Brookhaven Messenger Archive Mar. 06, 2025

Tierney Announces Indictments in Carjacking Gang

By Matt Meduri

Tuesday morning brought an announcement of indictments in a gang who have perpetrated dozens of carjackings, credit card theft, and theft of other valuables. The string of crimes swept Suffolk and Nassau counties, as well as portions of New York City and Westchester County from February 2023 to August 2024.

Thirteen defendants of the Hempstead/Freeport-based “5-L” gang - or “CC Boyz” gang - have been charged for their alleged roles in fiftytwo vehicle break-ins, fifteen vehicle thefts, and the theft of seventyfive credit cards used to make more than $40,000 in fraudulent purchases at retail stores.

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Palumbo Hosts 2025 Environmental Roundtable

By Matt Meduri

Long a tradition of former Senator Ken LaValle (R-Port Jefferson), his successor to the First Senate District, Senator Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk), has carried this important event in his stead.

The yearly environmental roundtable brings together elected officials, environmental experts, and local leaders to discuss the top issues affecting their communities and what Suffolk County, New York State, and Congress can do to mitigate certain situations before they unfold.

The 2025 environmental roundtable was held last Thursday at Suffolk County Community College’s Culinary Arts Center in downtown Riverhead.

Continued on page 15

Senator Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk) (Credit - Matt Meduri)

D.A. Tierney (right) and SCPD Commissioner Catalina (left) announce indictments in the carjacking crime spree at the SCCC Police Academy in Brentwood (Credit - Matt Meduri)

Published by Messenger Papers, Inc.

Brookhaven Matters

Thursday, March 6, 2025

Thirty-Ninth Annual Women’s Recognition Awards Recipients Announced

Supervisor Dan Panico (R-Center Moriches) has announced the recipients of the 2025 Women’s Recognition Awards who will be honored at the ThirtyNinth Annual Women’s Recognition Night to be held on March 20 at 6:30p.m. at Brookhaven Town Hall, One Independence Hill in Farmingville.

The event, which is open to the public, is sponsored by the Town’s Office of Women’s Services, Department of General Services. Nominated by members of the community, the winners either live or work in the Town of Brookhaven and have demonstrated excellence in their endeavors in a variety of areas. Nominations were considered by members of Brookhaven’s Women’s Advisory Board and selected based on resumes and letters of recommendation.

The 2025 Women’s Recognition Award recipients are:

Business - Mary Beth Lichtneger of Center Moriches

Communications - Lily Stolzberg of Miller Place

Community Services Professional - Jennifer Hernandez of Mount Sinai

Community Service Volunteer - Debra L. Engelhardt of Wading River

Education - Leah Topek-Walker of Patchogue

Government - Leslie A. Mitchel of Port Jefferson

Health Care Provider - Christina Burke, PT, DPT, NCS, of Great River, of Stony Brook Medicine

Law Enforcement - Megan O’Donnell, of Calverton, of District Attorney’s Office

Legal Profession - Stephanie A. Buffa, Esq. of East Setauket

Councilwoman Karen Dunne Kesnig Is Taking Town Hall on the Road

On Tuesday, March 18, Brookhaven Councilwoman Karen Dunne Kesing (R-Manorville) and her staff are hitting the road and heading to the Moriches Bay Recreation Center in Center Moriches, to host in-district office hours. This is the kickoff of the Councilwoman’s initiative of bringing Town Hall to the community.

“I understand that people keep very busy schedules between work and their homelife and realize that it isn’t always easy to get everything on our lists accomplished,” said Councilwoman Dunne Kesnig. “I hope that constituents will take advantage of this opportunity to meet one-on-one at a more convenient location within Council District 6 to ask questions or to discuss issues of concern.”

Office hours are planned for 1:30p.m. to 4:30p.m. Individuals can call Councilwoman Dunne Kesnig’s office at 631-451-6502, to schedule a specific time, or just stop by the recreation center. The Moriches Bay Recreation Center is located at 313 Frowein Road in Center Moriches.

Medicine - Dr. Rachel Davis, of Roslyn, of Stony Brook Medicine

Science - Dr. Gabriella Carini of Port Jefferson

2025 Town Board Special Commendation Awards

Supervisor Daniel J. Panico - Annette Eaderesto, Esq. of Brookhaven hamlet

Councilman Jonathan Kornreich (D-Stony Brook) - Dr. Jennifer Quinn of East Setauket

Councilwoman Jane Bonner (R-Rocky Point) - Bea Ruberto of Sound Beach

Councilman Neil A. Manzella (R-Selden) - Linda Miller of Selden

Councilman Michael A. Loguercio (R-Ridge) - Isabella Rossellini of Brookhaven hamlet

Councilman Neil Foley (R-Blue Point) - Mary Bailey of Blue Point

Councilwoman Karen Dunne Kesnig (R-Manorville) - Maura Spery of Mastic

The Town of Brookhaven’s Office of Women’s Services, a Division of the Department of General Services, provides a variety of services for women and their families. For more information about the 39th Annual Women’s Recognition Awards Night ceremony, please call 631-451-6146 or visit BrookhavenNY.gov.

The Brookhaven Messenger serves Centereach, Lake Grove, Selden, Coram, Farmingville, Rocky Point, Patchogue, Medford, Miller Place and Mt. Sinai 70 Years of Service to Our Community

Continued from front cover

County

Tierney Announces Indictments in Carjacking Gang

Defendants have been caught on home surveillance and security video cameras targeting residential driveways, gyms, hotels, golf courses, and assisted living facilities across Suffolk County. Investigators also allege the defendants carried out a grand larceny scheme using phishing emails to gain access to bank accounts, resulting in the withdrawal of over $50,000 from victims’ accounts.

Videos were then played, showing the alleged defendants opening unlocked cars where the key fobs were left. One gang member drove a particular car across the victim’s front lawn, as the car was blocked in the driveway by another vehicle. The defendants also allegedly broke the windows of fourteen vehicles to gain access.

Defendants also allegedly used the stolen cars to “car check,” switching license plates to other vehicles to avoid detection by law enforcement. Some vehicles were eventually abandoned in Suffolk and Nassau counties.

Defendants also allegedly used stolen credit cards immediately after obtaining them to make purchases, allowing investigators to narrow down their searches.

The string of crimes occurred in the late-night and early-morning hours. The investigation revealed that defendants allegedly used real estate phone applications to target Suffolk neighborhoods where they believed victims would be more likely to leave their cars unlocked with wallets and/or car keys inside.

Fifteen Social Security cards and fourteen National Insurance cards were also involved in the thefts.

The three primary defendants consist of Shawn Mullen, 24, of Hempstead, Trevon Brandon-Douse, 26, of Freeport, and Zion Fenner, 25, of Freeport.

Mullen faces a top count of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a Class C Felony. He is charged with 197 counts, including 178 felony charges. He allegedly broke into approximately thirty-five vehicles and stole fourteen vehicles. He was held on a $1 million cash bond, $5 million bond, or $10 million partially secured bond. He faces five to fifteen years in prison if convicted on the top charge and faces consecutive sentences if convicted of multiple charges.

Brandon-Douse faces the same top county as Mullen, and is charged with seventy-nine counts, including seventy-three felonies.

Fenner faces a top count of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a Class D felony and is charged with a total of fifty-nine felonies for allegedly breaking into ten vehicles and stealing three.

Jaquan Wilson, 21, of Hempstead, faces a top county of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a Class C Felony. He is due back in court in April and faces five to fifteen years in prison if convicted.

Edwin Pierre, 25, of Freeport, faces the same charge, but was released from jail without bail because the charges are considered non-bail eligible in New York.

Kavon Wilson, 21, of Hempstead, was charged with Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree, a Class E Felony. Wilson was released from jail due to the charge being non-bail eligible. The same charge and circumstances apply to Andrew Lawrence, 23, of Hempstead, Joshua Lee Garrett, 20, of Bethpage, and Brianna

Patterson, 32, of Hempstead.

Damien Patrice, 27, of Hempstead, faces a charge of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a Class C felony, but is currently in New York State Department of Corrections custody on an unrelated matter.

Jarell Lanier, 25, of Freeport, faces a top count of Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, a Class E felony. He is also in NYSDOC custody on an unrelated matter.

Jamal Woodise, 24, of Freeport, faces a top count of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a Class D felony, but is currently in custody on NYSDOC on an unrelated matter.

Rahmadon Cruz, 28, of the Bronx, faces a top count of Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree, a Class E felony and faces up to two to four years in prison if convicted. He is still at large.

“This indictment demonstrates our unwavering commitment to protecting Suffolk County residents from property theft. Through meticulous investigation and collaboration with our law enforcement partners, we’ve dismantled a sophisticated criminal operation that targeted neighborhoods throughout our county,” said District Attorney Ray Tierney (R). “These alleged gang members strategically victimized our communities, breaking into vehicles, stealing credit cards, and quickly making purchases before victims could respond. Let it be clear – in Suffolk County, you cannot steal other people’s property with impunity. I want to thank our law enforcement partners and the investigators and prosecutors in my office that helped bring this indictment to fruition and we look forward to holding these individuals responsible in court.”

“This criminal enterprise capitalized on unsuspecting people for a year and a half, stealing property and peace of mind,” said Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina. “What this gang didn’t count on was the tenacity of our detectives to uncover their schemes. I commend the Fifth Squad, the District Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners that sent a clear message that property crime is not victimless and one we are focused on.”

“Here’s a message for every wouldbe criminal out there: if you try to exploit the postal system for criminal use, Postal Inspectors will be on the case, and we’ve had a lot of practice arresting fraudsters, over 250 years’ worth. I’d like to thank all our law enforcement partners for their assistance with this case and bringing these individuals to justice,” said USPIS New York Division Acting Inspector in Charge Brendan T. Donahue.

“I commend the outstanding work of District Attorney Ray Tierney and Commissioner Kevin Catalina in putting an end to the brazen criminal activity that targeted the residents of Suffolk County,” said Vincent F. DeMarco, United States Marshal for the Eastern of New York and former Suffolk County Sheriff. “The United States Marshals Service is proud to have played a key role in the successful apprehension of the defendants yesterday.”

“This indictment once again highlights the power that Suffolk County’s law enforcement network has in taking down criminal operations and keeping our communities safe,” said Suffolk County Sheriff Errol D. Toulon, Jr. (D). “The Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office remains committed to working with our law enforcement partners to hold offenders accountable and protect our residents from those who seek to victimize them. I commend the officers involved in the investigation for their tireless work in bringing these individuals to justice.”

Credit - Office of Executive Romaine

SCPD Commissioner Kevin Catalina - (Credit: Matt Meduri)

USPIS New York Division Acting Inspector in Charge Brendan T. Donahue (Credit: Matt Meduri)

Tragedy on Blue Point Beach: Who Killed Carlos Lopez?

By Raheem Soto

A quiet morning on Long Island’s South Shore turned tragic when a passerby discovered a man’s body near the shore at the end of Blue Point Avenue.

The victim, 27-year-old Carlos Lopez of Central Islip, had been stabbed multiple times, setting off a homicide investigation that has left the community on edge.

Lopez’s body was found early Tuesday morning, prompting a rapid response from Suffolk County Police. First responders confirmed his death at the scene, and the Homicide Squad quickly secured the area. Blue Point, a small waterfront town better known for its breweries and scenic views, is not the kind of place where violent crime happens. This murder has left locals shaken.

Investigators are also looking into Lopez’s connections. Did he have enemies? Was he involved in something that put him in danger?

The community wants answers, and so does his grieving family.

with any information, no matter how small.

For now, Lopez’s family is left mourning a life cut short. His mother, speaking briefly to reporters, pleaded for justice.

“My son didn’t deserve this,” she said. “Whoever did this needs to be found.”

The Suffolk County Police Homicide Squad continues to investigate. Anyone with information is urged to call 631852-6392 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.

A killer is out there. And it’s only a matter of time before the truth comes to light.

Police have not disclosed any suspects or motives but are following several leads. The fact that Lopez was stabbed multiple times suggests a personal attack rather than a random act of violence. Was he lured to Blue Point, or was he killed elsewhere and left on the beach?

Blue Point is a place where people feel safe walking their dogs at sunrise or enjoying coffee by the bay. Now, there’s a lingering fear.

“We don’t have this kind of crime here,” said a longtime resident. “It’s unsettling.”

Police are urging the public to come forward

New York City Becomes a Chess Board

The rumors swirling around the political future of New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) have taken the state and country by storm. What initially began as a high-profile corruption case - Adams is the first NYC Mayor to be charged with federal crimes while in office - the case has taken a series of twists and turns, with Governor Hochul (D) mulling the causes and effects of deposing Adams, as well as the apparent fraternizing with the Trump Administration regarding immigration enforcement.

