximum 2.65% tax levy increase cap, and therefore requires only a simple majority for community approval.

Assistant Superintendent Jeff Carlson, who leads the budget process, said due to increasing costs, the administration needed to cut $4.7 million to stay within the tax cap.

The district’s transportation costs will jump by nearly $600,000 for next year, and salaries and benefits at current staffing levels would have increased by more than $9 million.

A plan to cut 30 full-time staff positions accounts for the majority of the cuts, and the rest came from belt-tightening.

“We went through all of the budget codes, all of the supplies, equipment and contracted services … and we came up with $1.6 million in reductions,” Carlson said. “And I can tell you not everybody’s happy about that, but there’s nothing we can do about it.”

Shari Fontana, a representative from the Budget Advisory Committee — a group of parents, students, community members, board members and district employees — spoke in support of the budget.

“The BAC has seen that during these very difficult economic times, our district has always kept the goal of filling the educational, social and emotional needs of our children as their main priority,” Fontana said, noting that the many presentations the committee heard from the district made clear that Three Village is working toward increasing fiscal stability.

“We realize that no budget will ever be perfect, but our district is truly doing the very best it can under the circumstances,” she added.

Fontana said the committee recommended that the district convenes next year’s Budget Advisory Committee earlier in the year and provide more specific information, down to the line items and dollar amounts, of each topic presented.

She reported the committee urged prioritizing later secondary school start times, with the board also taking a more forwardlooking approach when hiring in light of the decreasing enrollment projections.

“We know that hiring is easy, but reducing staff is not,” Fontana said.

Restructuring tabled, for now

The Board of Education also decided to table a vote to adopt a district restructuring plan, over lack of data on what it would cost, and because it does not address concerns that secondary school start times are too early.

The plan, which was the clear preference among options presented in a recent community survey, would move sixth graders and ninth graders up to middle school and high school, respectively.

Currently the junior high schools start at 7:40 a.m. and Ward Melville High School begins at 7:05 a.m., and without a change to those start times, sixth graders and ninth graders would begin school even earlier than their current schedules require.

District elementary schools, where sixth grade classes are currently housed, begin at

8:43 a.m. or 9:25 a.m.

None of the survey options included cost impact information, and this uncertainty gave some board members pause.

“I would also like the administration to move forward to give the board and give the community information on: Can this work? If it can work, how much would it cost?” said board vice president Vincent Vizzo.

“At the same time, give us the figures also for the delayed start time, because right now that’s a health issue.”

Superintendent of Schools Kevin Scanlon agreed changing start times needs to be prioritized, but added that any delay in adopting a restructuring plan could make it harder to enact any changes by the original target school year of 2024-25.

Restructuring “is not a matter where it’s dire, where we need to get it done immediately,” Scanlon said. “I do think the start time is dire and that does need to be addressed as soon as possible.”

Scanlon estimated the administration could figure out by September the information the board is requesting on cost and plausibility of the restructuring plan with start time changes dovetailed in.

Sidewalks For Safety prizewinners

Town of Brookhaven Supervisor Ed Romaine (R) and Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich (D-Stony Brook) made cameo appearances at the meeting to present awards to Ward Melville students who won a T-shirt

design contest for Sidewalks For Safety.

This is a local advocacy group working to get more sidewalks installed in critical places around the community, primarily for pedestrian safety — especially for Three Village students walking to schools and bus stops — but also to promote healthier lifestyles and increase foot traffic for local businesses.

Romaine and Kornreich, the competition judges, awarded first place to Melina Montgomery, second to Julie Yang and third to Zoe Xiao; Lila Dabrowski and Rebecca Fazio each received an honorable mention for their art. Sidewalks For Safety printed the designs by Montgomery and Yang on bright, “safety green” T-shirts for use in an upcoming 5K walk/run on Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 14.

“Sidewalks are extremely important but they cost money, and we have to balance the budget,” Romaine said, adding that not everyone is a fan of sidewalks in more rural areas of Brookhaven. “But here in a busy community where a lot of children ride their bikes or walk to school, it is something that we want to do.”

Romaine also praised the winners for using artwork to engage in lobbying to “make sure the government does the right thing,” adding that his neighborhood does not have sidewalks.

“I have to walk my two little dogs, and I could tell you I wish I had sidewalks, particularly when people go speeding by,” he said.

Supervisor Ed Romaine, center, left, and Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich, center, right, visited the North Country Administration Center in Stony Brook to announce the winners of the 2023 T-Shirt Design Competition for Sidewalks for Safety. Photo from the Town of Brookhaven

‘We realize that no budget will ever be perfect, but our district is truly doing the very best it can under the circumstances.’

