A Success
East Hampton
October 14, 2025
To the Editor:
We are pleased to announce that our golf-outing benefit was a success, with all proceeds going to support the athletic students of East Hampton High School. This event brought community members, local businesses, and supporters together for a day of fun, camaraderie, and purpose. This event helped enhance athletic programs and will provide a much-needed resource for our student athletes. Participation and sponsorships in this event will make a direct and lasting impact. Funds raised will go toward equipment, uniforms, transportation, and other essential needs that allow our athletes to represent East Hampton High School with pride and excellence.
Thank you to our sponsors, donators, and the Maidstone Club for an excellent day!
Best regards,
JULIE TERRY
President, Booster Club
SHARON BACON
Chairwoman, Kendall Madison Foundation
Highway Department
Springs
October 14, 2025
Dear David,
A huge thank-you to the Town Highway Department. When a huge roadside tree toppled on our car in Springs during the recent storm, the department responded within 15 minutes of our phone call with a team of workers and trucks and got the tree off. Splendid job.
BILL HENDERSON
Source of Inspiration
Barnes Landing
October 16, 2025
Dear David,
Thanks to you and your staff for publishing The Star all these years. It is a joy to read, whether here or somewhere else, and stay connected.
I wanted to write in about the celebration of the life of Larry Penny to be held on Oct. 26 at LTV and elsewhere.
I first met Larry when I got involved in local politics in East Hampton in the late 1970s and eventually got elected to two terms on the town board in 1979 and again in 1983. It seemed a tumultuous time to me, a lifelong summer kid who moved year round to my family’s summer home after college in 1975. I was 27 when I first was elected and passionate about saving the place I loved: its beaches, its farms, its woods, its waters, its local community. But I had a lot to learn.
Fortunately I had many mentors, fellow town board member Larry Cantwell, the bright, idealistic young attorneys who accompanied us into public service: Zigg Schmitt, Russell Stein, Tom Twomey, and John Shea. More seasoned political leaders, like Judith Hope, provided important guidance. Thomas Thorsen, town planning director, showed us what professional town planning was all about. And Larry Penny, environmental professor and writer, born and raised on the North Fork, who was to become the first East Hampton Town Department of Natural Resources director, provided an ongoing natural science classroom for me and many others.
Larry and I always liked each other. I think in part because we were both thrilled to have paying jobs “saving the East End.” But my passion needed refinement and information, and Larry and others provided it to me in spades. For a time Larry and I had nearby offices in the town building on Bluff Road in Amagansett. Sometimes I would accompany Larry on a “quick visit” to Hither Woods to locate a rare plant, or Larry would explain how the Suffolk County Health Department regulations regarding the depth and separation of private wells and private septic systems worked and didn’t work.
I remember once that he upset the secretaries working in the Bluff Road offices when he began a study of roadkill on his commute between his home in Noyac and the Bluff Road offices. The freezer in the common refrigerator in the Bluff Road offices sometimes held a surprise frozen specimen being stored for future analysis. Larry was a scientist and always curious about the way nature worked.
Larry would often tell me about vacant lands that he felt needed protection, like the roughly 20-acre Talbird woodland property next to Barcelona Neck. I would recommend acquisitions using his back-up analysis and often the parcels would end up public parkland, as was the case with Talbird. We would discuss the many vacant, tiny urban renewal parcels west of Lake Montauk, created by subdivisions from the 1920s, and the need to proactively protect them before houses, wells, and septic systems were proposed. Many of those small lots were placed in public ownership as well.
I continued to communicate with him after those eight years on the town board in the 1980s. He continued to be a great source of inspiration and information until his death.
I know that Larry’s administration of the Natural Resources Department in East Hampton was controversial, and I’m sure I avoided much of that stress by not working in that department.
Although I will not be able to attend the memorial celebration on Sunday, I wanted to say, when I walk the trails of East Hampton and see the many special places that have been protected, I often think of Larry Penny, my professor, my comrade-in-arms.
Sincerely,
RANDALL PARSONS
Their Own Space
East Hampton
October 19, 2025
To the Editor,
Yes, the Town of East Hampton needs a new senior center. But many problems have arisen. The projected costs were too high, there were conflicts between the architects and the builders, just to name two, but there were many more.
The biggest problem was just recently announced: changing the plan from a senior center to a community center. That is a big mistake. If that happens, many of us hope the seniors will have their own space, totally separated from the others, with their own entrance. Seniors do not want to socialize with children, with teenagers, etc. They go to a senior center to be with seniors, for senior-only programs.