Elected in 2021 after the disastrous terms of Bill de Blasio (D), Eric Adams easily defeated Guardian Angel Curtis Sliwa (R), calling himself the “future of the Democratic Party.” Any candidate who would fill the open mayoral seat that year would have a mandate to put the city back on track in terms of improving public safety and policepublic relations, as well as help stem the outmigration problem that has turned New York’s budget and local economies on their heads.

Instead, Adams has produced the lowest approval ratings for an NYC Mayor since the Associated Press began such polling in 1996, clocking in at just 26% in the final quarter of 2024.

But Adams’ slide in popularity isn’t recent, nor is it self-contained. In the wake of the criminal indictments, which allege he accepted gifts and bribes from the Turkish government, a Quinnipiac poll found Adams with a 28% approval rating.

Even with the lapse of a year in between the polls, they produce strikingly similar results: nearly two-thirds of the city - and a roughly equal number of Democrats - believe Adams should resign. Marist’s 2024 poll found that 69% of NYC residents and 71% of Democrats believe he should resign, with 30% believing he should serve the rest of his term. The poll also found that residents believe by a margin of 63%-36% that Hochul should remove Adams from his position, a broad power vested to the executive within the New York State Constitution.

But one statistic gives him a near-zero chance of winning a primary, let alone the 2025 general election: according to Marist, only 18% of NYC residents think he should run for re-election.

So much for being the “future of the Democratic Party.”

But this isn’t an indictment on Adams as much as it is the complex political calculus facing New York, particularly New York City.

For starters, New York’s monumental shift to the right in the 2024 presidential race was the single-largest swing for any state in the nation, with the formula coming down to a massive enthusiasm gap. Kamala Harris (D-CA) failed to retrieve 625,000 votes that Joe Biden (D-DE) did in 2020, while Donald Trump (R-FL) added almost 330,000 to his fold. The end result was Harris becoming the first Democrat to win New York by a margin of less than one million votes since 1988.

That swing was mostly produced by New York City, with all five boroughs taking unprecedented double-digit swings to the right.

Such change in an institutionally Democratic area is cause for concern, especially since it’s not relegated to just one fluke election. Then-Congressman now-EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) produced staggering numbers in New York City that Trump actually improved upon in a completely separate type of election.

The city has also proven to make the immediate bedroom communities ground zero for a more competitive New York, with Nassau County and North Jersey also finding themselves in such massive rightward swings in relatively short periods of time. NYC proper, southern Brooklyn in particular, was also responsible for the GOP cracking Democrats’ supermajority in the State Senate last year

Ironically, it seems that New York City could be Republicans’ friend in flipping New York, rather than the insurmountable obstacle it has been for them for decades. And with all or most of the calculus lying on the Big Apple, it is in Democrats’ best interests to navigate this situation deftly so as to preserve their political prospects.

The second part of the equation comes from the fact that Hochul is obviously floundering going into 2026. We’re comfortable classifying her as a slight underdog, but it won’t be a cakewalk for Republicans either - that is, unless Zeldin decides to make another run for governor.

Hochul entered Election Day 2024 with a lower net favorability rating than Donald Trump in New York, although he was also underwater. His net approval rating, while still negative, is the highest it’s been in New York State since he began his political career, according to the Siena College. Correlation doesn’t always equal causation, especially when comparing one election year to another, but those trends are highly notable in a state that’s been more like Fort Knox to Republicans than most others.

Hochul will also likely face a primary from outspoken Congressman Ritchie Torres (D, NY-16), while former Congressman Jamaal Bowman (D, NY-16) has publicly expressed interest. While Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado (D) dismissed rumors of trying to primary his boss, his recent departure from the 2026 lieutenant governor’s race makes us wonder if he’ll throw his hat in the ring after all. Primarying a direct superior is often a terrible political move with massive ramifications.

But two weeks ago, Delgado called on Adams to resign, the first such endorsement from the executive branch, leading to a Hochul spokesperson definitively stating that Adams does not speak for the governor.

These little internal disputes might be indicative of a much larger problem, posing the question, who is the Democratic standard bearer in New York and is there a political power vacuum looming?

Enter former Governor Andrew Cuomo (D), who served from 2011 until his abrupt resignation amid sexual assault allegations in 2021. Cuomo is now running for NYC mayor, hoping to stage his own political comeback, despite the U.S. House admonishing him for his deliberate cover-up of the nursing home deaths during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

In our opinion, Cuomo should not be mayor of New York; he should be in prison.

But that aside, Cuomo has a massive coalition in New York, particularly in the city, mostly of laborers, black voters, and working-class Italians. Cuomo might have significant baggage, but to many voters, he’s someone with whom they’ve identified for years. Old school Democrats who are fatigued of Trump might just throw their support behind in light of the scandals, while progressives will likely feel politically homeless.

As of now, it’s our opinion that Cuomo has the best chances of the declared or prospective candidates of not only winning a primary, but winning the general election. This, of course, depends on just how pervasive the COVID-19 scandal is on the mind’s of NYC voters, as well as the possibility of an enthusiasm gap that brought New York closer to a single-digit race for the first time in generations.

Where NYC’s grid-like infrastructure morphs into grids on a chess board comes in two parts: Adams’ possible new-found ally in Donald Trump and the political future of New York City, and Cuomo’s own political prospects relative to his former number-two in Kathy Hochul.

When Adams was indicted last year, we wrote that Trump predicted, pretty much an exact year prior, that if Adams bucked his party on immigration, he would be indicted.

Right now, Attorney General Pam Bondi (R-FL) is asking New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) to essentially can the Adams investigation, about which James, according to her, was aware for the last three years, which, along with the aforementioned Trump prediction, leads us to believe the criminal allegations were kept in James’ and company’s back pocket for political expediency.

Now appears to be that time.

This isn’t a defense of Adams; we think he has no business being mayor, but if charges are charges, why weren’t they brought when it came to the attention of the attorney general?

Meanwhile, Adams not only has the governmental fate of the city on his shoulders, but more so the political fate.

At this point, even without Cuomo on the ballot, Adams is effectively guaranteed to lose the Democratic Primary. Multiple notable progressives have joined the race, with State Senator Zellnor Myrie (D-Prospect Lefferts Gardens) considered a heavy frontrunner.

If Hochul does not depose Adams, it turns into a zero-sum game, wherein Adams is virtually guaranteed to be denied a second term - either by virtue of the primary or general - so a possible move on his part would be to run as an Independent.

Not only would this be a spite move fitting for sectional politics, but it would likely confirm he sees more of an ally in Trump than he does in his current caucus. An Independent Adams, even with a Cuomo candidacy, presents the real chance that a Republican could win the election vis-a-vis vote splitting.

This isn’t open-and-shut, rather just a distinct possibility. Cuomo could win a three-way race on a ticket that includes an Independent Adams, specifically if he can win more of the progressives and minority communities.

Otherwise, Republicans might be boxed out of winning the mayoralty in a two-way race. Even with the shifts we’ve seen in the last two statewide elections here, Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the Bronx are heavily Democratic, with Queens not far behind at a roughly 60%-40% split. The latter statistic is proof of concept of a more competitive New York city and state overall.

But is that a risk Democrats want to run?

To avoid this, it makes strategic sense for Hochul to depose Adams, thereby allowing New York City Public Advocate Jumanne Williams (D) - who ran to primary Hochul in 2022 - serving as acting mayor until a special election is held after Adams’ resignation or deposition. Democrats could nominate a new candidate and likely cakewalk November.

But will Hochul help produce, either directly or indirectly, a scenario that produces a Mayor Cuomo? Her former boss kept her in the dark for his entire governorship and even considered replacing her with an NYC progressive in 2018. Cuomo’s lack of action in public works, his sexual assault allegations, known “bully” personality, and the damning control freak behavior exercised during COVID makes him a political liability.

There’s also no telling how much of a partner Cuomo will be to Hochul, or vice versa, should political strain be more present than political gain.

Either way, the rightward shift in New York doesn’t appear to be slowing, and if both Hochul and Cuomo, should he be elected mayor, continue to govern as has been tradition the last several years, they’ll only do more to push the state more to the center, up and down the ballot.

If Cuomo tries governing like a moderate, even potentially working with Trump, who’s to say he won’t suffer the same fate as Adams? The mob boss-like power Cuomo has will be tested in such a scenario.

The political vacuum in New York seems very real, as any moves Democrats make either imperils their immediate political prospects or goes against their own personal spite for another.

One thing, however, is for sure: Cuomo belongs in a prison cell long before he’ll ever belong at Gracie Mansion.

Published by Messenger Papers, Inc.

By Mike Simonelli

Back in July 2021, the San Francisco Gay Men ‘s Choir posted a video in which they sang, “We’ll convert your children – happens bit by bit, quietly and subtly and you will barely notice it…We’re coming for your children…The gay agenda is coming home. The gay agenda is here.”

Apparently unsatisfied with the progress so far, four years later the Long Island LGBT Network has now announced they’re coming for our school board. Claiming they feel threatened by President Trump’s (R-FL) recent actions eliminating biological men from participating in women’s sports and “banning gender affirming care for young people,” the Network is preparing candidates to run in the May 20, 2025, New York State (NYS) Board of Education elections in thirteen Long Island school districts. Among the faculty members in their candidate training academy is NYS Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli (D-Great Neck Plaza) who applauded the Network’s efforts and recognized their “critical role in the fight for justice and equality.”

Like a wolf in sheep’s clothing, the Network’s founder, David Kilmnick, cloaks his intentions under such noble ideals as justice, equality and children’s safety, saying - “This is for LGBTQ and allied folks…who think that we should have safe schools.”

Who can argue with the fact that schools should be a safe place for ALL children to be able to learn math, science, English, social studies, world languages, performing arts, health, electives and participate in sports?

Rather than concern for children’s academic education, a closer look at the LI LGBT Network (which lost $10 million in state funding after an investigation found it was mishandling the millions in taxpayer dollars it received each year) reveals what they really want is for children to learn fantasy pronouns and pledge allegiance to LGBT values.

They’re Coming for Your School Board

Part of the Safe Space Pledge, retrieved 3-05-2025

During June 2022, in response to parents who felt the books used in the Smithtown libraries pride displays were “not material suitable for the small ages that were visiting the children’s room,” the trustees voted to remove the pride decorations and books from display in all the children’s sections of the towns four libraries. Among the books parents didn’t want their young children seeing was What are Your Words? which taught children between four and eight years old nonsensical pronouns like “Ey/Em, Ze/Hir, Xe/ Xir, and She/They.” The young, animated boy character details how, “Sometimes I just use one set of pronouns, sometimes I change my pronouns, and sometimes I use all the pronouns I can think of.” In another book, They, She, He, Me, children three years and older are taught the non-existent pronoun “Ze”, along with a more confusing one, “Tree.” A third book, titled Growing Up Trans is targeted at children ages eleven to eighteen. The LGBT Network led such an uproar over these books being removed from the children’s display, within forty-eight hours the library board held an emergency meeting and voted to put the pride displays back up. The LBGT Network then endorsed three candidates that would go on to beat out twelve others in the contentious October 2022 Smithtown library board elections, Annette Galarza, Mildred Bernstein, and Howard Knispel.

That same month over in the Connetquot School District, children “reported feeling uncomfortable by the Progress Pride flag being displayed” in a high school classroom. To make the classroom safe and inclusive for those students, the district leadership asked the teacher to remove the flag during regular classroom hours and display it only during the Genders & Sexualities Alliance (GSA) club meetings she led there after school hours. Even though it is the district’s policy that only the American flag and New York State flag be displayed in the classrooms, the Network complained to Governor Kathy Hochul (D-NY) that it was a “potential Human Rights law violation” and tried to bully the district, leading a protest before the next school board meeting.

Every October, the Network celebrates National Coming Out Day which, in recent years, entails encouraging children to sign a “Safe Space Pledge.” In 2022 that pledge, distributed via flyers to schools across Long Island, fought for racial equity and inclusion by having white children commit to being “thoughtful and intentional about the space I take up.” That sentence was quickly removed after backlash, but in 2024, children were still asked to pledge to “combat heterosexism” and “use terms like ‘significant other,’ ‘partner,’ or ‘spouse,’ instead of ‘boyfriend/girlfriend’ or ‘husband/wife.” In the section, “I commit to being a trans equity and gender-inclusion advocate,” along with becoming a “pronoun pro,” children pledge to “support the implementation of All-Gender Restrooms in our community and school.”