—Shari Fontana

Three Village Dads cancer event interrupted by Suffolk health department

BY DANIEL FEBRIZIO DANIEL@TBRNEWSMEDIA.COM

On Sunday, April 16, Three Village Dads Foundation ran an event to raise money for a local chapter of the St. Baldrick’s Foundation. The St. Baldrick’s website states it is “a volunteer and donor powered charity committed to supporting the most promising research to find cures for childhood cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives.”

Over the years, Three Village Dads have raised over $225,000 for local causes. They adopted the local St. Baldrick’s chapter last year and moved the event to the Veterans of Foreign War Post 3054 in East Setauket.

David Tracy, chairman and CEO of 3VDF, is a VFW member.

“We had about 60 or 70 people come down last year,” Tracy said in a phone interview. “It was a bit rainy. So, it kind of muted the overall attendance. However, we still ended up raising $22,000 for St. Baldrick’s.”

This year 3VDF followed the same format but it was a much nicer day, with about 100 guests in attendance. There were vendors donating their time to feed the guests, and Setauket Fire Department brought a fire truck for children to climb on.

About 45 minutes into the event, two women showed up, one wearing a jacket with the words “Suffolk County Health

Department.” “They both have clipboards, and they have very serious faces,” Tracy said. “They’re just saying, ‘You need to shut down, this is not a permitted event.’”

This surprised Tracy, as he explained to them that this was a private event on private property. They countered that the event was advertised to the public, so it was a public event. Tracy then offered to buy a permit, but he was informed that that is impossible on a Sunday.

“I asked [one of them] to maybe use discretion, to maybe call her boss and just let me talk to him — and just nothing,” Tracy said. “She wasn’t having it.”

Tracy believes that one of the two women works for the Tobacco Enforcement Unit of the Suffolk County Department of Health Services. “They were there to target the one vendor whose business model is a cigar and bourbon experience.”

“They tell me over and over, ‘These vendors have to stop,’” Tracy said. He explained that he was “willing to pay the fines, whatever the fines may be, but this is a fundraiser for childhood cancer research. We are not shutting down. We have two more hours left.”

One woman proceeded to go up to each vendor, go into their trailers, ask them questions and take pictures, according to Tracy. He said that this upset a lot of their guests.

“There were a lot of people that were paying attention to what was going on with her and her inspections, as opposed to paying attention to the 10 brave people to get up there and shave their heads in front of the public to raise money for charity,” Tracy said.

“I guess what bothers me the most is that if they knew about this a few days ago or a few weeks ago, why not just pick up the phone and give us a call,” Tracy said. “We would have rectified it.”

“It just reeks of bad government decisions, and we would like somebody to answer for that,” he added. “Whose call was this? Whose ultimate determination? Who has it out for my friend’s business?”

“I will gladly pay that fine if need be and we will gladly get permits next year. But the way this was handled is just all wrong,” Tracy said. “I would like [to make] a public apology to my organization, to the St. Baldrick’s organization, to the vendors, because there’s a much better way of handling this, especially if they knew about it ahead of time.”

The citation that Tracy received read as follows, “Organizer found operating a temporary food service event to the public without a valid permit.” It also said that 3VDF allowed “food vendors to serve food to the public without valid permits to operate.”

Suffolk County Department of Health Services did not respond to a request for comment prior to press time.

THREE VILLAGE MEALS ON WHEELS

Are You Homebound?

• Our clients are homebound, chronically ill, convalescing from surgery or illness that prevents them from preparing their own meals.

• 2 meals are delivered at mid-day, Monday through Friday to the homes of our clients.

• We are a volunteer non-profit community-based organization serving all of Stony Brook, Setauket, East Setauket, Port Jefferson, Port Jefferson Station and parts of adjacent communities since 1983.

• Give our number to your friends, relatives or neighbors in need of our services.

Volunteers are needed

Consider joining the ranks of our volunteers. It takes approximately 2 hours or less of your time one day per week.

We welcome donations

We rely on donations and do not receive funding through any government agency.

Three Village Meals On Wheels 216 Christian Ave. P.O. Box 853 Stony Brook, NY 631-689-7070

3villagemow@gmail.com

3villagemealsonwheels.org

Three Village Dads Foundation held a fundraiser April 16 to raise money for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation. Some attendees, including David Tracy, below, chairman and CEO, had their heads shaved to help raise funds. Food trucks were available during the event, above. Photos from Three Village Dads Foundation

Shop Local!

Paper Sold Out on the New tand?

The following incidents have been reported by Suffolk County Police:

Man killed in Rocky Point crash

Suffolk County Police Sixth Squad detectives are investigating a crash that killed a man in Rocky Point on April 14.