Seniors with wheelchairs, walkers, canes need space, need room to maneuver. Seniors want quiet, want to exercise with other seniors, want lunch with other seniors, etc. How about one building for only seniors, as originally planned, and drop the community center for now? Or how about constructing two buildings, not just one, (perhaps connecting them with a very long hallway)? Or better yet, create a community center someplace else entirely.
JANE ADELMAN
Changed Their Mind
Amagansett
October 19, 2025
Dear David,
Famed British economist John Maynard Keynes was once approached after a lecture by a young man demanding an explanation: There was an apparent contradiction between something Keynes had said that evening and something Keynes had written in an article many years earlier. Keynes’s response, “When I am wrong, I change my mind. What do you do?”
The town board was not wrong when they set out to create a new senior center but they weren’t right either in what unfolded. So they listened, and then they did what too few people in public service are ever willing to do: They changed their mind. It’s been a fractious few years in the community to get to where we are now, but today we’re headed in a new direction with a facility that will better serve the entire community.
Kudos to our town board. Keynes would have been proud of them.
Sincerely,
JIM LUBETKIN
Better Democrats
Amagansett
October 17, 2025
To the Editor:
Christopher Gangemi quotes Jerry Larsen in “Larsen Ready for 2026 Run,” as advocating that voters “re-register as Democrats so they can vote” for him — an overt invitation to help him hijack the town Democratic Party so he can win the primary.
We have all been here before. In 2016, at some early point, Donald Trump began to seem almost inevitable; you knew his Democratic adversary lacked the strength, momentum, and support to defeat him. Then it happened again in 2024. Mr. Larsen is acquiring that kind of nightmare-on-the-horizon, little-we-can-do-about-it energy.
This time, let’s not make the 2024 mistake all over again by waiting too long. I do not believe Kathee Burke-Gonzalez can defeat Mr. Larsen, who will take shots at her all day long about the senior center, the airport, and numerous other topics. A charismatic scoundrel, Mr. Larsen will call her honesty and competence into question.
We have enough runway. Let’s manifest what I have been calling for for the longest time: better Democrats. Best would be an outsider, someone new not tainted by long association with the machine, a better communicator, trustworthy, confidence-inspiring. (Remind you of the New York City mayoral race?)
Much less satisfactory, but far better than slip-sliding into political oblivion: Transform the existing party by freeing the newer members from their chains — let Burke-Gonzalez retire and one of them step up.
If we follow the Biden “strategy,” and let inertia and ego rule (actually “Inertia et Ego” seems like an appropriate slogan for the local Democrats), we lose. Let’s not squander the opportunity to fix this. I hesitate to say there are no second chances, but history clearly shows that sometimes they occur 70 years later, if not 700.
For democracy in East Hampton, if you can keep it,
JONATHAN WALLACE
Party Is Worried
Amagansett
October 19, 2025
Dear David,
As we approach the upcoming election, it’s worth noting the behind-the-scenes maneuvering within the East Hampton Democratic Committee. It took six members to draft letters of endorsement for Councilwoman Cate Rogers, indicating their concern about her re-election prospects. This level of support suggests that the party is worried about losing a crucial seat, and one has to wonder why that is.
Additionally, while Ms. Rogers often presents herself as a champion of the community, it’s important to recognize her affluent background. She inherited the Nassau Coliseum property from her father, which places her in a position of wealth that is not representative of many constituents in East Hampton. This raises questions about her understanding of the challenges faced by everyday residents, particularly in the context of the ongoing affordable housing crisis.
Cate Rogers was a staunch advocate for the senior center plan, which ultimately failed due to a significant lack of input from our knowledgeable zoning board of appeals and planning board. This oversight resulted in the town incurring $1.3 million in unnecessary fees paid to architects, stemming from a failure to adequately consider community perspectives. Ms. Rogers’s strong support for the Monroe decision provided the board with a rationale for cutting down seven acres of trees and impacting neighboring properties. Unfortunately, this decision further marginalized essential expertise that could have guided the project toward a more successful outcome. The Monroe decision highlighted the critical need for involving relevant planning agencies and incorporating community feedback — an approach that was not supported by three board members, including Ms. Rogers, along with Kathee Burke-Gonzalez and David Lys, who actively led this misguided effort.
The proposal to locate the East Hampton Food Pantry within the new senior center raises additional eyebrows. Such initiatives often become political talking points but rarely come to fruition. It seems that candidates in trouble frequently resort to these promises to garner support, but without a solid plan, they remain empty gestures. This is truly an empty gesture for Cate.