Instead of tolerance and inclusion toward LGBT classmates, children are now being taught to be advocates for the LI LGBT Network’s values in schools where the majority can’t even comprehend basic English. Along with declining scores in Long Island schools from the previous year, the most recent statewide testing showed only 38.7% of Suffolk students achieved a proficient score in English Language Arts. Against the backdrop of declining scores, there are over 4,000 GSA clubs in schools nationwide, and “nearly 6,000 public schools which hide child’s gender status from parents,” including many in New York thanks to its Supportive, and Affirming School Environment for Transgender and Gender Expansive Students policy. Despite all that “progress,” the LGBT network is focused on training school board candidates to fight against mandates protecting girls’ sports and confused children. Meanwhile the LI LGBT Network candidates will undoubtedly support fulfilling Kilmnicks’ vision for “LGBTQ literature, symbols…in all our institutions” - which includes elementary schools.

Let girls be girls, kids be kids, and students be students. Our children need schools and board members to ensure all students (not just those identifying as LGBT) have safe, supportive and inclusive environments where they can focus on the academic subjects’ parents send them there to learn. The only pledge any child should be doing in school is to the one thing that unites them all - allegiance to the United States of America.

Mike Simonelli is a retired Army officer, retired police officer, combat Veteran, author, and proud father of a United States Marine.

8 Congressional News

Bipartisan Navy and Marine Corps Caucus Launched to Bolster U.S. Maritime Strength

By Raheem Soto

In a show of bipartisan cooperation, Representatives Nick LaLota (R-Amityville) and Chris Deluzio (D, PA-17) have joined forces to launch the Navy and Marine Corps Caucus, a congressional group dedicated to strengthening U.S. military readiness, shipbuilding efforts, and service member support.

With global threats rising and America’s adversaries expanding their naval power, this caucus couldn’t come at a more critical time. The U.S. Navy is facing serious shipbuilding delays, maintenance backlogs, and recruitment challenges, while China’s navy is growing at an alarming rate. The Navy and Marine Corps Caucus aims to cut through bureaucratic red tape and ensure that America’s maritime forces remain the strongest globally.

“America’s Navy and Marine Corps are the backbone of our national security,” said LaLota, a former Navy officer. “This caucus will fight to ensure they have the funding, tools, and support they need to keep our nation safe.”

LaLota, a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, served as an officer and knows firsthand what it takes to keep America’s fleet strong and service members supported. His Democratic co-chair, Chris Deluzio, also served as a naval officer, making this caucus a mission close to home for both leaders.

The formation of this caucus isn’t just political theater—it’s happening at a crucial moment for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.

China’s naval fleet is expanding rapidly, and military experts worry that the U.S. is falling behind. In the last decade, China has dramatically outpaced the U.S. in shipbuilding, investing heavily in warships, aircraft carriers, and advanced missile systems.

The U.S. Navy’s budget has ballooned to $255.8 billion for fiscal year 2024. Yet, shipbuilding delays and maintenance issues continue to plague the force. The backlog in ship maintenance alone is causing serious readiness concerns.

Military leaders have warned that the Navy’s “risk-averse” culture is slowing down muchneeded modernization efforts and making it harder to compete with rising global threats.

These aren’t just abstract policy concerns—they have real-world consequences. If the U.S. Navy isn’t ready, America’s adversaries will exploit that weakness.

“We can’t afford to wait,” said Deluzio. “Our naval forces must be prepared to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow. This caucus is about ensuring we act before it’s too late.”

So, what exactly will the Navy and Marine Corps Caucus focus on?

• Shipbuilding & Modernization: The U.S. Navy needs more ships and needs them fast. The caucus will work to ensure that shipbuilding contracts are fulfilled efficiently and that the fleet remains strong.

• Service Member Support: Beyond equipment, this caucus is committed to supporting Sailors and Marines—ensuring they have access to quality housing, healthcare, and resources for their families.

• Military Readiness & Training: A strong Navy and Marine Corps isn’t just about numbers—it’s about having the most well-trained and well-equipped force in the world. The caucus will push for enhanced training programs and readiness initiatives.

• Fighting Bureaucracy: Military funding gets entangled in Washington red tape too often. The caucus wants to streamline decision-making so the Navy and Marine Corps can get what they need when they need it.

“We’re not here for political games,” LaLota added. “We’re here to make sure America’s naval power remains second to none.”

Top Navy and Marine Corps officials have already supported the caucus, recognizing that congressional advocacy is crucial to strengthening the force.

Admiral James Kilby, a U.S. Naval Academy graduate and Surface Warfare Officer, emphasized that bipartisan support from Congress is vital to ensuring the Navy’s ability to meet growing challenges.

Lieutenant General Eric Austin, the Marine Corps Deputy Commandant for Combat Development and Integration, welcomed the caucus and noted that U.S. Marines are undergoing significant modernization efforts to stay ahead of evolving threats.

A recent House Armed Services Committee hearing revealed serious concerns about the state of the U.S. Navy. President of the Shipbuilders Council of America, Matthew Paxton, testified that the Navy’s risk-averse culture hurts shipbuilding and delays repairs. Military

officials warned that the Navy is being disadvantaged by aging vessels, slow shipyard output, and inefficient spending.

With China aggressively expanding its naval power, the U.S. can’t afford delays.

The Navy and Marine Corps Caucus plans to hold defense contractors and Pentagon officials accountable to ensure taxpayer dollars are spent effectively on military readiness.

While much of the focus is on shipbuilding and strategy, the caucus also recognizes that supporting service members and their families is just as important.

Too many military families struggle with poor housing conditions, lack of medical resources, and bureaucratic red tape when accessing benefits. This caucus wants to fix that.

“Our Sailors and Marines shouldn’t have to worry about basic needs,” said LaLota. “If they’re willing to put their lives on the line for our country, the least we can do is ensure they have the support they deserve.”

For LaLota and Deluzio, the fight is personal. Both have worn the uniform and understand that America’s naval power isn’t just a policy issue—it’s a matter of national security.

As America faces new and growing threats, the question remains: Will Washington step up and ensure our military is ready?

If the Navy and Marine Corps Caucus has their way, the answer will be a resounding yes.

National, State, and Local Temperature Checks

By Matt Meduri

National

The assembly of President Donald Trump’s (R-FL) historic second Cabinet is almost complete, but a few nominees are still yet to be confirmed.

Trump’s pick for his Labor Secretary is former Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR). She flipped Oregon’s Fifth Congressional District in 2022 but was defeated for re-election in 2024. The suburban Portland district is one of the most competitive at the national level, but has a slight Democratic lean.

Chavez-DeRemer has not been seen as controversial as some of Trump’s other nominees, but some Republicans remain concerned about her labor relations background.

Chavez-DeRemer cleared the committee vote of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee to the tune of a 14-9 vote. Three Democratic Senators defected to advance her nomination to the full Senate - Maggie Hassan (DNH), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and John Hickenlooper (D-CO). Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), however, voted against her nomination advancement due to her sponsorship of the PRO Act.

The Protecting the Right to Organize Act is a law that was proposed last Congress. The measure would prevent employers from holding mandatory meetings for the purposes of counteracting labor organizations and would bolster employees’ rights to join unions. The bill would also permit unions to encourage secondary strikes, an action by one union in support of a strike initiated by another union, but often in the same group of companies or trade. Additionally, the bill would weaken “right-to-work” laws, which gives employees the option to join a union and pay dues. Such laws are on the books in twenty-seven states.

vacant for months. The proposed law’s intention was to hold the special concurrently with the next general election to reduce “voter fatigue,” increase election administration logistics, and increase turnout. While Democrats have tabled the bill, speculation swirls they’ll pick it back up.

Republicans have already lost two other members since the start of the first Congress. Former Congressman Matt Gaetz (R, FL-01) resigned his Florida Panhandle seat after Trump announced him as his Attorney General nominee. After allegations of sexual misconduct, Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration.

Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis (R), a Trump endorsee, easily won the January primary, but will have to wait until April 1 until the special election. The deeply-Republican district is not expected to be close, as Gaetz was re-elected in 2024 with 68% of the vote. Patronis faces 2024 nominee Gay Valimont (D).

Neither a Senate cloture vote nor a full Senate vote have been scheduled.

Finally, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R, NY-21) is up for Ambassador to the United Nations (UN). She cleared her Foreign Relations Committee vote with ease by a 19-3 margin at the end of January. No further votes have been scheduled. Senators Chris Coons (DDE), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) were the only holdouts.

Stefanik was the first Cabinet or Cabinet-level official to be announced by Trump in the wake of his election, but Republicans have intentionally slow-walked her nomination so as to not lose her membership in the House.

Republicans currently have the bare-minimum majority of 218 seats, Stefanik inclusive. Without her, Speaker Mike Johnson (R, LA-04) and company will have a significantly more difficult time in passing Trump’s agenda, which, in the current state of affairs, remains mostly partisan.

“We’re kind of taking our direction from the White House in terms of who they want to move and when,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) told NBC News. “But my assumption is it probably has to do with the majority, the margin they have in the House right now.”

The timing is also complicated by Albany Democrats’ efforts to delay the special election until November, possibly leaving the North Country seat

Republicans also lost former Congressman Michael Waltz (R, FL06) as he became Trump’s National Security Advisor. State Senator Randy Fine (R), also endorsed by Trump, easily won his January primary. The April 1 special election coincides with the FL-01 special. Republicans are expected to maintain control of the Saint Augustine-South Daytonabased seat. Fine faces teacher Joshua Weil (D).

While these special elections are likely to remain in Republican hands, margins will be key, and they could offer a glimpse of the 2026 midterm moods. Special elections are often seen by analysts as one of the foremost barometers going into a midterm election.

However, Democrats have lost a seat of their own in the Wednesday passing of Congressman Sylvester Turner (D, TX-18).

Turner was just elected in 2024, filling in the seat vacated after the death of then-Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (D). Turner was 70. Governor Greg Abbott (R-TX) will announce a special election date for this deep-blue, Houston-based seat. Turner succeeded Erica Lee Carter (D), Jackson Lee’s daughter, who represented the district for just two months after her mother’s death.

The passing of Turner brings the House total to a 218-214 Republican majority.

Finally, Congressman Byron Donalds (R-FL-19) (pictured above left) has announced he is running for Governor of Florida in 2026. Governor Ron DeSantis (R) is term-limited. The firebrand conservative has been a staunch supporter of Donald Trump since he was elected in 2020. He was re-elected in 2024 with 66% of the vote, a landslide. Donalds was a registered Democrat until 2010.

State

While the strike has ended in most downstate prisons, it persists in Upstate and Western New York prisons. Thousands of correction workers may face fines or termination if they do not return to work. Prosecution is even on the table for some workers.

“They are in violation of the law. We have laws in our books that are supposed to protect us in these situations. Therefore they are violating New York state law at this moment,” Hochul said Tuesday morning, while also calling herself “sympathetic” to the cause.

The strikes have started mostly regarding staffing concerns and abhorrent working conditions and living conditions for the prisoners, with some former service members saying the situation is “worse than Iraq.”

As of Tuesday, the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (NYDOCCS) has said that roughly 8,000 correction officers and sergeants are still striking, while 2,000 have returned to work.

“They’ve created very unsafe circumstances. There are serious consequences. We have warned them day after day after day,” said Hochul. “A lot of warnings, that you could lose your healthcare, the healthcare is gone, people are going to be arrested, you could be going to jail. You’ve lost your job, you’ve lost your income, you’ve lost everything,” she added, although less than ten officers have been fired, according to officials.

Hochul has brought in the National Guard to help alleviate the situation, while prison visitations have been cancelled statewide.

Last Thursday, Hochul said a tentative agreement had been reached to end the strike, but concessions have been insufficient in bringing the strike to an end.

Local

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has put out a statement of advice, which has been disseminated by the office of County Executive Ed Romaine (R-Center Moriches), regarding the ongoing avian flu pandemic that has claimed hundreds of thousands of poultry and has ceased operations at Crescent Duck Farm in Aquebogue, Long Island’s last duck farm.

Governor Kathy Hochul (D) (pictured above right) has told New York prison guards to quit their strike or risk losing their jobs.

In cases where DEC field staff cannot collect samples or carcasses from the sites, DEC asks the public to limit direct contact with dead wildlife and to keep children and pets away.

To dispose of a dead bird properly, DEC instructs:

• Wear disposable gloves, a mask, and eye protection, such as safety glasses or goggles;

• Avoid direct contact with the carcass or carcass fluids by using a shovel or garbage bag to pick up the bird;

• Triple-bag carcasses and place in an outdoor trash receptacle;

• Remove and discard gloves and wash hands with soap and water immediately after;

• Change your clothes and wash them after disposing of the bird;

• Clean the shovel, if used, with hot, soapy water and disinfect it with diluted bleach (one-third cup of bleach to a gallon of water).

For more information or to submit a report, call the DEC at 844-332-3267.