Hamilton Bogan was driving a 2013 Nissan Altima when his vehicle left the road and struck a tree in front of 23 Miller Place/Yaphank Road at approximately 8:15 a.m. Bogan, 37, of Mastic Beach, was pronounced dead at the scene. The vehicle was impounded for a safety check.

Anyone with information on this crash is asked to call Sixth Squad detectives at 631854-8652.

Three killed in Holbrook crash

Suffolk County Police Fifth Squad detectives are investigating a motor vehicle crash that killed two adults and a child in Holbrook on April 12. Emanuel Dandrea was driving a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox westbound on Veterans Memorial Highway when he attempted to make a lefthand turn toward southbound Coates Avenue and collided with a 2002 Honda motorcycle that was traveling eastbound on Veterans Memorial Highway at approximately 1:20 p.m.

Both Dandrea, 74, of Shoreham, and the driver of the motorcycle, Alaaeldien Elfaham, 23, of Deer Park, were pronounced dead at the scene. A passenger in the Equinox, Alanna Lika, 11, of Holbrook, was transported in an ambulance to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment of serious physical injuries. She later died at the hospital. An 8-year-old female in the vehicle was also taken to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment of non-lifethreatening injuries.

Veterans Memorial Highway was closed both ways for about three hours.

Detectives are asking anyone with information on this crash to call Fifth Squad detectives at 631-854- 8552.

Teen killed in Calverton shooting

Suffolk County Police Homicide Squad detectives are investigating a shooting that killed a teenager in Calverton on April 12. Preston Gamble was involved in an altercation between two groups of teenagers and young adults on Hill Circle in Calverton when a male shot him at 3:55 p.m. Gamble, 15, of Calverton, was transported by family to Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead where he was pronounced dead.

Anyone with information on this shooting is asked to contact Homicide Squad detectives at 631-852-6392.

CAUGHT ON CAMERA

Wanted for petit larceny

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers and Suffolk County Police Sixth Precinct Crime Section officers are seeking the public’s help to identify and locate two people who allegedly stole assorted merchandise from Target, located at 265 Pond Path in South Setauket, on April 4 at approximately 5 p.m.

Holbrook registered nurse arrested

On April 12 Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced the arrest of Amanda Burke, a registered nurse, who was charged with alleged Endangering the Welfare of a Child, a Class A misdemeanor.

According to the investigation, on February 6, Burke, 29, of Holbrook, who, at the time of the incident, was employed by Good Samaritan Hospital in West Islip and working in the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), was assigned to care for the two-day old infant. Burke allegedly approached the newborn while he was lying in a bassinet, lifted him up, quickly flipped him over, and violently slammed him face down on the bassinet.

The infant’s father recorded a video of the incident on his cellular telephone through the nursery window. After viewing the recording, the infant’s mother confronted Burke. When the parents notified other members of Good Samaritan Hospital’s nursing staff of Burke’s egregious act, Burke was directed to leave the hospital, and her employment was terminated.

— COMPILED BY HEIDI

SUTTON

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers offers a cash reward for information that leads to an arrest. Anyone with information about these incidents can contact Suffolk County Crime Stoppers to submit an anonymous tip by calling 1-800-220-TIPS.

Do you recognize this couple? Photo from SCPD

Patriots win in overtime

BY BILL LANDON DESK@TBRNEWSMEDIA.COM

Ward Melville broke out to a three nothing lead in the opening quarter thanks to a pair of goals by Nik Barbero along with teammate Stephen Rosano, who scored with minutes left in the opening quarter, but the Patriots soon saw that lead evaporate. Connetquot surged back rattling off three unanswered goals to close out the first half making it a new game. Ward Melville trailed 7-6 to open the final 12 minutes of play but Ward Melville outscored their visitors to close out regulation with both teams deadlocked at nine goals each forcing overtime. With 55 seconds left in the overtime period it

was the hat trick by Barbero that decided the game when his shot found its mark to win the game, 10-9, Saturday, April 15 in the Division I matchup.

Rosano topped the scoring chart for the Patriots with two goals and two assists. Barbero followed with his three goals, and Trevor Murray and Zach Brittman each scored along with one assist. Ward Melville goalie Charlie Giachetti, a senior, had a busy day in net where he tallied 13 saves.

The win lifts the Patriots to 5-0 in their division 5-2 overall. The Patriots retook the field Wednesday, April 19 with a road game against Middle Country at Newfield High School. Results were not available at press time.

