__________________ SEAFORD _________________
HERALD $1.00
Coffee master joins community
Students conduct space research
Forest City rings in the holidays
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Vol. 69 No. 50
DECEMBER 9 - 15, 2021
Community seeks support for siblings By StEphaNiE BaNat newsroom@liherald.com
Kate Nalepinski/Herald
a jolly good time Christmas decor outside the Seaford Fire Department firehouse on Southard Avenue. The department hosted its annual tree-lighting ceremony last Saturday, when Santa Claus arrived via firetruck. More photos, Page 3.
It’s often said that in times of need, we lean on our community to give us strength. That is true of siblings Mary and Paul Saporito, who recently lost their father, and turned to WantaghSeaford for support. On Nov. 19, longtime Wantagh resident Jeffrey Saporito, 63, died of Covid-19. He was a veteran member of the Wantagh Preservation Society, and its president from 2005 to 2007. A master carpenter, he owned and operated Saporito Contracting Inc. He helped repair the Wantagh Museum grounds, including the reconstruction of the post office
on the site. Saporito was also an active member of St. William the Abbot RC Church in Seaford, his cousin Dolores Williams-Hassell said. “He was steadfast . . . a warm and loving person, and a faithful servant to the Lord,” she said. “He was a lector at their church, and raised his children to be devoted to their faith and their community like he was.” Saporito was a devoted family man, Williams-Hassell added. He left behind two children, Mary, 15 and Paul, 12. Their mother, Ann, died several years ago. In an effort to support the siblings, West Islip resident Charles Gandolfo, Mary and Paul’s Continued on page 10
Harbor boat parade still going strong after 19 years By MalloRy WilSoN mwilson@liherald.com
Decked out in a toy soldier costume, Seaford resident Joe Donohue was eager to climb aboard a friend’s boat at the 19th annual Seaford Harbor Christmas Boat Parade last Saturday. “I love seeing the kids on the docks,” Donohue said. “It brings the neighborhood together at a special time.” Every year, residents decorate boats and set sail through Tideway River in Seaford Harbor. Many participants have never missed a year, Donohue said. When times were tough, during Hurricane Irene in 2011, Hurri-
cane Sandy in 2012 and during the coronavirus pandemic, the parade helped keep people’s spirits up, he said. “It brought the neighborhood back together,” Donohue said. “It gave them something to look forward to.” In the past, no rain, snow, sleet, hail or bitter cold has stopped Seaford from celebrating the holiday tradition, and this year it was cold, but clear. The meetup and kickoff spot was the east end of Naomi Street. Boaters and residents congregated to mingle, eat and chat before the festivities began. T.J. Koerner, Seaford resident and boat operator, has taken part
for four years. His boat was decorated with a large inflatable Santa Claus at the stern. “It’s such a fun thing to do for the kids and the families around here,” Koerner said. “People in Seaford Harbor watch from their backyards and host watch parties.” About 30 boat operators showed up this year. One was Scott Navin, a Seaford resident and longtime participant who promotes the event each fall with signs around the community. Navin said that there was no official founder of the event; boaters have always simply gathered and joined in. “I just put a [sign] up one year,
and every year it got bigger,” Navin explained. “We were sitting in my backyard one year, threw a generator on the boat and decided to go for it.” The roughly two-hour-long parade runs through the harbor and circles past Seamans Neck Park twice. The boats also make their way through several canals in the Harbor.
“My parents used to bring my siblings and me a lot when we were kids,” Jessica Kofod, a Seaford High School alumna, recalled. “I haven’t [attended] for a couple of years, but it’s a really cool and unique event.” “Most of us live on the water down here, so we watch from our homes,” Seafordite Christine Continued on page 14