As residents, we deserve leaders who genuinely understand our struggles and are committed to delivering real solutions, rather than relying on endorsements and lofty promises. It’s time to reflect on what we truly need from our elected officials. Election time is when the true colors of a candidate appear in print.
RONA KLOPMAN
Core Values
Springs
October 19, 2025
Dear Editor,
East Hampton is many things to many people. To most, this beautiful and increasingly fragile environment is simply the place we call home, whether our families have been here for generations or we are newly arrived.
We need our elected officials to be informed, to listen, to understand the complexities of governing, and to compromise. However, it is most important for one never to compromise one’s core values.
Cate Rogers has demonstrated that she is true to her core values. She has the foresight to see the complexities facing our town. Cate is an independent thinker who has the willingness and skills to find common ground.
Vote to protect East Hampton. Vote for Cate Rogers for town board.
Sincerely,
CHRISTINE GANITSCH
Community First
Springs
October 19, 2025
Dear David,
I’ve lived in Springs full time for over 25 years — and more than 50, if you count the summers.
In 2016, I nearly left the East End because I couldn’t bear to watch the town I loved strangled by overdevelopment. I realized that if I wanted to stay, I had to help shape the kind of community I believed in. Building the Arts Center at Duck Creek was my way of honoring and protecting the place that shaped the best parts of who I have become.
As Election Day approaches, I’m reminded how vital it is to have leaders who put protecting our community first, who listen to residents, not just the loudest or most powerful voices. That’s why I’m supporting Cate Rogers for re-election to the town board. Cate doesn’t just talk about protecting East Hampton, she takes action and brings the public into the process.
Her work on the recent zoning code amendments is a perfect example of how Cate has inspired our community to act. For too long, unchecked development threatened our environment and quality of life. Cate recognized the urgency and created the zoning code working group — an almost-two-year process of research and public input gave residents from all sides a chance to voice their concerns and find a fair and balanced resolution. Over 150 public comments were recorded, with 110 supporting the code change. The updated formula was designed to favor smaller lots over luxury-scaled homes, and you can still build a 4,000-square-foot house on a quarter-acre lot, including the basement and garage.
But Cate’s commitment to East Hampton goes far beyond zoning. Her dedication is evident in helping to get the South Fork Wind Farm online, securing $2.5 million to restore dunes at Ditch Plain, and expanding housing opportunities for working families.
Do we really want to lose a town board member who inspired her neighbors to fill Town Hall to capacity and speak passionately about what matters to them? Isn’t civic engagement exactly what we should want from our leaders?
Cate Rogers leads with openness, transparency, accountability, and determination. I urge my neighbors to re-elect her.
Sincerely,
JESS FROST
Balance Is Needed
Springs
October 17, 2025
To the Editor,
As a registered independent for over 30 years now, it’s hard to watch the political dysfunction at both the national and local levels. As both major parties move to the extreme, it’s too bad there isn’t a moderate third party to better balance the system.
As we approach our local elections, balance is badly needed, as one political party has dominated the political landscape for over a decade now. What has that resulted in? A town budget that has doubled
For perspective, the Town of Southampton only spends about 30 percent more on its budget for more than twice the number of residents, according to the latest census data.
We have a local housing crisis that the administration has done little to do about but talk. They’ve built less than a hundred units of affordable housing in the last decade despite having thousands on a waiting list. They muse about accessory dwelling units that will be little more than a rounding error in relation to the problem and quote rental rates for in and off-season that have little bearing in reality.
The town administration has also talked about environmental sustainability with various climate pledges and declarations in the last decade with almost nothing concrete to show for it. As someone who has been going to the town for almost a decade now trying to get it to invest in solar, it has been very frustrating, as they refuse to consider taking even the simplest steps.
The town could lower its own emissions profile through a variety of solar projects. It commissioned, with state funding, a consulting report for solar potential on town-owned buildings nearly eight years ago that continues to be ignored. More important, the town could lower the cost of electricity for both residents and itself if it would ever collaborate on a community solar project, as Southampton did over five years ago. This was first proposed, as usual, a decade ago, so it’s finally time to allocate some of the land from the gun club for that purpose.