Photos clockwise from upper left, Aidan Valeiko and Trevor Murray go after loose ball midfield; Ward Melville senior Trevor Murray clears the ball for the Patriots; and midfielder Brody Morgan grabs a loose ball from the scrum. Photos by Bill Landon

Three Villlage students enjoy local history during tour

BY BEVERLY C. TYLER DESK@TBRNEWSMEDIA.COM

“I love that Thomas Hodgkins was a candy manufacturer in New York City.” (Setauket Elementary School fourthgrade student during a Founders Day Original Settlement guided tour)

CLOSE AT HAND

On April 13 and 14, Three Village fourth-grade students in 19 classes came to the Setauket School auditorium in celebration of Brookhaven Town Founders Day to learn about the history of Setauket/Brookhaven through the murals of artist Vance Locke. Most of the students from the other four Three Village elementary schools raised their hands when asked, “Is this the first time you have seen these murals in the auditorium?” Town of Brookhaven historian Barbara Russell and local historian Bev Tyler, discussed each of the murals. Students were also treated to stories of Long Island’s Indigenous People by Helen Sells, a Setalcott Native American descendant who, like both Russell and Tyler, attended Setauket School and viewed the murals as a student.

Brookhaven Town Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich, who also served this year as a guide, detailed for students how Brookhaven Town grew from its founding in 1655 in Setauket to stretch from Long Island Sound to the Great South Bay.

Steven Englebright, a geologist, a former New York State Assemblyman and former professor at Stony Brook University, told students how Long Island was formed 21,000 years ago and the importance of understanding our history.

For the next two hours, each class, led by guides from the Three Village Historical Society, explored the Original Settlement area that surrounds the Setauket Village Green. The tour began with the polychrome statues of Setauket’s early leaders Richard Woodhull and General George Washington’s intelligence chief Benjamin

Tallmadge on the gables of the auditorium and gymnasium. On the front pediment of the school is the New York State Coat of Arms. Students learned about each restored artifact and the U.S. Postal Service’s mile marker, encased in brick, that has stood along the road in front of the school since the first half of the 19th century.

Walking into the Setauket Presbyterian Church cemetery, students identified the gravestones of three ship captains who moved commerce around the Atlantic coast and voyaged as far as China and Japan. They were also introduced to genre artist William Sidney Mount, one of the first artists to portray African Americans, both enslaved and free, as everyday people doing everyday activities. The last stop in the cemetery was at the grave and memorial to Setauket’s farmer and Culper spy ring leader Abraham Woodhull.

At the Caroline Church cemetery, the fourth graders discovered why the Caroline Church Carriage shed was built. Students also learned about the 1751 gravestone of Elizabeth Moore, an inscription-carved rock, which was found during the 1937 restoration of the church. “Was she an indentured servant? Was she an enslaved person? We may never know.” The fourth graders were also introduced to philanthropist Thomas Hodgkins and the Melville family — Frank, Jennie, Ward and Dorothy — philanthropists all.

At the Setauket Village Green, students learned about the long history of Long Island’s Indigenous People and the Setalcott Native Americans who signed land deed agreements with Brookhaven’s original English settlers on April 14, 1655. At the Veterans Memorial, they discussed the diversity of immigrants who lived and worked here, as well as the worldwide ancestry of the Three Village soldiers whose wartime deaths are memorialized here.

In the Frank Melville Memorial Park, our fourth-grade boys and girls learned about the importance of gristmills, millers, blacksmiths, post offices and the story of one of the Original Settlement’s 17th-century homes.

The next stop was at the location of the Tyler Bros. General Store, which offered people the opportunity to purchase needed supplies, pick up mail, visit to hear about the news of the day or buy penny candy. Lucy Hart, when she was six or seven, used to stop at the general store on her way home from school. There was a glass case in the store which contained a number of selections of sweets. Lucy remembered, “You would get four of five round things for a penny. Jaw Breakers, three or four for a penny; and stick candy was a penny a stick.”

At the Amos Smith House, students saw how the house changed and grew over more than 200 years. They discussed the seven generations that lived in the house with as many as nine children in two of the families. They heard that the house and property were donated to the Three Village Community Trust in 2017 and will be environmentally and historically preserved forever.

At the Setauket Neighborhood House, students

learned about travel and transportation from the era of the Indigenous People on Long Island to colonial travel with overnight stops at inns and ordinaries, which provided essential services. They saw how railroad lines were established on Long Island in the 19th century, greatly increasing travel and tourism from New York City to Long Island. The railroads also helped bring the Industrial Revolution to the area with Setauket factories hiring European immigrants who flooded into New York City; the new workers producing pianos and rubber goods. The fourth graders discussed how the Elderkin Hotel progressed from a hotel, with stage coach service from the Lakeland Railroad Station, to a tourist home called the Lake House, with station wagon service from the Long Island Railroad’s Stony Brook station, and finally, to its present name and its use as a meeting place for the entire community.