By Raheem Soto

Selden Man Indicted for Three-Month Crime Spree Targeting Small Businesses

For nearly three months, small business owners across Suffolk County locked up their stores at night, only to return the next morning to shattered glass and stolen cash. Now, prosecutors say the man responsible for these bold, late-night break-ins is finally facing justice.

Michael Parise, 49, of Selden, has been indicted on ten counts of third-degree burglary, along with attempted burglary, petit larceny, and criminal mischief charges. Suffolk County prosecutors allege that between November 2024 and February 2025, Parise broke into ten businesses, attempted an eleventh burglary, and even stole from a McDonald’s donation box—all before being arrested in early February.

District Attorney Ray Tierney (R) made it clear that law enforcement will not tolerate criminals targeting hardworking business owners.

“We will not stand by while criminals prey on businesses that form the backbone of our local economy and provide services to our residents,” Tierney said. “Business owners deserve to feel safe when they open for the day and lock up for the night, and we intend to hold those who violate that sense of safety accountable.”

Prosecutors say Parise had a pattern—smash the glass doors or windows, grab whatever cash he could find, and disappear before police arrived. His alleged crime spree spanned multiple towns, hitting restaurants, gyms, a salon, a bagel shop, and even an animal hospital.

Some of these businesses were hit in the middle of the night, while one theft happened during business hours.

Here’s a timeline of where and when prosecutors say Parise struck:

November 27, 2024 – Subway (Stony Brook)

December 16, 2024 – Ssambap Korean BBQ (Stony Brook)

December 24, 2024 – Orangetheory Fitness (Stony Brook)

December 26, 2024 – Hype Cut and Color Bar Hair Salon (Smithtown)

December 26, 2024 – Rebel Kickboxing Gym (Smithtown)

December 27, 2024 – Taino’s Cafe and Lounge (Coram)

January 5, 2025 – Bagel of Stony Brook Cafe (Stony Brook)

January 30, 2025 – Kimochi Bubble Tea (Selden)

February 2, 2025 – Subway (Selden)

February 2, 2025 – Middle Country Animal Hospital (Selden)

One of the most shameless thefts, according to prosecutors, happened on December 26 at a McDonald’s in Stony Brook. Instead of breaking in after hours, Parise allegedly stole $20 from the Ronald McDonald House donation box—while the restaurant was open for business.

Over the course of his spree, Parise allegedly stole $7,413 in cash and a cell phone, leaving small business owners to clean up the damage.

After months of searching, police finally caught up with Parise on February 2, 2025. He allegedly tried to break into Peking Chinese Kitchen in Selden that morning but failed. Officers tracked him three miles away to Coram, where he was arrested later that day.

It turns out, police say, that Peking Chinese Kitchen wasn’t the only business Parise targeted that morning. Just a short walk away, two other businesses—the Subway restaurant and the Middle Country Animal Hospital—had already been burglarized before sunrise.

Parise was arraigned on February 19 before Supreme Court Justice Timothy D. Mazzei, where he was hit with multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, 10 counts of ; Burglary in the Third Degree (Class D felonies); 1 count of Attempted Burglary in the Third Degree (Class E felony); 1 count of Petit Larceny (Class A misdemeanor); and 1 count of Criminal Mischief (Class A misdemeanor).

Judge Mazzei set Parise’s bail at $100,000 cash, $200,000 bond, or a $2,000,000 partially secured bond, ensuring he won’t easily walk free before trial.

Parise faces between three-and-a-half and seven years in prison for each burglary charge if convicted.

He is currently being represented by the Legal Aid Society and will return to court on March 20, 2025.

This isn’t the first time Parise has been accused of a string of burglaries. Law enforcement sources say he was arrested back in 2021 for allegedly burglarizing ten Suffolk County businesses in a nearly identical crime spree. Some of the same businesses he allegedly targeted this time were also victims of his 2021 arrest.

Prosecutors will likely use his past charges to argue for a lengthy sentence.

For many small business owners in Suffolk County, Parise’s arrest is a relief.

“It was scary not knowing if my place was next,” said one local restaurant owner who asked to remain anonymous. “We work hard every day, and the thought of someone breaking in and taking what we’ve earned is frustrating.”

Another business owner, whose shop was broken into, said the damage to the storefront alone cost more than what was stolen.

“It’s not just about the money they take,” they explained. “It’s the repairs, the lost business, the feeling of being violated. It makes it harder to stay afloat.”

Residents are also concerned about repeat offenders slipping through the cracks.

“This guy was arrested for the same thing before, and now he’s doing it again?” asked one Selden resident. “What’s stopping him from doing this a third time if he gets out?”

D.A. Tierney made it clear that his office is taking these crimes seriously.

“These businesses are the heart of our community. They provide jobs, services, and economic growth. We will not allow criminals to threaten that,” he said.

Tierney has pushed for tougher penalties for repeat offenders, arguing that lenient policies have emboldened criminals.

Parise remains in custody as he awaits his next court appearance in March. Given his history, prosecutors will likely push for a stiff sentence.

Shoreham Wading River PTA

Wednesday, March 12th 3:30pm-7:45pm

Wading River School

1900 Wading River Manor Road

All donors will receive a $15.00 game play to Top Golf

Appointments preferred but walk ins are welcome Scan QR Code to make an appointment

Any questions contact: aacker@swr.k12.ny.us or asteinbrecher@swr.k12.ny.us

UCP of Long Island Marks 75 Years of Changing Lives for Individuals with Disabilities

By Raheem Soto

For seventy-five years, United Cerebral Palsy of Long Island (UCP-LI) has been making a difference in the lives of individuals with disabilities. What started as a small group of determined parents in 1948 has become one of Long Island’s most vital organizations, providing essential services, education, and advocacy for thousands of people with disabilities.

In 2025, UCP-LI will celebrate this milestone with a year of special events, community engagement, and a renewed commitment to its mission: ensuring that every individual— regardless of ability—has the chance to live a full, independent life.

UCP-LI has never been about handouts— it’s about empowerment. Over the decades, the organization has evolved to meet the community’s needs, growing far beyond its original focus on cerebral palsy. Today, it serves individuals with a wide range of disabilities, offering education, employment, housing, and medical care support.

Some of the organization’s biggest milestones include:

1961: Opened the Suffolk Rehabilitation Center, offering physical and occupational therapy to children with disabilities, including those with muscular dystrophy, polio, and spina bifida.

1983: Became an affiliate of the national United Cerebral Palsy Association, launching Adult Day Treatment, Vocational Rehabilitation, and Supported Employment programs.

1990s: Expanded residential programs, including Eaton Knolls, a 13-unit accessible apartment complex in Central Islip for adults with disabilities capable of independent living.

What truly makes UCP-LI stand out is its community-driven approach. It’s not just about providing resources but giving people the tools and confidence to live independently and thrive.

“We don’t just help people get by—we help them build their futures,” said Colleen Crispino, President & CEO of UCP-LI. “For 75 years, we’ve been fighting to make sure every individual with a disability has the opportunity to reach their full potential.”

To mark seventy-five years of service, UCP-LI is hosting a lineup of special events throughout 2025, giving supporters a chance to celebrate, give back, and get involved.

Some of the biggest events on the calendar include:

Gold Coast Invitational (May 15, 2025): A golf tournament at Cold Spring Country Club, raising funds for UCP-LI’s life-changing programs

Young Professionals Cornhole Tournament (July 2025): A fun networking event bringing together young professionals to support UCP-LI’s mission.

5K Walk N Wheel (September 2025): A community-wide event that welcomes participants of all abilities to walk, roll, or run to support UCP-LI’s programs.

Life Without Limits Gala (October 23, 2025): The flagship fundraising event, celebrating the impact of UCP-LI and raising critical funds for future initiatives.

Handbag Bingo (November 23, 2025): A lively, entertaining fundraiser supporting services for individuals with disabilities.

These events are not just about raising money but about raising awareness. They remind the community that disability advocacy isn’t just a cause—it’s a responsibility.

Any organization that lasts seventy-five years doesn’t do so without incredible people behind the scenes. From staff and volunteers to the individuals UCP-LI serves, this milestone is about honoring every person who has played a role in shaping the organization.

That’s why UCP-LI recently received special recognition from New York State Senators Monica Martinez (D-Brentwood) and Mario Mattera (R-St. James), who presented a proclamation to commemorate the organization’s impact.

Senator Mario Mattera spoke about UCP-LI’s longstanding commitment to the Long Island community:

“It was great to join Senator Monica Martinez to present UCP of Long Island President & CEO Colleen Crispino with a special proclamation to celebrate their 75th anniversary! The day was even more special when we were joined by participants from UCP-LI’s Adult Day program, Chris G. and Stanley B.

I congratulate UCP-LI on their incredible run of 75 years and thank all who have dedicated their time and effort over the past seven decades for all they do for individuals with disabilities.

Your commitment has helped countless lives, and we hope you all know how very appreciated you are.”

While seventy-five years is a considerable accomplishment, UCP-LI is not slowing down anytime soon. The organization is expanding programs, advocating for better policies, and adapting to new challenges to ensure that the next generation of individuals with disabilities has even greater opportunities.

“Our work is far from done,” Crispino said. “There are still barriers to break, lives to change, and communities to build. We are committed to growing our impact and making sure that everyone, regardless of ability, has the chance to live a full and independent life.”

As UCP-LI celebrates 75 years of impact, the organization is calling on Long Islanders to get involved. There are countless ways to support the mission, whether through donations, volunteering, or advocacy.

Visit UCP-LI’s official website for more information about its programs, upcoming events, and ways you can make a difference.

Senator Mario Mattera presents a special proclamation to UCP of Long Island President & CEO Colleen Crispino in honor of the organization's 75th anniversary, joined by participants from UCP-LI's Adult Day program, Chris G. and Stanley B.

Ward Melville Students Excel in International Mathematics Competition

Two teams of students from Ward Melville High School demonstrated exceptional mathematical prowess in the prestigious High School Mathematical Contest in Modeling (HiMCM), earning top distinctions in an international field of competitors.

The HiMCM, an esteemed competition that challenges teams of up to four students to develop mathematical models addressing real-world problems, emphasizes critical problem solving, collaboration and clear communication. This year’s competition saw participation from 1,055 teams representing 474 schools across 20 countries and regions.

Ward Melville High School was proudly represented by Team 15041, consisting of Amanda Liang, Sarah Wu and Victoria Ye, and by Team 15702, including Tina Xing and Anna Xing. Both teams achieved remarkable success in the competition. Team 15702

earned the Finalist designation, placing them in the top 5% of all participating teams. Team 15041 attained the highest honor of Outstanding Winner, a distinction awarded to only eight teams worldwide and placing them in the top 1% of all competitors. Notably, among these eight Outstanding Winners, only three hailed from the United States, including Team 15041 from Ward Melville and a team from Stuyvesant High School in New York State.

The success of these teams highlights the strength of Ward Melville’s mathematics program and the commitment of its students and faculty to excellence in STEM education. Congratulations to Team 15041 and Team 15702 for their extraordinary accomplishments.

Sachem Students Selected for NAfME

All-Eastern Honors Orchestra

The Sachem music department proudly congratulates Sachem High School East senior Jaden Rudnicki and Sachem High School North junior Matthew Umbenhower on their selection to perform in the 2025 National Association for Music Education (NAfME) All-Eastern Honors Orchestra.

This prestigious event brings together the top student musicians from eleven Northeastern states and Washington, D.C., to participate in a biannual conference. Participants are chosen based on a rigorous selection process that includes recommendation, audition, application and demonstrated excellence in their craft. The NAfME All-Eastern Honors Orchestra is one of six highly selective ensembles, with only 588 students from across the Northeastern United States earning a place in these elite groups.

Rudnicki and Umbenhower’s selection reflects their dedication, talent and commitment to musical excellence. This achievement highlights the strength of the Sachem music department and its ongoing commitment to fostering outstanding student musicians.

Bayport-Blue Point High School Student Named National Merit Finalist

Bayport-Blue Point High School student George Rogers IV has been recognized as a finalist in the prestigious National Merit Scholarship Program. This outstanding achievement reflects George’s exceptional academic dedication, hard work and commitment to excellence.

Over 1.3 million juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2023 PSAT or National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than 1% of U.S. high school seniors, included the highest-scoring entrants in each state.

As a semifinalist, George fulfilled several additional requirements, which led him to the finalist level of the competition. As a finalist, he will be considered for a National Merit Scholarship. National Merit Scholarship winners of 2025 will be announced in four nationwide news releases, beginning in April and concluding in July. The Bayport-Blue Point School District congratulates George on this outstanding accomplishment.

Published by Messenger Papers, Inc.

