Press

Annual Black Friday Festivities Planned for Stony Brook Village

Stony Brook, NY – If you need a great day out after all the hustle and bustle of Thanksgiving and all that turkey, then head down to Stony Brook Village for a full day of Black Friday family-friendly events, November 25, starting at Noon.

With over 30 shops and 7 restaurants to choose from, you can spend this traditional bargain day accomplishing what you need to in a charming setting overlooking Stony Brook Harbor.  Take in the sounds of holiday carolers and wind chimes, the sights of festive holiday windows and the tastes of high-end micro brewed craft beers and cheeses from around the world at Brew Cheese.  The day also includes live music with WALK Radio and “Walkie Bear,” a petting zoo, wine tastings at Lake Side Emotions, dance performances by Roseland School of Dance and specials, discounts and free samples in stores.

For full information contact 631-751-2244 or visit stonybrookvillage.com.

The Ward Melville Heritage Organization Celebrates its

37th Annual Holiday Festival in the Stony Brook Village Center 

Stony Brook, NY- This year will mark 37 years The Ward Melville Heritage Organization has hosted its Annual Holiday Festival in picturesque Stony Brook Village.

Festivities will take place Sunday, December 4th from 1 to 5:30 pm and will include caroling throughout the day, a holiday train display at the Educational & Cultural Center, a petting zoo, the “Forgotten Christmas” theatrical performance by WMHO’s Youth Corps, Wiggs Opticians Holiday Windows and, of course, Santa Clause. He will thrill adults and children alike as he arrives with great fanfare on a horse-drawn carriage to hear children’s wishes from 2 pm to 5 pm. WALK Radio, with help from “Walkie Bear,” will also be on hand playing holiday music throughout the day and spinning their popular raffle wheel.  Santa returns in dramatic style at 5:30 pm atop a 3,000 light float created especially for him by the Stony Brook Fire Department for the annual tree lighting.

There is also a Holiday Tree Competition.  Families and community groups will decorate some 60 holiday trees beginning at noon on December 4 and they will be part of the traditional Promenade of Trees which will remain on display through January 1. The deadline to enter and reserve your tree is November 18 and the visiting public will choose the winner. The winning tree entry will receive a $150 Stony Brook Village Center Gift Certificate usable in over 35 Village Center stores and 7 restaurants. Ballots will be available in all Village Center stores.

To be part of the Holiday Tree competition or for additional information call 631-751-2244 or visit www.stonybrookvillage.com.

Photo Credit:  WMHO

“Young At Heart” Alzheimer’s & Dementia Programming Begins

 Stony Brook, NY – In a unique collaborative effort between WMHO, Stony Brook Medicine, the Long Island State Veterans Home and The Jazz Loft, programming is now being launched for early stage Dementia and Alzheimer’s patients and their caregivers. “Young At Heart” will offer the proven benefits of live music, movement and art therapy.

Every 66 seconds, someone in the United States develops Alzheimer’s.  An estimated 5.4 million Americans of all ages have the disease this year, and it is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States. In 2016, Alzheimer’s and other dementias will cost the nation $236 billion. In 2015, 15.9 million family and friends provided 18.1 billion hours of unpaid care to those with Alzheimer’s and other dementias.  Approximately two-thirds of caregivers are women, and 34 percent are age 65 or older. (Statistics taken from the Alzheimer’s Association 2016)

The first program, The Swingin’ Side of Sinatra on November 15 from 1 – 3 PM, will take place at The Jazz Loft, 275 Christian Avenue across from the Stony Brook Village Center with the The Jazz Loft Trio performing.  The I Love Lucy Story:  Birth of the Modern Day Sitcom will be offered on December 21 from 1 – 3 PM by St. George Productions at WMHO’s Educational & Cultural Center, 97P Main Street, in the rear of the Stony Brook Village Center. It will include a lecture and video. Each will be led by a facilitator who specializes in geriatrics, and a certified nurse will be present at each program.  The cost for each program will be $20 for guest and caregiver and light refreshments will be served.  Reservations are necessary as space is limited.  Sponsors include Stony Brook Medicine, Stony Brook University, CVS Health, Bristal Assisted Living, Aging Flower and Village Chemists of Setauket.

For reservations call 631-751-2244 or visit stonybrookvillage.com.

Stony Brook, NY – Author Kerriann Flanagan Brosky, along with paranormal investigator Joe Giaquinto, will share stories from her latest book, Historic Haunts of Long Island…Ghosts & Legends from the Gold Coast to Montauk Point on October 27 at 7 pm at Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s Educational & Cultural Center in Stony Brook Village.

Through extensive research, interviews and investigations, seven-time award-winning author and historian, Kerriann Flanagan Brosky, working with paranormal investigator, Joe Giaquinto, has uncovered more on Long Island’s eerie history. Hear about EVPs (Electronic Voice Phenomena), orbs in the night sky above The Country House, apparitions of a little girl at the St. James General store, hauntings at the William Sidney Mount house and even the ghost of a Culper Spy Ring member in Setauket during the Revolutionary War.

The evening will include wine and “scary” desserts and the cost is $20 pp.  The Cultural Center is located at 97P Main Street in the rear of the Stony Brook Village Center. Reservations are required and books will be available for purchase that evening.

For more information, call (631) 689-5888 or visit stonybrookvillage.com.

Photo credit:  Kerriann Flanagan Brosky

Stony Brook, NY – David Striffler of Brew Cheese has earned the distinguished title of ACS Certified Cheese Professional® and is one of only two Cheesemongers in all of Suffolk County. He is now part of an elite group of nearly 600 individuals across the country who have passed the exam. In doing so he has demonstrated a high standard of comprehensive cheese knowledge and skills across a range of subject areas.