Patriot’s Rock, a remnant of the last glacier and a Native American meeting place, provided an opportunity for students to learn about the Revolutionary War Battle of Setauket and Caleb Brewster, an artillery officer who directed the cannon fire and how Brewster was also an important member of the Setauket-based Culper Spy Ring. “I thought that it was so cool that we got to stand on the battlefield of the American Revolutionary War.” (Mount fourth-grade student)

“Founders Day is more than learning about our local history,” said Brookhaven Town Historian and Founders Day committee member Barbara Russell, “it is an historical experience for our Three Village fourth-grade students . . . Learning that the Emma S. Clark library is not just the place to find books or attend a program, but is an architecturally interesting structure that was built by a local resident (Thomas Hodgkins) as a gift to the community; and there really was a person named Emma S. Clark is enlightening to fourth graders.

Then they walk toward Caroline Church and see the Hodgkins and Clark headstones — it all comes together in this fascinating look on a student’s face that they have just put it all together.”

At the end of the tour, each student received a copy of the Founders Day Companion (walking tour) Book prepared by the Three Village Historical Society, courtesy of the Three Village Central School District. Students, who can now be considered knowledgeable guides to the area’s local history, are encouraged to take their family members on the walking tour.

Donna Smith, coordinator of the Founders Day program, commented, “All of us were there [in the Setauket School auditorium] at the end of the tour and the guides were feeling enthusiasm for the tours they just completed. It was as enriching for the guides as the students. This is why several of the guides have been coming back year after year.”

This year marked the eighteenth year of a partnership between the Three Village Central School District and the Three Village Historical Society where Three Village fourth-grade students have come to the Setauket School auditorium to learn about the murals of the history of Setauket/Brookhaven and the ninth year the Founders Day Program has included the Original Settlement Walking Tour. The Founders Day program is updated every year, bringing new concepts and ideas needed within a changing curriculum. We hope that every fourth-grade student will continue to experience the wonder of our local history and be excited to learn more of the stories of the people who lived here and what they contributed to our history.

Beverly C. Tyler is a Three Village Historical Society historian and author of books available from the society at 93 North Country Road, Setauket. For more information, call 631-751-3730 or visit www.tvhs.org.

Guide Rob VonBernewitz, above, discussing with students the importance and functions of the Setauket grist mill. Below, guide Amani Hosein discussing the memorial to the Setauket World War II veterans whose ancestors, from 11 European countries, had worked in the Setauket rubber factory. Photos by Beverly C. Tyler

PJS/T chamber president to challenge Englebright, Figliola for Suffolk’s 5th District

BY RAYMOND JANIS EDITOR1@TBRNEWSMEDIA.COM

The race to replace Suffolk County Legislator Kara Hahn (D-Setauket) is now a threeway contest as Jen Dzvonar, president of the Port Jefferson Station/Terryville Chamber of Commerce, has declared her candidacy.

Hahn’s 5th Legislative District spans Three Village, Port Jefferson, Port Jefferson Station, Terryville and parts of Coram and Mount Sinai. The incumbent cannot seek reelection due to 12-year term limits for county offices.

Former New York State Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket) and 2022 GOP primary candidate for New York’s 1st Congressional District, Anthony Figliola of East Setauket, have received their respective party committee’s nominations. [See story, “Legislative races ramp up across levels of government,” The Port Times Record, March 9, also TBR News Media website.]

Dzvonar’s campaign is unaffiliated with a political party. She owns the Port Jefferson Station-based Bass Electric and has served as chamber president for over a decade. She is also a Port Jefferson Rotary Club member.

In an exclusive interview, Dzvonar told TBR

LEGALS

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News Media she entered the race to build upon ongoing efforts within the 5th District.

“I wanted to make sure that our community is moving in a forward direction, still making progress, still revitalizing,” she said.

The chamber president suggested local initiatives often stagnate due to bureaucracy. She expressed interest in “streamlining” government services, limiting paperwork and removing other impediments within the county government.

“Especially being in the chamber, I see the struggle of local and small businesses — even small developers — that have a hard time getting things to happen,” she said. “It just seems to take so long, and I want to streamline that whole process.”

Among other policy concerns, Dzvonar said she would focus on addressing homelessness, maintaining that the county offers valuable services that are not used to their full potential. Accessing social services, she noted, should be simple.

“There are so many great programs already established for homeless people, people with addiction, with mental health,” the candidate said. “We just need to make those services more readily available.”

She added, “There just seems to be a disconnect somewhere. They don’t make it easy for people that have these issues to be able to

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obtain help.”

Dzvonar also proposed expanding sewer access into Port Jefferson Station, a measure she contended could bolster further community development. “We can’t get rid of the blight until that is done,” she said. Dzvonar added that increasing the number

of mental health personnel within the county and promoting the Safer Streets initiative are also items on her agenda.

