RON GALELLA/WIREIMAGE | Shelter Island resident and former Governor Hugh Carey at the 1979 Special Olympics on the SUNY Brockport Campus. Gov. Carey died Sunday at 92.

Former New York Governor Hugh Carey died at his summer home on Shelter Island Sunday, the New York Times reported. He was 92.

Mr. Carey, a Democrat, served as the state’s 51st governor from 1975 until 1982.

It was thanks to him that the state Department of Environmental Conservation reveresed course and agreed to let Shelter Island experiment to asses the ability of the 4-poster program in reducing the tick population. In 2006, he sent a letter to then-governor George Pataki in support of the tick killing program.

The program was found to be successful earlier this year.

He and his family have been residents of Shelter Island for many years. He generally kept a low profile though he was frequently seen at major events around the Island.

Survivors include 11 children, 25 grandchildren and 6 great grand-children, the Times reported. He is predeceased by his wife Helen and three sons Peter, Hugh Jr., and Paul.

See complete obituary in the August 11 edition of the Shelter Island Reporter.