School Highlights

Teaming Together in Shoreham-Wading River

The Shoreham-Wading River unified bowling team started for the season on February 24. Students are working together in the school gymnasium using adaptive bowling balls and pins. They will continue to practice at The All Star Recreation Center in Riverhead before the first tournament against Rocky Point on March 11 at Port Jeff Bowl.

Team members are Jordyn Albert, Anthony Belvedere, Bradley Brandt, Andrew Brennan, Daniel Breuer, Alexander Clareen, Jack Como, Brody Constantine, James Cook, Zachary Cote, Madison Cummings, Caroline D’Andrea, Alyssa DiGiuseppe, Emma Donnelly, Delaney Fahrbach, Emma Granshaw, Katherine Grzymala, Kayla Guercia, Emily Ingrassia, Bobby King, Tess Kneidl, Lainie Krause, Pennie Krause, Sophia Krebo, Brayden Lewis, Ian Margiotta-Watz, Joshua Mar Mendoza, Emily Minetti, Patrick Morano, Mary Moreno, Michela Nobre, Victoria Oliveri, Hailey Petruzzi,

and Michael Yusupov.

The district thanks and commends all the students involved as well as coaches Caitlyn Gould and Matthew Millheiser for boosting this great athletic experience for everyone.

Comsewogue Cheers for Long Island Nets at Education Day

Sixth-grade students at JFK Middle School in the Comsewogue School District recently saw their favorite local basketball stars in action during the Long Island Nets Education Day at Nassau Coliseum. Using basketball as the jumping off point, students completed various engaging STEM activities, all while cheering on the Long Island Nets with their friends.

“The Long Island Nets Education Day is a wonderful opportunity to encourage students to engage in STEM activities and hands-on learning, while enjoying a basketball game with their community,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jennifer Quinn.

For more information about the Comsewogue School District, please visit the District’s website at https://www.comsewogue.k12.ny.us/. Happenings in the District can also be followed on Facebook at https://www.facebook. com/ComsewogueSD.

Humanities Director Earns Outstanding Social Studies Supervisor Award

South Country School District Director of Humanities Jaclyn O’Hagan has been recognized with the 2024-2025 Outstanding Social Studies Supervisor Award by the New York State Council for the Social Studies. She will be presented with the award at a ceremony in Albany on March 6.

O’Hagan earned the award for her track record of being a transformative leader who empowers and inspires teachers in her district.

“Receiving the NYSCSS Outstanding Social Studies Supervisor Award is not just a personal honor, but a testament to the power of collaboration,” said O’Hagan. “It reflects the hard work and dedication of an incredible team all working together toward a shared vision.”

During her tenure in South Country, O’Hagan has been committed to supporting project-based learning in the classroom, and equitable and culturally responsive social studies instruction. She, along with social studies teacher Andrew Budris, spearheaded the district’s Generation Citizen initiative, in which students work toward earning a New York State Seal of Civic Readiness on their diplomas. Over the past four years, 90% of the

district’s graduates have earned the seal.

“It is hard to overstate her positive impact on our department,” said Budris. “Since her arrival, our social studies teachers have been constant presenters at local, state and national conferences. South Country has become synonymous with innovative teaching practices around New York State.”

South Country Superintendent of Schools Antonio Santana also praised O’Hagan. “Our civics program has become a beacon of best practices not only in soliciting visitations from other school districts, but also in informing our students on how they can best engage in advocacy through civic engagement,” he said. “Her honor is very well deserved.”

O’Hagan has served as the director of humanities for grades K-12 since 2017. She holds a Master of Science in social studies education from Hofstra University and an Advanced Certificate in Educational Leadership from Stony Brook University. Additionally, she was a participant in the sixteenth cohort of the New York State Council of School Superintendents’ Future Superintendents Academy for the 2024-2025 school year.

Connor Prunty, Maeve Prunty, Sky Riekert, Cophen Sears, Demetrius Serras, Colten Sisler, Branon Smith, Molly Stankus, Peter Vescovo,

The Necessary Standard for American Education

The State of the Union Address

By Matt Meduri

The State of the Union address, sometimes stylized as SOTU, while required by broad terms by the Constitution, shakes out to be a more traditional display, one that is especially subjective in tone and scope by the president delivering it. We turn to this topic in light of Tuesday night’s State of the Union address, the first of President Donald Trump’s (R-FL) second term and his fifth overall.

History and Origins

Article II, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution states, “He [the president] shall from time to time give to the Congress information of the State of the Union and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.”

Because of the clause’s vague language, there is no set time of year or particular date on which the address must be given, nor does it stipulate specific policies to be discussed. Similar addresses are given by executives, such as State of the State addresses by governors, and even State of the County addresses by county executives. Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine (R-Center Moriches) gave his first State of the County address in early May last year.

Regarding presidential State of the Union addresses, George Washington delivered the first regular annual message before a joint session of Congress - a joint session being one where both the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate convene together - on January 8, 1790, in New York City. New York was the provisional U.S. capital at the time. Thomas Jefferson would discontinue the practice as he felt it was too monarchical, reminiscent of the Speech from the Throne. From Jefferson, who was elected in 1800, onward, the address was instead written by the president and delivered to Congress to be read by a clerk.

Originally intended to be an update from the president to Congress, the State of the Union address has become more of a line of communication between the president and the American public, especially in the wake of broadcasting, live streaming, and Internet availability.

The practice of a formal address to Congress was not reinstated until 1913, when Woodrow Wilson (D-NJ) resurrected the practice, albeit with some controversy. Nearly every year since, the president has delivered the address to Congress in person. There have been a few exceptions of written statements or broadcasted speeches. The last State of the Union without a spoken address was done by Jimmy Carter (D-GA) in 1981, just days before his presidency ended after his defeat to Ronald Reagan (R-CA) in 1980.

The term to describe the address was “the President’s Annual Message to Congress.” Franklin D. Roosevelt (D-NY) popularized the phrase “State of the Union” in 1934, and that has been the generally accepted term since then.

The State of the Union address was typically held at the end of the calendar year, often in December. However, with ratification of the Twentieth Amendment moved the term dates for both the president and Congress. For the president, the opening of the term was moved from March 4 to January 20. For Congress, the start of terms were moved from March 4 to January 3. This was done to shorten the “lame duck” period for defeated or term-limited incumbents to limit their powers upon exit, as well as to modernize the process, as the U.S. no longer required the months of traveling and transmission to the nation’s capital. Because of this, every State of the Union address since 1934 has been delivered to Congress early in the calendar year, typically in January or February.

It is also customary that the sitting Speaker of the House formally “invites” the president to deliver the address in the House chamber, often prompting a resolution vote to permit the chamber’s space for the occasion.

While newly-elected presidents often give an address to Congress, they’re not typically considered a classic State of the Union address, mostly owing to the new president’s lack

of time in office and relative inability to update Congress and the nation on executive intent. While these speeches serve a similar function as the State of the Union address, they’re not officially considered as such.

Warren Harding’s (R-OH) speech in 1922 was the first to be broadcast on radio, and Calvin Coolidge’s (R-MA) 1923 speech was the first to be broadcast across the nation. FDR’s 1936 address was the first to be delivered in the evening, a precedent not followed until the 1960s. Harry Truman’s (D-MO) 1947 address was the first to be broadcast on television. Bill Clinton’s (D-AR) 1997 speech was the first to be broadcast available live on the World Wide Web.

Also bucking precedent, Ronald Reagan’s 1986 speech was the first to have been postponed in the wake of the space shuttle Challenger disaster that morning. In 1999, Bill Clinton became the first president to deliver an in-person State of the Union address while standing trial for impeachment. The speech was delivered on the same day that his defense team made their opening statements in his trial.

In 2019, Trump’s speech that year was originally planned for January 29, but was cancelled after then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D, CA-12) stated she would not proceed with a vote on a resolution to allow Trump to deliver his speech in the House chamber until the end of that year’s federal government shutdown. Her cancellation was a rescission of her earlier invitation to the president, likely the first time in history that a Speaker had disinvited a president from delivering the State of the Union address. The speech was later held on February 5.

The Formal Delivery

Every member of Congress is allowed to invite one guest each to the address, while the president may invite up to twenty-four guests to be seated with the First Lady in a separate box in the gallery. The Speaker may also invite up to twenty-four guests to sit in the Speaker’s box. The Cabinet, Supreme Court Justices, Diplomatic Corps members, and military leaders have reserved seating.

By approximately 8:30p.m. on the night of the address, Congress convenes and is seated, while the Deputy Sergeant at Arms often loudly announces the vice president. The vice president is positioned behind the president’s right shoulder (left shoulder in viewing), while the Speaker is seated to the president’s left. On occasion, if either cannot attend the speech, the next highest-ranking individual occupies the respective seat. The Deputy Sergeant at Arms again loudly introduces, in order, the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps, the Chief Justice of the United States and Associate justices, and the presidential Cabinet.

At around 9:00p.m., the House Sergeant at Arms faces the House Speaker and introduces the president, often followed by a standing ovation, cheering, and handshakes down the center aisle. The president then hands two copies of his speech to the Speaker and vice president.

Customarily, the Speaker formally announces the president before he begins his speech, typically stating, “Members of Congress, I have the high privilege and distinct

This column will seek to address the long-forgotten concept of civics and how it relates to American government in general, from the federal level to the local level. This column will explore Constitutional rights, the inner workings of government, the electoral process, and the obligations and privileges of citizens.

honor of presenting to you the President of the United States.” However, the Speaker may opt not to do so, as was done in 2019 and 2024.

Traditionally, members of Congress are seated on separate sides of the chamber - literally “across the aisle.” In 2011, Senator Mark Udall (D-CO) proposed a resolution to intersperse the seating in the wake of the shooting on then Congresswoman Gabby Giffords (D-AZ). Sixty legislators signed on, with 160 signing on to a similar proposal in 2012. However, since 2016, the seating arrangement has mostly returned to its partisan makeup.

The Designated Survivor

One Cabinet member does not attend the meeting, called the designated survivor. This is done to protect the line of succession to the presidency in the event a major disaster or concerted attack kills or otherwise disables the president and other members in the line of succession.

Since the September 11, 2001, Attacks, members of Congress have been asked to relocate to undisclosed locations in the event of the same catastrophe. In such an event, the surviving members would form a “rump Congress,” dating back to the term in Seventeenth-Century England. The “rump” normally refers to the hind of an animal, implying “remnants,” and has been used to refer to any members of a legislature left over after the dissolution, formal or otherwise, of the existing at-large legislature. Since 2003, each chamber of Congress has a formally designated survivor.

Speech Contents

The purpose of the speech is merely to update Congress, and the nation, oftentimes rather succinctly. The preamble often goes, “The State of the Union is…,” with many saying “strong,” as popularized by Reagan in his 1983 speech. Gerald Ford (R-MI) had his own spin, by saying, “not good” in his 1975 address.

Apart from discussing statistics and specifics of the nation, as well as policy initiatives sought by the executive throughout the year and his term, special guests are often honored and recognized. Reagan’s 1982 address acknowledged Lenny Skutnik for his heroism after the crash of Air Florida Flight 90, saving the life of Priscilla Tirado after the plane crashed into the frozen Potomac River. Since then, special honorees have been referred to as “Lenny Skutniks.” Other designations can occur in this role, as Trump did in 2020. The unprecedented move saw conservative radio personality Rush Limbaugh awarded the Medal of Freedom mid-speech.

Most of the speech is frequently interrupted by applause, which is often partisan. The party of the president delivering the speech is usually the most jubilant, although some bipartisan moments can be observed in any given speech. Supreme Court Justices often do not applaud in order to maintain the appearance of political impartiality. The vice presidents and House Speakers once adhered to this tradition, but have since broken precedent in that regard.

The Opposition Response

While not mandated by the Constitution, the opposition party of the president has given a response speech since 1966, typically from a broadcast studio with no live audience. The speech is often given by a significant political leader, elected or unelected, of the opposition party. In 1997, Republicans delivered the first opposition response in front of high-school students. In 2004, Governor Bill Richardson (D-NM) delivered the first opposition speech in Spanish. In 2011, Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (R-MN) delivered the response for a political movement, the Tea Party Express. The first Independent response was delivered by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Trump 2020 SOTU, with Pelosi behind tearing up speech.

Continued from front cover

Palumbo Hosts 2025 Environmental Roundtable

“The Executive Budget is recommending all funds and appropriations of $2.6 billion, with an increase of $89.4 million from last fiscal year,” said Palumbo, opening the meeting, adding that some funds are to reauthorize the “hazardous” site in Calvertonthe former Grumman airpark - to Superfund status, as well as to increase the bonding authority by $1.25 billion.