To get on the ballot, Dzvonar has a tall task ahead, needing to obtain 1,500 signatures between April 18 and May 23. Election Day is November 7.

CARPET • RUGS • HARDWOOD andersontuftex.com

ZZ055 DRIFT 00754 PASMINA

Port Jefferson Station/Terryville Chamber of Commerce president Jen Dzvonar, above, is a declared candidate for Suffolk County’s 5th Legislative District. Photo courtesy Dzvonar

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Food before football: Long Island’s uphill battle against childhood hunger

We have a hunger problem on Long Island.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as “a household-level economic and social condition of limited or uncertain access to adequate food.” Last year, Long Island Cares published a study that states as many as 230,000 Long Islanders are food insecure, with a staggering 68,000 food insecure children. These estimates come as food prices and inflation continue to climb.

The United States has the largest national economy by GDP on the planet. We lead the world in scientific and technological innovation as well as defense spending. Still, nearly 70,000 children right here on Long Island are food insecure.

In our democracy, citizens finance the government with the understanding that our tax dollars will advance meaningful public ends. In exchange for our votes, we expect government officials to plow our roads, secure our neighborhoods and ameliorate the condition of society in common.

Unfortunately, politicians don’t always follow these guidelines, instead pursuing the policy preferences of the donor class financing their campaigns. Too often, our elected representatives serve special interest groups over ordinary citizens.

The next national budget asks Congress for $858 billion in defense spending — a figure that dwarfs the $122 billion budget request for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

While we certainly acknowledge the necessity of national security, we remind our leaders to balance this priority with the equally significant need of feeding children. The values of providing for the common defense and promoting the general welfare are not mutually exclusive.

For New York state, Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) has proposed cutting funding for the state’s Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program — which funds food banks and pantries — from $56 million to some $35 million.

This proposal comes less than a year after Hochul helped broker a deal to construct a new football stadium for the Buffalo Bills — whose owner is worth $6.7 billion — using $600 million in taxpayer funds.

The governor’s decision to prioritize football over food banks is inexcusable, in part benefiting millionaire athletes and a billionaire owner at the expense of hungry Long Island school children. We encourage Hochul to reconsider her budget request, making the appropriate investment in alleviating hunger in our communities.

As with any complex social issue, we cannot blame any person or group. But we must ask ourselves if our elected leaders can do more to combat food insecurity. Fortunately, we have recourse.

Organizations such as Agape Meals for Kids and Long Island Cares are contributing valuably, working to address food insecurity on Long Island and eliminate hunger. We should support such organizations by donating money or volunteering our time.

Childhood hunger should be regarded as a national security risk and a critical societal danger. Children are the next generation of soldiers, workers and leaders in this country. If adequately fed, they will be more competent in school and more successful in life. If not, the entire nation loses.

We must hold our representatives to a higher standard and do our part to support nonprofits making a change. With our aims in focus, let us end childhood hunger on Long Island.

For an Island as rich as ours, to have 68,000 children go hungry every day is more than unconscionable. It’s a sin.

Perspective The 21st century is calling for the BOE

The Three Village Central School District Board of Education held a meeting on April 12. One of the primary items on the agenda was the vote to determine what if any changes were to be made to the configuration of the district.

This vote was based on the recent survey completed by parents, students, staff and community members and contained four viable options, three of which would bring this district into the 21st century. Unfortunately, rather than convene the vote, two board members opted to consider a tabling of this longawaited decision in order to prioritize the “start time” discussion. As someone who has been eager for Three Village to put 1966 behind us, it was very disconcerting that the district will continue to drag its feet on this very important move forward.

the mother of a teenager, an extra 2030 minutes will not have a significant impact on our children’s sleep patterns and/or academic performance. Contrarily, though, a reconfiguration of our schools at the secondary level will have a definitively positive effect on our 6th through 12th graders.

and it is time. Yes, it will cost money. Yes, it will be an adjustment, albeit a small one. And, yes, it is the time for this change.

By Stefanie Werner

These changes will primarily support our 9th graders who will finally have the opportunity to reap the benefits that Ward Melville has to offer in regard to courses, clubs, athletics, music/ arts, etc. Is there really anyone in the Three Village community who wishes to deny our students these opportunities? Is it not time to join every district in New York and move our students to a high school environment when they are high school students?

My graduating class was 752 students. This year’s graduating class is just over 400 students. The incoming kindergarten class, at this point, is a mere 324 students. The district enrollment is in steep decline. We are wasting $450,000 busing our 9th grade junior varsity athletes to the high school. The district has two elementary schools within 1.2 miles of each other, neither of which is close to capacity, a fact calling for the closing/repurposing of one of the buildings.

