Community Columns

Cutchogue News: March with your dog in parade

International Women’s Day was celebrated March 8 by people around the world. The new millennium has brought a shift in opportunity for and emancipation and influence of women. We’ve come a long way, but there is still work to be done. As Malala Yousafzai said, “We call upon our sisters around the world to be brave — to embrace the strength within themselves and realize their full potential.”

Louisa May Alcott wrote in “An Old-Fashioned Girl” that “the emerging woman … will be strong-minded, strong-hearted, strong-souled and strong-bodied … strength and beauty must go together.” This is what I remember when I think of my dear friend the late, great Cutchogue Homemaker Claire Foos. Please join me in celebrating Claire and all the Cutchogue Homemakers past and present. Join in and kiss the Blarney Stone at their St. Patrick’s Day Party on March 17. Bring your favorite game for Game Day and a pizza lunch on March 24 or let your light shine at their Talent Show on March 31. Meetings start at 10 a.m. and are open to members and non-members alike. For more information, call Mary at 765-9243 or 516-607-4504.

Mike Lessard, a volunteer with Cuthchogue Fire Department, recently suffered a massive heart attack and needs our help. Thanks to the prayers of hundreds and the care he received at Stony Brook University Hospital, Mike is on the road to recovery, but the road won’t be easy. To ease his financial burden while he heals, former CFD chief Dave Fohrkolb started a “Helping Hearts for Mike Lessard” GoFundMe page. So far, $10,000 of the $15,000 goal has been raised. To help out with a donation, visit gofundme.com/nwidqk or mail a contribution to the department, in care of Mike Lessard, at 260 New Suffolk Road.

Our Lady of Mercy Regional School is accepting applications for openings in most grades, pre-K through 6. Deadlines for the “Tomorrow’s Hope Foundation” and local scholarships are fast approaching, so call 734-5166 to arrange a tour of school facilities. Kindergarten registration takes place the week of March 16, 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 3 p.m. Parents are asked to bring along the child’s birth certificate.

All dog owners are invited to march with their pets in Saturday’s St. Patrick’s Day parade in Cutchogue to show support for North Fork Animal Welfare League. Dawn Bennett of North Fork School for Dogs will meet you at 1:45 p.m. at the corner of Main Road and Harbor Lane — she asks that you bring bags for cleaning up after your dogs, but leave the retractable leashes home. The parade starts at 2 at Cox Lane and ends at the firehouse.

Dean Failey will give a free lecture, “The Old House: Reinterpreting an American Treasure,” at Cutchogue New Suffolk Library this Sunday, March 15, at 2 p.m. Refreshments will be served.

Congratulations to MHS students Courtney Murphy and Chris Dwyer, who received Suffolk Zone Physical Education Awards honoring their efforts toward outstanding achievement in physical education, and Jack Bokina, who earned a fourth-place finish in the New York State Wrestling Championships!

Congratulations also go to Cutchogue East Elementary principal Dr. Kathleen Devine, for successfully defending her doctoral dissertation.

Vincent Barry of Mattituck, newly elected board president of Aid to the Developmentally Disabled, will literally be thrown to the sharks during ADD’s Shamrock Shindig fundraiser March 19 at the Long Island Aquarium. No amount is too small to help support ADD’s residential programs on the North and South forks. You can donate at crowdrise.com/ADDShamrockShindig/fundraiser/vinnybarry.

North Fork Reform Synagogue presents “Albanian Muslims: Righteous Among the Nations” this Sunday, March 15, at 2 p.m. at the Peconic Recreation Community Building. Learn how the Besa code of honor motivated Albanian Muslims to save their Jewish population and welcome Jews seeking refuge from neighboring countries during World War II.

God bless!

Contact Cutchogue-New Suffolk columnist Barbara Sheryll at [email protected] or 734-5242.