Palumbo shared spending highlights that include $1 billion for services and expenses of climate mitigation and adaptation projects and $400 million for the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF).

“I know there are a lot of groups who want to get to $500 million; that’s what we’re still going to push,” said Palumbo. “An appropriation of $500 million for clean water infrastructure in the governor’s budget. That’s near and dear to us.”

The open-mic session began with Adrienne Esposito (pictured left), Executive Director for the Citizens Campaign for the Environment, pushing her concerns of PFAS, a common “forever chemical” that cannot be broken down naturally and can only be removed from water sources through certain types of filtration. Esposito recently joined County Executive Ed Romaine (R-Center Moriches), who was also present at the roundtable, to call on the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to mitigate the chemicals leaching into the Peconic River, and ultimately the Great Peconic Bay, from the former Grumman site in Calverton.

Esposito took issue with Senate bill S.187A, which passed in last year’s state legislative session, but did not pass the Assembly.

“The bill bans the intentional input of PFAS into common products such as children’s toys, dental floss, carpenters, and many other products that we use each and every day,” said Esposito. “The State did a great job in passing legislation that banned PFAS in fast food wrappers; it’s working. For some unknown reason, the Senate took cookware out of the bill last year.”

Esposito opined that the legislation is a “priority bill” for many environmental organizations across the state. Esposito also thanked Executive Romaine for “leading the charge” in requesting the State and federal governments reclassify the former Grumman plant as a Superfund site, one that is not active and is in need of ecological remediation.

“We now know that PFAS is entering into the Peconic River, Swan Lake, and Peconic Lake,” said Esposito, adding that a draft letter has been prepared for Senator Palumbo, which she formally requested Palumbo circulate. In addition to calling on the EPA to reclassify the former airpark as a Superfund site, Esposito also requests that there is more consistency in setting water contamination standards.

“The letter calls on the EPA to not weaken the PFAS drinking water standard of four parts per trillion. We cannot go backwards,” said Esposito. “Although New York’s standard is ten parts per trillion, four is way more protective.”

Susan Harder (pictured right), the New York State representative for DarkSky International, requested the resurrection of outdoor lighting codes for New York State. DarkSky International is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that aims to “restore the nighttime environment and protect communities and wildlife from light pollution,” as per their website.

“Back in 2004, there was an effort to pass a comprehensive outdoor lighting code for New York State,” said Harder, adding that while it passed the State Legislature, then-Governor George Pataki (R) did not sign due to what she describes as an “erroneous opposition letter” from then-New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R).

“We can follow emerging evidence of the impact of improperly installed outdoor lighting on human health as well as on plants and animals. We’ve also had technological improvements [since then], so this bill could be written to incorporate them,” said Harder. “I’d like to work with you both on drafting and subsequently garnering all the support you need to pass a New York State law so that all the communities can benefit.”

Margaret de Cruz (pictured left), Southold Chapter President for the North Fork Environmental Council (NEFC), invoked the issue of zero-waste goals, particularly as construction and renovation companies are concerned. The NEFC was founded in 1972 by concerned Riverhead and Southold residents who fought a 500-acre Sound-front dredging project, ultimately stopping the mining of Jamesport Hills.

“They’re just tearing things apart and throwing them into big, big dumpsters and they’re all going into the waste stream,” said de Cruz. “I would love it if we had a new countywide industry to dismantle, not destroy, so that we could train people in the trades who will also know how to dismantle things without destroying them and you can have a countywide storage salvage space. This would promote reusing

materials, it would reduce waste, it would be less expensive to build things, and it would be a great thing for accessory dwelling units.”

Ms. de Cruz opined that a task force model could be used for storage and training purposes, but to also set up municipal models for the rest of Long Island to follow.

“We can get two sectors of waste, organics and C&D [construction and demolition debris]. 30% of our waste is organics, 50% is C&D,” said de Cruz.

Palumbo asked how such materials could be recycled, especially in light of recent pushes to eliminate most levels of advanced recycling.

“Right now, we don’t have good systems at all,” said de Cruz. “It’s difficult for small contractors and architects to separate everything. We can set up systems to do that. Are there big markets we can create?”

“The cost can be prohibitive, but the incremental aspects to it, I think, are always smart,” said Palumbo.

“We can identify environmental justice or injustice areas, but we have to bring a boatload of money there too,” said Suffolk County Legislator Dominick Thorne (R-Patchogue). “It could help with some of the sewer installations, education, or advanced sanitary systems. I think the State needs to dedicate explicitly to the areas that have been identified, like Gordon Heights or North Bellport,” said Thorne, referencing two underserved areas in his district. “We need to take real, substantial action.”

Maureen Murphy, Chair of the South Shore Estuary Reserve Citizens Advisory Committee, requested an increase of $7 million in funding for the “historically underfunded” estuary that flows from the Shinnecock Canal into Nassau County.

“There’s been a revised comprehensive management plan, there’s been some big projects in the Village of Patchogue. We need to see more of those big projects on the South Shore, and now the towns and municipalities are really working together to advance the goals and protect and restore that estuary,” said Murphy.

Southold Town Councilman Greg Doroski (D-Mattituck) called for Executive Romaine and the County Legislature to “open eligibility to municipalities, town-owned and village-owned sewers,” for the purpose of accessing State funds to upgrade them.

“I think the science shows that sewers are the best way to keep nitrogen out of our aquifer and out of estuary,” said Doroski, adding that the $4.2 billion raised from last year’s passage of Proposition Two, while important, is not enough to handle the municipality-run sewer systems. He discussed “aging town sewer infrastructure” in Riverhead Town, Greenport Village, and even Fishers Island.

Suffolk County Legislator Steve Englebright (D-Setauket) (pictured right) discussed hiring curators for Suffolk County’s park system, the largest county park system in the country at 65,000 acres and counting.

“Some of those curators should be joint appointments in the Suffolk County Community College and at SUNY Stony Brook through certain departments there, like Ecology and Evolution and Marine Sciences,” said Englebright. “We should be looking ahead; if we are wise, we will use these resources to bring people who will succeed us, our children, into the knowledge of what treasure they truly have here in these valuable natural areas and farmlands.”

Brookhaven Town Supervisor Dan Panico (R-Center Moriches) (pictured left) expressed his frustration in dealing with New York State, particularly in bringing money into the municipalities.

“We have a state [government] that is bewildering to me,” said Panico. “All issues of government come down to being issues of money. Raise your hands if you’ve seen one dollar of what overwhelmingly passed [the Environmental Bond Act] either by you as a constituent or our constituents. Nothing from the state.”

Panico discussed Brookhaven’s status as one of Suffolk’s only townships to not place a moratorium on battery storage facilities, even going as far as to host a forum to educate the public on the nascent technology. He added that with LIPA and the NYS Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), there has been “no support” when it comes to the State’s codified laws on the matters.

“We need money at the local level to make things happen,” said Panico, going further to say that the municipalities have tried to entertain rail as an option for carting off C&D waste, especially in light of the imminent closure of the Brookhaven Landfill, but the State is developing that identified parcel into a warehouse served by diesel trucks.

“What the State says does not match up with their actions; our State government needs to come down and help the local governments, and all of you, for a cleaner environment,” said Panico, subsequently thanking Senator Palumbo and Assemblywoman Jodi Gilgio (R-Baiting Hollow) for their work in the State Legislature.

Present also were freshman Assemblyman Tommy John Schiavoni (D-North Haven), Southold Town Supervisor Al Krupski (D-Cutchogue), Suffolk County Legislators Anthony Piccirillo (R-Holtsville) and Catherine Stark (R-Riverhead), and representatives for Congressman Nick LaLota (R-Amityville) and Suffolk County Legislator Chad Lennon (C-Rocky Point).

Published by Messenger Papers, Inc.

Local History

Thursday, March 6, 2025

‘Follow Through on What I Fought So Hard to Get’

By Ellyn Okvist, B.Sc.

May Miller Duffield (May 24, 1896-February 15, 1982) was a Charter member of the Lake Ronkonkoma Equal Rights Suffrage Club 1912, appropriate to highlight this March as it is Women’s History Month.

She married Raymond Duffield, and their marriage was a strong partnership that lasted more than fifty years. Their only child was a daughter, Norma Duffield Scarazzo (1926-2022).

May Duffield was ahead of her time. Her women’s business sense developed at an early age, and her careful planning and thoughts for the customer is what may have made her such a leader. Purchasing, developing, and running her Pavilion at Ronkonkoma Lake was a lifetime success.

She owned and operated the Duffield West Park Beach on Ronkonkoma Lake during the halcyon days of busy tourism. She was the sole owner of the Pavilion, and her community sense was enjoyed by so many from 1922 to 1969. Her story is a very unusual accomplishment for a woman in that time. With her husband Raymond by her side, there was no limit to living life to the fullest. She had landmark ideas for the business and constructed the pavilion on her property in 1922. Numerous activities were offered, and the parking field could accommodate 400 cars and buses. The guests would enter from Rosevale Avenue on the west side of the lake, the Islip side. Her weekend specials were offering hot meals to the lake visitors, and 100 to 200 of these delicious hot meals were sold daily.

Like many beaches at the time, Duffield’s had two large slides, 20 rowboats, a waterwheel, a diving platform and a motorboat used for sightseeing (pictured below). (Motorboats were banned from the lake by 1934). There were several tennis courts and playground equipment, such as slides and seesaws.

Duffield’s had one of the largest picnic grounds on the lake. It would be almost impossible to list every event held at Duffield’s over the years, but we can include our American Legion, Girl Scout meetings, rallies and leaders’ meetings, church outings, Lake Ronkonkoma Homemakers, Southside Hospital Auxiliary, blood drives during WWII, Lake Ronkonkoma School Field Days, and birthdays of local children. To read the guest list brings us back in time, as you will see familiar names that are still around today.

She sold the pavilion to the Town of Islip. During the 1970s, the pavilion was demolished, and new facilities were assembled on the site. During the 1980s, Ronkonkoma Town Beach remained the go-to place for picnics, swimming and outdoor activities.

Her business sense did not stop at the lake. During the high season in Lake Ronkonkoma, she would move into the cottage next to her home on Hawkins Avenue and rent out her home to boarders. She also established a laundromat in the cottage and took in laundry from whoever asked to be a customer.

Socially, May was involved in many areas. In the early 1900s, as a charter member of “The Philespersons,” was active on the local women’s basketball team and was the only married member. She loved sports and continued actively biking and bowling

throughout her life.

As a young woman, she had been keenly interested in playing baseball, but an accident, resulting in the loss of a finger from her left hand, ended her playing. Her interest never faltered, and she was a devoted Dodgers fan, sitting with a scorecard on her lap as she watched the games. With a true devotion to Girl Scouts, she led generations of young Girl Scouts and was honored for forty years of service. Her passion was ice skating on “her” lake, and in later years she would pull her car onto the ramp and ice skate while Ray would watch her.

May submitted her Application for Membership in the American Legion Auxiliary (pictured left) at the local William Merritt Hallock Post #155 and became a charter member of the Ladies Auxiliary. Her membership was confirmed as Raymond, her husband, was a Veteran of WWII. One can confirm the absence of May’s standing as a woman on the application, which still required to be recognized under a married husbands name.

But since this is Women’s History Month, let’s talk suffrage! Long Island and New York were a huge center for the suffrage crusade, and May Duffield was a confirmed leader. Rosalie Gardiner Jones, Edna Buchman Kearns, and Irene Davidson were regulars in Lake Ronkonkoma as the Lake Ronkonkoma Equal Rights Suffrage Club grew stronger. May recalled speaking on a soap box at the Riverhead Suffrage Rallies, during her militant Lake Ronkonkoma Equal Rights Suffrage Club days. Her daughter, Norma, recalls her mother firmly advising her to vote, saying, “Follow through on what I fought so hard to get.” May Duffield, the suffragette, stressed voting, not political party.

Norma, who was the only child of May and Raymond, and I shared personal conversations which were always educational. Her thoughts of her mother attending rallies and speaking never left her memory. Norma shared the memories of the love her parents shared. The family moved to Pennsylvania in 1969 after the sale of the pavilion, and it was there that May passed peacefully on February 15, 1982. She is Interred at the St. Lawrence Cemetery in Sayville.

Lake Ronkonkoma had many huge influences for suffrage, another being Lillian Browne Devere who we will see highlighted in my column next week, and others the week after that. When do we see such powerful women in one community, all adding to what we enjoy today? I ask that if anyone has further information on other suffragist women in Lake Ronkonkoma, please contact me.