I am a proud alumnus of Three Village. When I attended Ward Melville High School the morning start time was approximately 7:30-7:35. Presently the start time is 7:05, a difference of 2530 minutes. All school districts in New York state have start times between 6:45 and 7:40. I have read the research regarding early start times for teenagers and while I respect it, particularly as

And our 6th graders, don’t they deserve the middle school opportunities that will be afforded to them as well?

We had an option offered to us on the survey, Option B, which proved to be the most popular among every voting subset. This option called for the district to switch to a middle school model and move our 6th graders out of the elementary schools and our 9th graders up to the high school. It is a change that is decades in the making

Letter to the Editor

National Minority Health Month

April is National Minority Health Month, and we are urging that people of all skin tones protect themselves against skin cancer. Despite the common misconception that people of color cannot get skin cancer, it does affect people of all skin tones. Harmful ultraviolet rays can penetrate all skin types, regardless of your ethnicity, so even for people with dark skin, sun protection is necessary every day.

According to the American Cancer Society, melanoma rates have risen by 20% among Hispanics in the past two decades. The annual incidence of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, is currently 1 in 167 for

Hispanics and 1 in 1,000 for African Americans —compared to 1 in 38 for white people.

Although people of color are diagnosed with skin cancer at lower rates than Caucasians, prognoses are typically poorer and survival rates are lower. Black patients with melanoma have an estimated five-year survival rate of 71 percent, versus 93 percent for white patients.

You can reduce your skin cancer risk by practicing sun safe strategies when outdoors. Applying sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher, wearing a wide-brimmed hat, UV protective sunglasses and longsleeved clothing, and seeking shade whenever possible, can help prevent

Monetarily and academically the only choice is for our board to do their due diligence and vote to make Option B the future of our district. If this resolution is not reached soon, we are at risk of not being able to make this change for the 2024-25 school year. At this point, my child will not be impacted by the transition as she will already be at the high school, but as a lifelong member of this district I want this opportunity for every other student who will benefit from this model.

Our children deserve the academic and social benefits of Option B. The time has come for change. The 21st century is calling, it’s time for the board to stop blocking the number.

Stefanie Werner is a school social worker and a lifelong resident of Three Village who attended Arrowhead Elementary School, Gelinas Junior High School and Ward Melville High School.

skin cancer.

The Cancer Prevention in Action program at Stony Brook Cancer Center works to increase awareness about the dangers of UV radiation and promote sun safety to reduce skin cancer rates on Long Island. To learn more about Cancer Prevention in Action, visit the website takeactionagainstcancer.com or contact us at 631-444-4263 or email COE@stonybrookmedicine.edu.\ This program is supported with funds from Health Research Inc. and New York State.

Annalea Trask Program Coordinator, Cancer Prevention In Action Stony Brook Cancer Center

Wanting air time amid a wall of words

Idon’t know if teeter-totters exist anymore. Remember them? Two people sit on opposite ends of a board, with a support in the middle. They start at the same height, facing each other, with legs extended. One person pushes up while the other bends his or her legs and gets closer to the ground. The one on the bottom pushes off, while the one on the top heads toward the ground.

The image seems like an apt simile for conversations.

In one-on-one conversations, these interactions sometimes involve prolonged periods when one person is on the ground, and the other is stuck in the air, waiting for the speaker to stop talking so he or she can come to the ground and share some thoughts and reactions.

I have had numerous experiences where it seems the teeter-totter gets stuck in one position, much more often than not with me dangling in the air. Yes, I am a decent listener. No, I don’t hear or register everything my wife or anyone else tells me. I do, however, have an ability to listen to a meandering story that includes many detours, recitations of facts that aren’t germane to the main thread of the story, and to self editing. To wit:

“It was a Tuesday that I lost my dog.”

Somewhere along the lines, I wonder what happened to the fine art of conversational teeter-tottering, with a predictable and relaxing back-and-forth rhythm.

The stories from another person continue, with one bleeding into the next one so endlessly that I feel like I’m listening to excerpts from several different books on tape.

As I listen, I wonder what my role is. Clearly, the other person doesn’t want or need to hear much from me.

I sometimes wish there were a swimmer’s clock behind the person’s head, which would allow me to time the minutes between sounds like “uh huh,” and “oh yeah,” and “really? no way! That’s terrible/wonderful/amazing/ ridiculous!”

lists of chores in my head, wondering who didn’t give this person a chance to speak when he or she was younger.

An actual pause periodically arrives. My toes dig happily into the welcome sand beneath me, reveling in the auditory opening.

I don’t want to wait too long to say something, because people aren’t always comfortable with quiet, which can restart an ongoing monologue.

