From The Pines, With Love

Navigating Fire Island in COVID times

by Bobby Bonanno

@fipines

How do you get young gay people to not only learn history,but appreciate it? Figuring this out has been my journey forthe last ten years as President of Fire Island Pines HistoricalPreservation Society (FIHPS). Fire Island has been a gay havensince the 1950s. The neighborhood of Fire Island Pines beganas a straight community, but its proximity to the mostly gayneighborhood of Cherry Grove quickly caught the attentionof gays who wanted more access to space and beauty. Thatstraight percentage of both communities has now flippedfrom larger to smaller, while the culture in some ways has onlybecome more enriched with each passing year.

The 1970s were the golden age of the Pines as the worlds of fashion, art, and disco created a melting pot fueled by sex and drugs. Creativity flourished, drawing celebrities, models, and the elite of New York City and Europe. This all created an image of glamour and exclusivity that still rings true today. The combination of getting on a boat where your cares drift away, and landing in what can sometimes be called a gay theme park, has grown in demand. In 2004 the commercial district on the harbor was sold by longtime owner John Whyte to Eric Von Kuersteiner. With that came the change in demographics as marketing focused on a new generation He built it and they did come, and still come today. Unfortunately, with that came a new entitled generation, bringing little, but wanting more. Without a relationship to what came before, the respect for any rules are passed by in favor of a free for all of parties, sex, and drugs. Did it go on before? Yes. That is until a plague called AIDS came along.

Tea Dance - 1979

Photo courtesy of Pines Historical Preservation Society

So here we are in 2020 thinking we have evolved. We have been watching the rules bend for years. It was allowed, as we were all possibly getting something out of it. Money, sex, whatever it was, caused many to look the other way. Amid this novel coronavirus epidemic, we are now brought back to the ’80s where many did not want to hear about something that could hinder the fun of Fire Island. What comes to mind is one of my mentors, the late playwright/activist Larry Kramer, pleading with the then gay community to listen. Another mentor, Madonna, in her lyrics to “God Control” said, “Everybody knows the damn truth! WAKE UP, WAKE UP!” And in the movie “The Normal Heart,” we are taken on that historic ride through history. A history that many from the now generation do not want to look at. As a matter of fact, in 2014 when I held a private screening in the Pines of the film, only the mature population showed up.

July 4th is the celebration of not only our country, but on Fire Island, “The Invasion.” A historic day where Cherry Grove drag queens invade the Pines commemorating that day in 1976 where a drag queen was refused service at a Pines restaurant. This year we had a different kind of invasion. One that represented a change in the community that many might have seen but looked the other way. Entitlement in its most brazen form. I had already heard about some parties going on in the early season and seen some of the non-mask wearers walking about, but nothing prepared me for the fireworks that happened on the beach. First, there was a day party with a large gathering of boys. None wearing masks and no social distancing of any kind. Then there was a late-night party in the Meat Rack, a beachy, wooded enclave between the communities of the Pines and Cherry Grove. That particular party was allegedly planned with invites and a DJ. The proverbial S#*T hit the fan! The scale of these events was so massive that they even drew the attention of major media outlets and Governor Cuomo. To make matters worse, a person at the beach party acknowledged his very recent COVID exposure on social media, making him the pariah of the event. This has now become the wake-up call to the community. While PJ McAteer, owner of the commercial properties in the Pines, has been struggling to keep things moving forward according to government guidelines, all hell was breaking loose.

July 4th beach in Fire Island Pines

Well as the glitter now settles, changes are being made. Pines Party online has now been canceled. The Fire Island Pines Property Owners Association (FIPPOA) is stepping up to partner with local police to monitor goings on in homes and on the beach. And a sense of community is emerging from the past as all take umbrage with the possible destruction of their beloved island. This all brings back the past as we remember the early days of AIDS when many ignored the signs of what was to come. I get it. Nobody wants to look back at sad times, however, those times are what teach us about how to move forward. They give us the opportunity to learn. It is up to those from an older generation to not only have the skills to mentor, but the patience. And the younger generation needs to be patient with us as well.

Fire Island Pines was, and is, resilient. Throughout time it has hosted many benefits to challenge adversity within our community. Such as “From the Pines with Love,” which included many celebrities such as Dionne Warwick, Melba Moore, and Melissa Manchester. Also, partnering with GMHC (Gay Men’s Health Crisis), the Morning Party was created in 1982 and grew into a huge beach event lasting 16 years. Pines pioneer, realtor, and club owner Doris Taussig took many AIDS patients into her home on the island to give them an escape. The history of Fire Island Pines is rich, colorful, and certainly never boring.

"From The Pines, With Love" '92

Photo courtesy of Pines Historical Preservation Society

We must look back to how this was handled. Mistakes were made. Like today people were scared, and at that moment, made decisions that did not necessarily make themselves popular. I think again of the film ‘The Normal Heart” when we see Ned (Larry Kramer) handing out flyers in the harbor warning gay men about AIDS, only to see the indifference. That indifference cost many their lives. Another film called “Longtime Companion” comes to mind. It was a phrase used by the New York Times to reference the passing of one’s partner in the early days of AIDS. Filmed in the Pines in 1989, they were not able to use any location that would reference the Pines itself as the then President of the homeowner’s association, Alan Brockman, felt it would hurt the community. Both of these films are our history books to look back and learn as we steer through this pandemic.

As I am writing this, people are stepping up to help create change. Nightlife promoter Daniel Nardicio has put together the “COVID Destroyers” to greet people at the harbor, infiltrate beach parties, encourage social distancing, and educate visitors about how to protect themselves and others while still having fun. We are hoping to work with the Sayville Ferry on doing a historic display at the terminal with images of masks and social distancing. My hope in all of this is to bring back a stronger sense of community, and a cultural change. This time in our history will certainly be captured in our archives, and sometime in the future we will look back and remember this moment in time that changed us forever.

These things are just as important as creating an atmosphere that makes young people interested in learning about our history. There are a few ways that FIHPS is trying to do that. We live in a photo-driven society where reading sometimes gets lost, so every day we post on our social media what we call “bite size pieces of history.” We’re also exploring opportunities through live video. COVID has taken away the opportunity to celebrate anniversaries in person, so we recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Pavilion nightclub via a Zoom event instead. We have also used the platform to showcase some iconic Fire Island DJs. And finally, we are figuring out how to rework our walking tour, “A Walk Through History,” as an app that one can purchase and use to take the tour on their own or with friends. I am excited about this as we will be using the language of youth. My hope in all of this is to bring back a stronger sense of community, and a cultural change. This time in our history will certainly be captured in our archives, and sometime in the future we will look back and remember this moment in time that changed us forever.