Brew Cheese is located in the Harbor Crescent section of the Stony Brook Village Center and carries gourmet cheeses from around the world, high-end micro brewed craft beers, free tastings and much more.  For additional information call 631-675-6060.

Photo Credit:  WMHO

A special reception honoring New York State Senator Kemp Hannon held on September 29 to launch “Young at Heart,” unique programming planned for Alzheimer’s and Dementia patients and their Caregivers, was covered in the Village Times Herald. Check out the article below.

Stony Brook, NY – Experience a little espionage right in your own backyard with, “To Spy or Not to Spy: That is the Question” on Saturday,
June 18 at the original home of Joseph Brewster, first cousin to Caleb Brewster, a member of the Culper Spy Ring.

This dramatic theatrical performance will take place at the Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s Brewster House, c. 1665, in Setauket as part of the I LOVE NY Path Through History weekend. It was created and will be performed by WMHO’s Youth Corps Theater Troupe, a teen volunteer group dedicated to stewardship projects in history and ecology.  Guests will also receive a special tour of the Brewster House by teen docents. The Brewster House is on the National and New York State Register of Historic Places.

Show times are 1 pm and 2:30 pm and the cost is $4 pp adults; $2 pp child under 12.  For reservations call 631-751-2244.  General group tours of The Brewster House are available by appointment.

Priceless Live Auction items UP FOR BID

Stony Brook, NY – Grab your bedazzled jeans and get out your “jewels” for a jam-packed night of fun with dinner, dancing, raffles, photo booth, live and silent auctions and more at Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s Annual “Jewels & Jeans” benefit dinner, Wednesday, June 29 at Flowerfield in St. James.The celebratory evening will honor the talented individuals who gave their time and expertise to make The Jazz Loft in Stony Brook a reality.  The amazing 6,000 s/f space houses exhibits, including archives from some of the greatest band leaders of their day, instruments, diaries and even a massive orchestra stage constructed from the original Roseland Ballroom dance floor.   A full calendar of musical performances and classes for special needs persons with autism, learning disabilities, dementia and alzheimer’s is also offered.

A highlight of this year’s benefit dinner will be the impressive Live Auction items up for bid including a three day, two night stay for six aboard the “Island Heiress,” a 145 Ft. Yacht (Courtesy, Cathleen Hansen); a three-course meal with wine in your home for up to eight, prepared by Chef Barret Beyer From “Hell’s Kitchen” and “Kitchen Casino;” complimentary night’s stay in the Superior Room (including Sunday brunch and food & beverage gift certificate at La Chine) for two in Peacock Alley at the Waldorf Astoria, (Courtesy, E. W. Howell); a private candlelight dinner for two in the Garden Balcony of The Simons Center prepared by Executive Chef Paolo Fontana (Courtesy, SCGP Café); a six-course tasting dinner with wine pairing for 10 (Courtesy, Mirabelle/Three Village Inn); and for the younger ones a Princess Party (5+), Pampered Princess Party (8+), Or Prima Donna Party (13+) for six with mani or pedi; make up or hairstyle, tiara, lunch and more (Courtesy, Blue Salon & Spa). Sealed bids will be accepted.

This year’s Honorees are:

Howard Rowland

President, E.W. Howell Construction Group

Harry Hansen

Project Executive/Superintendent, E.W. Howell Construction Group

Chris Richey

President, C.M. Richey Electrical Contractors

John Guadagno

President, IBEW Local 25

Kevin Harvey

Business Manager, IBEW Local 25

Mario Mattera

Business Agent, Plumbers Local Union 200

Joseph Azzopardi

Business Manager/Secretary Treasurer, Painters Union District Council 9

John Shepard

Business Agent, Painters Union District Council 9

 Festivities begin with Cocktail Hour at 6:30 pm at Flowerfield, 199 Mills Pond Rd., St. James.  Full details are available at wmho.org or 631-751-2244. All proceeds will be used for educational program matching grants and historic properties.

Stony Brook, NY – In commemoration of the 75th Anniversary of the construction of Stony Brook Village, the Ward Melville Heritage Organization will host a special exhibit from May 21 through September 7 at their Educational & Cultural Center offering a display of memorabilia spanning seven decades.

Visitors are sure to enjoy this walk through history as they experience the story told through original blueprints and documents, photos, sketches, memorabilia, letters penned by Ward Melville and much more.  Shops will also have historic photos on display in their windows of what their store looked like “back in the day.”  Completed in 1941, Stony Brook Village is recognized as the first planned business center in the United States.  It is the product of Ward Melville’s vision for a “living Williamsburg,” a place where history and culture would blend with natural beauty as a part of everyday life.

This “walking” Village is visited by thousands for its special charm and beauty, 30 specialty shops and seven restaurants, year round events and exhibits and a cultural center that hosts musical theatre and education programs.  It is also home to the impressive “mechanical eagle” atop the Stony Brook Post Office, which still flaps its wings today every hour on the hour from 8 am to 8 pm.

Sponsored by Suffolk Federal, the exhibit will be open May 21 to June 19; Wednesdays through Sundays from 10 am to 4 pm then June 20 through September 7 it will be open 7 days a week from

10 am to 5 pm. It will be closed Memorial Day and July 4. The exhibit is free to attend but donations are suggested.  For more information call 631-689-5888 or visit stonybrookvillage.com.