05.09.2015 Columns Column: Special-needs kids reach new heights The students enrolled in the Vocational Independence Program at Central Islip’s New York Institute of Technology seem to adore their dean, Ernst VanBergeijk. All of the three dozen-plus college-age...
04.18.2015 Columns Column: So here’s a column for the boy, too Kids, by nature, are scorekeepers. Meaning they’re constantly comparing what they have — or more specifically, what they don’t have — with other kids, and keeping track. I know...
03.07.2015 Columns Column: It’s about time we clean up our act Compared to people living in western Long Island, those on the East End are in a better position to recognize the connection between the environment and the economy. The...
01.24.2015 Columns Column: Come tour the world with us at lunch I’m a sandwich man. Whether it’s ham and cheese, a hamburger, pulled pork or a lamb gyro, I’m often happier at lunch than I am at dinner. Even when...
12.05.2014 Columns Column: Black youths deserve the same breaks from police You wouldn’t want to see your teenage nephew’s life derailed. You’ve watched him grow up. You know he’s a smart kid with a ton of potential; he’s just run...
09.13.2014 Columns Column: Taxis for women needed out here, too Women have made huge inroads over decades in many fields long — and unfairly — considered the exclusive territory of men. Print and broadcast journalism, of course, come immediately...
07.19.2014 Columns Column: Remove hate speech from immigration debate It was a sunny August afternoon last year when we at the paper got word of police activity — a possible drug bust — in Mattituck. It turned out...
06.14.2014 Columns Column: Think you have the flu? Check for a tick “Thank God my wife is such a pain in the a–.” That was how my brother Chris kicked off our phone conversation Monday, days after our mom had informed...
06.07.2014 Columns Column: Getting back into the swing of things Last year was a tough one for golf courses in Riverhead Town. Three closed, including Long Island National, which was purchased in a bankruptcy sale. The other two were...
04.19.2014 Columns Column: Let’s all ‘toss the phone’ together His audience was a group of Cub Scouts. Their motto: Do your best. And the children did their best to give Riverhead highway patrol officer Dennis Cavanaugh honest answers....