May and Ray Duffield (Credit - Norma Duffield Scarazzo)

Duffield’s 1930

Technology News

Published

The Rise of Agentic AI: Promise, Prudence, and Growing Concerns in a Rapidly Accelerating Landscape

By Mollie Barnett

Agentic AI—technology capable of independently making decisions and solving complex problems—has accelerated dramatically from theoretical concept to practical reality, with widespread deployment now expected by 2027-2028 instead of the previously projected 2035-2040 timeline [McKinsey, The State of AI, 2024]. This swift emergence is generating substantial time and cost savings across multiple sectors while simultaneously raising serious questions about whether society, businesses, and regulatory frameworks are adequately prepared for such rapid transformation.

What Distinguishes True AI Agents

Unlike conventional AI systems that follow fixed pathways, agentic AI operates with significantly greater autonomy and sophistication. According to Bora Ger, Capgemini Global AI Strategist & Visionary based in Frankfurt, true AI agents differentiate themselves through four critical capabilities:

Understanding the environment: AI agents perceive their surroundings and gather data from the world around them, enabling informed decision-making based on contextualized information.

Decision-making skills: Rather than simply following programmed rules, these systems analyze situations and choose actions that lead to specific goals, making them effective in complex, unpredictable scenarios.

Chaining tasks: Agents break down complex problems into manageable sequential steps, tackling intricate issues through methodical decomposition where each step builds upon previous actions.

Continuous feedback loops: Perhaps most significantly, true agents learn and adapt through ongoing operation. They gather inputs, process information, and adjust actions based on results, minimizing the need for human intervention. [Bora Ger, LinkedIn post, approx. February 18, 2025]

Self-Reinforcing Learning Systems

The power of agentic systems stems largely from their sophisticated feedback mechanisms that enable continuous improvement without explicit human guidance. As these systems process increasingly diverse data streams— documents, images, structured databases, and real-time inputs—they reach critical thresholds where learning becomes self-reinforcing. When these systems reach critical data thresholds, they begin generating synthetic training examples for themselves, effectively creating their own curriculum to improve performance on tasks they struggle with [MIT Technology Review, Advances in Reinforcement Learning, 2024]. This creates a virtuous cycle: more data leads to better performance, which enables handling more complex tasks, generating more valuable data, and further enhancing capabilities. Financial systems processing millions of transactions daily exemplify this pattern, with fraud detection accuracy improving from 85% to over 90% in less than six months of operation.

Measurable Benefits Driving Accelerated Adoption

The compressed implementation timeline is driven by compelling evidence of immediate value creation across sectors:

Legal: AI systems now analyze contracts with 60-80% accuracy, reducing attorney research time by 20-30%—approximately 15-20 hours weekly per attorney. For mid-sized firms with five attorneys, this efficiency translates to annual savings between $75,000 and $100,000

[McKinsey, AI in Law Firms, 2023].

Healthcare: Diagnostic tools have achieved 85-90% accuracy while reducing analysis time for medical imaging from 2-3 hours to just 1530 minutes per case. Administrative automation has streamlined scheduling and billing processes by 25%, generating approximately $50,000 in annual savings for typical clinics [MIT CSAIL, AI in Healthcare, 2024].

Financial Services: Fraud detection systems now operate with over 90% precision, identifying anomalies within seconds rather than hours. Automated trading platforms have reduced decision-making time from minutes to milliseconds, boosting profits by 10-15% for firms employing these technologies [McKinsey, AI in Financial Services, 2024].

Essential Questions Before Implementation: Despite compelling benefits, Ger cautions against rushing implementation without proper assessment. He recommends organizations ask these ten critical questions before proceeding:

• Task Complexity: Is it repetitive busy work, or does it require strategic decision-making? Your answer determines if AI can truly add value.

• Frequency & Scale: Will automation save significant resources, or is this a rare event that doesn’t justify the investment?

• Data Volume: Are we talking about processing thousands of queries where AI’s speed becomes a game-changer?

• Adaptability Requirements: Does your environment change constantly? AI shines when flexible responses matter.

• Learning Potential: Can the system improve over time through interactions? This is where AI’s true ROI emerges.

• Accuracy Standards: Medical decisions? Financial transactions? Know your error tolerance before deployment.

• Human Element: Some tasks need emotional intelligence and expert judgment. Be honest about AI’s current limitations.

• Security Framework: Sensitive data requires ironclad protection. Is your infrastructure ready?

• Regulatory Landscape: AI compliance isn’t optional. Know your industry’s requirements.

• ROI Reality Check: Calculate everything: Implementation costs, maintenance, training, and expected returns.

[Bora Ger, LinkedIn post, approx. February 18, 2025]

Growing Concerns About Preparedness

The compressed timeline for agentic AI deployment is triggering mounting concern across industry sectors and policy circles. The 12-year acceleration—from a 15-year horizon to just 2-3 years—has outpaced the development of necessary guardrails and adjustment mechanisms. “The technology is advancing faster than our regulatory structures,” suggests research in the field [MIT Technology Review, Regulatory Challenges of AI, 2025]. This readiness gap manifests across multiple dimensions:

• Regulatory Vacuum: Government agencies are struggling to develop comprehensive oversight mechanisms for increasingly autonomous systems. Questions about liability frameworks, algorithmic

transparency requirements, and responsibility boundaries remain largely unresolved across regulated sectors.

• Workforce Preparedness: By 2028, automation is projected to impact 44% of legal tasks, 30-50% of routine financial processes, and fundamentally reshape administrative staffing across education and healthcare [McKinsey, Future of Work, 2024]. Education and training infrastructure has not adapted quickly enough to facilitate large-scale workforce transitions.

• Ethical Frameworks: Organizations are deploying powerful decision-making systems without established protocols for handling the more unusual situation or edge case, addressing bias, or maintaining appropriate human oversight in high-stakes contexts.

• Security Vulnerabilities: The rapid proliferation of increasingly autonomous systems creates novel attack surfaces and security challenges that cybersecurity infrastructure is not fully equipped to address.

Looking Forward

As agentic AI continues its rapid advancement, differentiating between genuinely transformative implementations and overhyped applications becomes increasingly important. Organizations that thoughtfully assess potential applications against the framework of critical questions will be best

positioned to navigate both the compelling opportunities and significant concerns this accelerated timeline presents.

This isn’t merely about adopting new tools—it represents a fundamental shift in how organizations approach problem-solving, decision-making, and resource allocation in the transformed competitive landscape of A and beyond.

The winners in this rapidly evolving landscape will be those who balance technological ambition with strategic prudence, carefully evaluating where agentic AI truly adds value while actively addressing the regulatory, workforce, and ethical implications of implementation.

Thoughtful preparation rather than reactive adaptation appears to be the critical differentiator as society collectively determines not just how to implement this technology effectively, but whether we’re genuinely ready for the profound changes it will bring.

Published by Messenger Papers, Inc.

AMAC

Thursday, March 6, 2025

Zelensky – Not Thinking Straight

By Robert B. Charles | AMAC

Last week, in an extraordinary display, Ukraine’s President Zelensky sat in his designer military outfit and proceeded to lecture, interrupt, and disrespect America’s President, who was trying to broker peace and finance reconstruction. The spectacle was breathtaking. Zelensky is not thinking straight.

Why the meltdown? Why did Trump and Vance respond with indignance to demands for more money and security guarantees? Why did Zelensky renege on a clear way to finance his country’s reconstruction with mineral rights?

Some things are obvious, others not. Here are a few indisputable facts.

US taxpayers have given direct aid to Ukraine since Russia’s unprovoked annexation in February 2022 of between $200 and $350 billion, and indirect aid to NATO is far above that. Since 2014, the US has given Ukraine another $44.5 billion dollars in military aid.

By contrast, the US gives $870 million to our Pacific friend Taiwan, only three billion since 2014. So, Ukraine has drawn more than 100 times the aid Taiwan has in a decade.

The US, over the past 75 years, has given $22 trillion dollars to NATO, after financing the Allied WWII victory, which cost us 450,000 men. The US finances 16 percent of NATO’s budget, asking for two percent from the other 31 nations. Only 11 of them give that.

Since the Ukraine war’s start, which might have been prevented with diplomacy before 2014, for example, brokering a Panamastyle lease between Ukraine and Russia for warmwater port rights, the US has been Ukraine’s real defender.

In total support, Americans have given Ukraine more than all 31 other NATO members combined, running down our stockpiles of Stinger anti-aircraft and Javelin anti-tank missiles, M77 towed howitzers, 144, 000 rounds of ammunition, drones, A3 and M113 APC vehicles, body arm, helmets, rifles, radar, foreign-made helicopters, and F-16 production line for Ukraine.

Beyond readiness issues for our military, this contribution to Ukraine cost Americans dearly. While half a trillion dollars over ten years may seem small in comparison to our 6.3 trillion annual budget and 37 trillion debt, it is big. It helped fuel Biden inflation, that his nine percent in 2022.

So, returning to Trump’s peace plan, what did Zelensky do? While at the White House, he aborted the mineral rights agreement that would have created a 50-50 fund with US investment to underwrite Ukraine’s reconstruction and put a US “tripwire” in Ukraine.

US participants wanted a more direct return for US i risk-taking, but Trump wanted peace. This deal would have accelerated peace talks with Russia when it has a hollowed out army, high casualties – as Ukraine – and needs Chinese resupply and North Korean soldiers. The time is now.

Ukraine had a chance to step up, take the initiative, and form a lasting bond with us, accelerating the peaceful closure of a devastating war. What did Zelensky have to lose? Almost nothing. His country cannot continue fighting, except in continued, deathdealing stalemate.

Zelensky has no realistic chance of regaining the 20 percent of Ukraine illegally taken by Russia. That portion is notably “Russified,” speaks Russian, history with Russia, ion places – even before war – favored Russia. If this seems somehow outrageous, not part of the narrative, Western history books will

confirm it. Like other split nations, ethnic division continues and autocrats exploit them,

This war has no obvious way of ending short of more death, destruction, attrition, and risk of major escalation. Civilians pay the largest price in Ukraine. So, what is the answer?

Peace is hard but necessary. Russia will not get what it wants: the reassimilation of all Ukraine. Ukraine will not get recovery of the Russified east or NATO membership or US security guarantees.

For the US to secure Ukraine would, in effect, give Ukraine NATO membership, inviting a “hot war” with nuclear-armed Russia. For the US to walk away from Ukraine’s resources to refinance rebuilding would be folly. For NATO not to want this peace with Russia weakened is also folly.

What Trump-Vance want is to end the war, broker for

Overview - AMAC -

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Ukraine – incidentally, one of the most corrupt governments in the world – lasting peace, what they should also want, not pie in the sky but peace.

Instead, Zelensky – like a spoiled, demanding, out-of-touch child – threw a tantrum and demanded more US money and arms. He rudely interrupted, insulted, and chided Americans. Asked to thank America, he did not. Asked to apologize, he refused. Asked to contribute resources, he refused that too.

Bottom line? Russia is staggering, its army exhausted, low on everything from bullets to men. They are poised for peace but will keep fighting, with China and North Korea helping. Is peace a good idea? Yes. Possible? Yes. Will it last? Likely yes. Zelensky is not thinking straight. As his options vanish, he needs to rethink arrogance, not a good look. His countrymen need a leader, not a comedian.

13–

27,

Jul 10–Aug 24, 2025

WORD OF THE Week

Etymology:

mid 17th century: from Latin cogent- ‘compelling’, from the verb cogere, from co- ‘together’ + agere ‘drive’.

COGENT

noun

Pronounced: /koh·jint/

Definition: (of an argument or case) clear, logical, and convincing. Example: “Partisan tensions eased when the leader made a cogent argument for the legislation.”

credible, valid, sound

Antonyms: vague, muddled, unconvincing

Source: Oxford Languages

WORD

U A I S M N

See how many words you can create. Must have center letter in word and can use letters more than once. 4 letter word minimum.

SUDOKU

See bottom left for the answers (please don’t cheat!)

This Week in History

March 7, 1876: Alexander Graham Bell receives a patent for the telephone in the U.S.

March 6, 1981: Walter Cronkite signs off as anchorman of “CBS Evening News.”

March 8, 1936: The first stock car race is held in Daytona Beach, Florida.

March 11, 2018: China’s National People’s Congress approves removal of term limits for a leader, allowing Xi Jinping to be president for life.

March 9, 1918: Russian Bolshevik Party becomes the Communist Party.

March 12, 1930: Mahatma Gandhi begins his famous 200 mile (300km) protest march against the widely hated British salt tax.

March 10, 1997: “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” created by Joss Whedon and starring Sarah Michelle Geller premieres on WB Television Network.

By PJ Balzer

Floyd Ousts Bay Shore in Rematch

There are high school sports games. There are anticipated playoff games. Then there are games like this.