After I express an idea, or sometimes just a phrase, I feel my body ascending back into space. Wait, did I not make it clear that I wasn’t done? How am I dangling above the ground again?

BY DANIEL DUNAIEF

You see, one person talks, while the other listens, and then, the listener becomes the speaker and the speaker the listener. Such simple descriptions don’t work in group dialogue.

“No, wait, it was a Wednesday and it wasn’t my dog, it was my cat.”

“No, no, it was a Tuesday, and it was neither my dog nor my cat, but it was my car keys. The point is that I lost something before I found it. That was also the day I got a new job”

It’s the Mad Libs version of listening to the same story, or a variation of that story, while throwing in the appropriate, or sufficiently irreverent, adjective.

I raise my eyebrows periodically in response to the tone of the person’s voice, going through

Suspended in mid-air, I suppose I could consider those moments as the equivalent of listening to a bird singing a repetitive tune echoing among the eaves.

Perhaps in the future, we can create a verbal shorthand when we feel we’ve lost conversational balance. Maybe, we can just say “teeter-totter” when we need to speak.

As I drive along the local roads, the sight of the bright yellow forsythia, the symphony of pink cherry blossoms, dogwood and magnolia and the yellow daffodils waving” hello” uplift my spirits and bring me joy. Yes, it’s spring, glorious spring! And the weather could not be more cooperative. We have been able to shed our heavy jackets, sweaters and such, and even give our air conditioners a brief trial run when the temperature hit the high 80s and stayed there for a couple of days.

BY LEAH S. DUNAIEF

Best of all, we know this splendor is early, and the beautiful season, when Nature festoons the earth, is just beginning.

At one and the same time, the news about human activities blackens the world. Every day,

yes every day, we wake up to the news of more mass shootings, more homicides. Because a teenage boy rings the bell of the wrong house on his errand to pick up his younger siblings, he is then shot to death. Because a car full of teenage girls pulls into the wrong driveway, shots are fired at the vehicle as it is trying to back out and one young woman is killed. Because yet another unarmed young man tries to run away from the police at a traffic stop, he deserves to be murdered.

What is happening to our country?

These horrors are occurring because people are afraid. Unless he has cognitive issues, why would an 84-year-old man answer his door with a gun? Why would someone inside a house shoot at a car that just entered the driveway unless they were terrified for themselves. This is more than a mental health issue, which might be blamed for shooting up employees in a bank. This is about cold, petrifying fear.

Thank heavens that Nature goes about her business transforming the earth into a paradise

because we humans need something to offset the hell we are creating. People are asked if they are afraid for their children to go to school. To school, which was always the safest place to get children off the streets. Now more than three quarters of the parents say, “Yes.” And so do more than half of the children in elementary school and middle school. Never mind COVID-19 and inflation. They are passing, or will eventually. But the violence that we are living with? That just seems to be getting worse.

What can we do? We know that bad things happen when good people do nothing. But how can we improve our society?

One answer, I believe, is to turn to family and community. Strong family support and a tight-knit community offer security that is close at hand. Parents who let their children feel the love, who set standards and limits, who teach values by example and talk to their children about fears, who are there when most needed — these actions go a long way toward offering meaningful response to a frightening world.

For us adults, meeting the neighbors and creating a Neighborhood Watch for mutual protection is both a safety and social advantage. Participating in one of the many local nonprofits, from Rotary to the civic associations and PTAs in the schools to the historical societies to actually running for office can strengthen a sense of belonging and empowerment.

And then there is kindness. I’m not sure how one goes about teaching kindness except by practicing it. Kindness offsets bullying, it makes both the giver and receiver feel noticed and valued. Who has time to visit a sick neighbor? But then, we all have time to hold the door open for the person behind us, and for that person to thank the door holder, or to let the car waiting to join the line of traffic enter in front of us and in return see a thank-you wave.

And there is always Nature for respite. A walk in the park or along a beach can be restorative. Nature, too, can be violent, but storms pass. With effort and focus, perhaps human storms can, too.

D. None of the above

We are dealing with the best of times and the worst of times

“The food was excellent and presented so beautifully. I received many compliments from the guests on it. Everything was excellent.

The entire staff was polite, professional and extremely capable. They took control and made it very easy for me to enjoy the party. Diane was always available to address any concerns I had. Linda, Karen, Barbara and Bob were terrific. They left the kitchen clean and in good shape.

Also wanted to compliment Neil on his professionalism as well.

I would highly recommend Elegant Eating to anyone.

Thank you Myra for going above and beyond and making this party such a success. Looking forward to catering from Elegant Eating again for any celebrations in the future. Once again, thank you for your outstanding food and services, and for the constant communication.”

– Lisa, Ocean Beach