The Class AAA boys’ semifinal game was one that the Long Island sports world has been waiting for all year. The William Floyd Colonials took on the Bay Shore Marauders before several thousand fans at a neutral site of Longwood High School. Bay Shore beat Floyd last year in the Suffolk County final game at the same exact place, then going on to win the Long Island championship and advancing to the state finals.

The stage was set once again tonight almost a year to date, Floyd with a convincing win over Ward Melville the prior playoff game, and Bay Shore the same over Riverhead.

Everything lined up perfectly for a rematch.

This game’s roots run much deeper behind the scenes than many people know. Several of the stars on each team play on the same summer league teams together. They are friends off the court, know each other’s families, and each other’s basketball games, strong points and weak ones too.

Yet, from the opening tip off to the final buzzer tonight. Friends have to become foes for the team’s name on the front of their jersey.

From the very beginning, this game was completely electric. Jermaine King came out with guns blazing and brought all the fire power out in a back-and-forth first quarter with stellar shot-making. Bay Shore finished the first quarter with six (6) three-pointers, with Floyd making four. Dahmarion Moses, who was a force to be reckoned with under the rim, had a putback layup to beat the first quarter’s buzzer, making the score 23-22 with Floyd on top.

But one of the strongest guard combinations on the Island in Carter Wilson, Corey Faines, and Kingsley Rogers were ready for war and not afraid to face this battle. Rogers and Floyd’s Jermaine King both finished the first half with 16 points apiece.

While the first half was a game played from behind the arc, the second half was decided around the rim. Jawuan Smith, one of the best mid-range players, shot blockers, and rebounders on the Island, had some crucial shots and rebounds at seemingly just the right time. Smith, who finished the game with 17 points, had a smooth finish at the rim to put Floyd up 54-46 with just under five minutes left in the game.

As much as it seemed like the game could be wrapping up with Floyd up 59-54 with only 1:21 left, Bay Shore hit two free throws and Kingsley Rogers hit a three-pointer with only seconds left to send the game into overtime tied at 59. Floyd was able to hit some crucial free throws in overtime and outlast

the defending Long Island Champs by a score of 67-61. Carter Wilson finished the game with 17 points, while Kingsley Rogers and Corey Faines had 22 and 13, respectively. Jermaine King led all scorers with 31. Floyd’s Coach William Slinkosky concluded an exciting evening with an emotional and heart felt tribute to Darrell Sumpter, William Floyd’s assistant and beloved coach who passed in a tragic car accident right before Christmas.

The Colonials advance for the second year in a row to the Suffolk County class AAA championship game where they will face off with Half Hollow Hills East. The game is 6:00p.m. Sunday, March 9, at Farmingdale State College. Tickets are available at GoFan.

Free Naloxone Boxes Now in Many Port Jefferson Businesses

Several shops and bars in Port Jefferson have accepted free Naloxone boxes offered by the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (LICADD) and Gabriel’s Giving Tree, a non-profit that assists grieving parents with funeral expenses and comfort.

After a brief presentation about the Naloxone Box program at a recent Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce meeting by parent advocate Carole Trottere, several local businesses said “YES” to having a free Naloxone Box posted in their place of business. Naloxone (more commonly called Narcan) is a nasal spray that acts as an antidote to opioid intoxication.

One of the business owners is Karen Sullivan, of The Wellness Shop, located at 146 East Main Street in Port Jefferson, who was first to accept a free Naloxone Box for her shop. Other businesses accepting Naloxone Boxes were The Spice and Tea Exchange, located at 22 Chandler Square; the Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce office; Amazing Olive, 213 Main Street; The Whiskey Barrel, 138 Main Street; Prohibition Port Jefferson, 115 Main Street; Billie’s 1890 Saloon, 304 Main Street; Global Language Reads, 402 Main Street; Barito Tacos and Cocktails, 201-C Main Street; and The Bridgeport and Port Jefferson Steamboat Company.

“It is my hope and goal, to have every business in Port Jefferson to have a free Naloxone Box,” said Trottere, who lost her son Alex to a fentanyl poisoning in 2018. “In addition to Narcan’s lifesaving properties, I think having the boxes in stores where the public can see them goes a long way in reducing the stigma of substance use disorder.”

Opioid and fentanyl overdoses are the number one cause of death for people 18-45 years of age in the United States.

“LICADD, Families in Support of Treatment (FIST) and Gabriels Giving Tree will continue to work tirelessly in alerting our communities of the ongoing opioid crisis and providing free and accessible naloxone (Narcan) in convenient locations in an attempt to save lives,” said -Steve Chassman, LCSW, CASAC , LICADD Executive Director. “LICADD commends the dedication of concerned citizens, who work selflessly to assist our neighbors in need and combat the stigma of opioid use disorders as a family disease. Help is available!”

Rothang – Miller Engagement Announcement

Michael and Lynn Rothang of Mastic are pleased to announce the engagement of their son, Timothy Rothang, of Shirley, to Blythe Miller, of Greenlawn, daughter of Michael and Jan Miller, of Miller Place.

Timothy serves as Chief of Staff to Suffolk County Legislator Jim Mazzarella (R-Moriches) of the Third Legislative District. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in History from St. Bonaventure University and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from Stony Brook University.

Blythe is a Senior Assistant District Attorney in the Financial Crimes Bureau of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Government from Colby College and a Juris Doctorate from Fordham University School of Law.

The couple was engaged on February 22 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. A wedding date has not yet been set.

The Messenger congratulates Timothy and Blythe on their engagement!

If any business would like a Naloxone Box, or is in need of Narcan replacements, call LICADD at 516-747-2606 or call Trottere directly at 631-275-5277, catrottere@gmail.com. She will personally deliver it to your place of business.

Danielle DeMicco Paisley

Honored as Woman of Distinction

Daniella DeMicco Paisley is the Director at the Patchogue-Medford Library, where she has worked for over twenty-five years. Starting her career as a youth services librarian, she worked with children, teens, and families in the Pat-Med Community before joining the Library Administration team in 2014.

She started the free summer lunch program for children and teens at the library in collaboration with Island Harvest, which completed its tenth year in 2014.

Ms. Paisley served as one of the administrators who worked to restore the one hundredplus-year-old Carnegie Library Building in Patchogue into a working library and teen after-school center, opening in 2016.

For the last six years, Ms. Paisley has headed up a project team with the goal of opening a new branch of the Patchogue-Medford Library located at the Medford Athletic Complex. She coordinated with local benefactors, municipalities, and community members to coordinate the construction of the new branch with no bonding or long-term debt cost to the community. In June 2024, the new branch opened and has become an integral resource not only for Medford residents, but for the entire Pat-Med Community. Ms. Paisley also serves the community on the Greater Patchogue Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, as the Secretary to the Greater Patchogue Foundation, as a Rotarian in the Patchogue Rotary Club, and as a trustee for the Medford Chamber of Commerce, helping to obtain funding for the annual Medford Concert Series.

When not working, Ms. Paisley enjoys listening to audiobooks, exploring all the parks and museums that Long Island has to offer, and spending time with her family and friends.

By Ashley Pavlakis

Sachem East Varsity Cheerleading: A Pyramid of Success

Two, four, six, eight, who do we appreciate? The Arrows!

The Sachem East varsity cheerleading team capped off another successful season with a Suffolk County Championship. The Arrows will look to defend their title as they head to states this week in Binghamton.

The Sachem East Arrows are a member of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) and compete in Class A. The squad is led by twin sisters Victoria and Brianna Aghabekian. Victoria was named Suffolk County coach of the year by Newsday in 2024.

“My sister [Victoria] is the head coach and I’m the assistant coach. She’s been the head coach for five years, and I’ve been the assistant for four. We’re actually alumni, we graduated from Sachem East, cheered on the team for four years, graduated in 2011, we were captains. So, it’s like a full circle with going back and coaching now,” said B. Aghabekian.

This group of cheerleaders are no strangers to success, as they’ve won the Suffolk County Championship three out of the last four years, and they won the state and regional championship last year.

Greatness? Dynasty in the making? Whatever you would like to call it, the Arrows have their traditional and game-day routines down pat.

“It’s doing the reps several times over and over again until us and the girls feel confident in their skills where there’s no question in mind about how our performances will go,” said B. Aghabekian.

By Ashley Pavlakis

The Cougars are on the hunt at Centereach High School this season as the girls’ varsity basketball team is in the midst of a playoff run. The team has battled hard on the court this season to get themselves to a semifinal matchup with Smithtown West.

The Centereach girls’ varsity basketball team is a member of the New York State Public High School Basketball Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) and competes in League IV. This season, the Cougars held a 17-3 record, best for third place in League IV. The only three losses came to Smithtown West and West Babylon (twice).

The team has eleven seniors set to graduate this spring. For most of their high school cheer careers, they found success on the mat. Some athletes are lucky to win a title once, but to win multiple times at different levels of competition is unique.

“They are the heart of the team, to be honest with you a couple of them I’ve coached every single year since I’ve been the coach so I don’t know how to coach a team without some of them, next year will definitely be different. They’re a great group of kids, it’s beyond a sport, they become a family. They spend most of their time with each other whether they’re at practice, all-star gyms, or tumbling classes,” said B. Aghabekian.

Sachem East earned three first-place finishes this winter season which helped them to secure the first place ranking. In addition, they also earned their first ever win at the Universal Cheerleading Association (UCA) Regionals. The competition typically is held at Disney and most teams usually have their sights set on making it to the most magical place on earth.

“We competed in the large varsity division this year which was one of the hardest divisions at the competition. We had an amazing performance for both routines, unfortunately, the competition was very hard to make it through the final rounds,” said B. Aghabekian of their second-place finish at the UCA’s.

In the sport of cheerleading, a team competes together as a unit. Sachem East embodies the concept wholeheartedly.

“You have to love it to be there, you can’t force anyone to be there to be successful. You have to wanna be better. And they all do it for each other,” B. Aghabekian told The Messenger.

Centereach Girls Basketball: On The Rise With Young Talent

The squad is coached by fifth-year head coach Steve Greco, coaching alongside him is assistant coach Colin Hintze. Uniquely, the duo are actually special education teachers at the middle school and teach across the hall from one another. Greco took over at the beginning of the pandemic, although it was a strange season to manage he took it in stride and turned the Cougars into a powerhouse over the last few years.

The 2024-25 season is the fourth consecutive season in which the Cougars have made the playoffs. Last season they were knocked out in the first round so redemption is surely on their minds. The Cougars had a semifinal matchup with the Bulls of Smithtown West on Tuesday night. Win or go home was the name of the game for both teams.

The Messenger spoke with Coach Greco prior to Tuesday night’s semi-final matchup. The final score of the game was 50-40 in favor of Smithtown West who will now head to the championship game on Sunday.

“I’m excited for the opportunity to have that third game with them [Smithtown West] on a neutral site, since we split at each other’s home. They’re a good team, I would say they move the ball well, they play well together. You kind of have to worry about all the kids on the court in that aspect. They move it to each other, they’re unselfish,” said Greco.

Junior Point Guard Hayley Torres notched her 1,000th point earlier this season for the Cougars. Torres plays an integral role for this team as Greco told The Messenger.

“We have two really good guards; we have Delaney Walters and Hayley Torres. Hayley is a junior now but came up as a seventh grader also in that weird COVID-19 year and has really been the catalyst for the change. Hayley came to an open gym and the way she just moved and handled the ball, I thought, “That kid is going to be a stud.’ She’s a true point guard, she does everything well, and she sees the floor well,” said Greco.

Perhaps a story in the making for the young Cougar squad is eighth grader Delaney Walters. The point guard was brought up to varsity as a seventh grader and has remained a member of the team since. This year she has 63 three-point shots and over 600 points in her young career. To think she still has four whole years of high school left to play is simply mind-boggling.

“Delaney, last year we brought her up and we knew this kid had everything that we needed to be successful. She is an unbelievable shooter, last year she came up and had 47 threes as a seventh grader, but didn’t really get to the basket. This year she’s growing, she’s only in eighth grade, but she got a little bit stronger and bigger so she’s able to get to the basket a little more,” said Greco.

Greco talked about the sense of cohesiveness within his team and how they mesh well together on and off the court.

“One of the biggest people for us, someone who doesn’t get a lot of recognition is Alexa Carmody. She’s our third guard; she does all those little scrappy things. She’s such a nice kid, very welcoming, and I think that kind of helps,” said Greco.

High school sports are only four years of an adolescent teen’s life, but for the Cougars, it’s about being in the moment and embracing it all.

“It’s not like they don’t take it seriously, they, at times, know how to have a good time and relax so the moment doesn’t get too big. Coach and I try to develop that environment where you don’t feel so much pressure on every play. We’ve turned the program around in a short period of time, so they do start to feel like they do belong,” said Greco.

Credit - Sachem Central School District

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