What will the town spend money on? It has committed itself to tens of millions for endless sand dredging on very small patches (only a few thousand feet in either location) of downtown Montauk and Ditch Plain. Given the main beneficiaries represent less than 0.01 percent of the taxpayers of the town, perhaps it would be fairer to introduce a supplemental oceanfront property-owner tax in these areas that together make up about a quarter of a mile. That is what is done in the Sagaponack and Bridgehampton area for these types of services that will likely prove to be a losing battle with climate change anyway.
Cell coverage is atrocious, with many third world countries offering better service, but our town would rather spend endless years suing either the various cell-company providers or even its own Fire Department. Still, for some reason, it keeps using the same consultants for advice and has had a 150-foot cell tower standing for a decade now that hasn’t been used.
We probably have one of the highest incidences of tick-borne diseases of any town in the country, combined with an insane number of deer-car collisions for a decade now — between 500-600 annually. These two things are correlated and, as a local doctor who is considered a national expert in the field has said in the past, “if you don’t have a deer problem, you don’t have a tick problem.” Yet, it’s a topic that can’t even be discussed. I know, I’ve tried for almost four years now either through emails to the town board or speaking at multiple town board meetings with only silence in the response.
For these reasons, and a few more I will address next week, voters should finally elect an independent voice to the board. That option is J.P. Foster, who has been the head of the East Hampton School Board for a dozen years. He has shown strong leadership in that position, as well as on the board of LTV, where is now chairman, and as the chief dispatcher for the village’s Emergency Communications Department. Sadly, the Town of East Hampton can’t afford another decade of one-party rule.
BRAD BROOKS
Has My Vote
East Hampton
October 19, 2025
Dear David,
What do I want from my elected officials? Integrity above all! And then: experience, expertise, caring about our community, keeping our neighborhoods as neighborhoods. Cate Rogers embodies all these characteristics and therefore has my vote. I trust she will have yours.
DAVID GOLDSTEIN
Follow Through
East Hampton
October 20, 2025
Dear David,
The Town of East Hampton is facing a clear challenge in leadership. Over the past few years, we’ve seen instability in key departments, costly project delays, and a lack of follow-through on important community initiatives. Leadership is about more than holding a title, it’s about listening, bringing people together, and getting results.
As a lifelong resident and longtime public servant, I’ve spent more than a decade on the East Hampton School Board, including 12 years as its president. In that time, I’ve worked through complex projects: community disagreements, financial challenges, and delivering real results. One example is our new transportation center, which was completed under budget, during the height of Covid, and includes a vocational education component to benefit local students. The project faced neighborhood opposition early on, but through open communication, transparency, and respect for all viewpoints, we found common ground and moved forward.
While the town board has spent over a decade working on a senior center project that has yet to break ground, I was able to lead a successful public project from planning to completion, efficiently and responsibly. That’s the kind of leadership I want to bring to Town Hall: steady, experienced, and focused on solving problems, not creating them.
I believe East Hampton deserves a local government that listens, plans carefully, and follows through. With my experience and collaborative approach, I know we can restore confidence in town leadership, complete long overdue projects, and make East Hampton a place where residents feel heard and progress is visible.
Respectfully,
J.P. FOSTER
Fought the Good Fight
East Hampton
October 20, 2025
To the Editor:
There are two experienced incumbents running for East Hampton Town council, Cate Rogers and Ian Calder-Piedmonte. Apparently, there are two Republican candidates also running, but only one accepted the nomination and has chosen to campaign.
Cate Rogers has been actively involved with East Hampton for many years, as a member of the zoning board of appeals for nine years, including seven years as vice chairwoman. In 2021 she was elected to the town board and now is the deputy supervisor. She has been very active in protecting the environment. She is a climate leader trained by the Climate Reality Project and currently the co-chairwoman of the New York State Coalition of Chapters. She has fought the good fight on behalf of offshore wind energy, with the result that South Fork Wind is now up and providing electricity to 70,000 homes and businesses on the South Fork. Cate is an advocate for affordable housing, which is so important to the East Hampton community. These are just a few of the issues facing East Hampton in which Cate is involved.
I have worked with Cate on a number of matters and she has impressed me with the depth of her knowledge and her willingness to do significant research on issues before she forms her opinion on what should be done. She is dedicated to her job and works long hours.
Cate’s experience makes her an important essential player in the matters facing the town board. It takes years to get a new town board member up to speed, and to lose someone with Cate’s knowledge and credentials would be detrimental to the entire East Hampton community.
Ian Calder-Piedmonte was appointed to the planning board in 2012, where he served for 12 years. He was appointed to the town board in 2024 to fill the seat held by Kathee Burke-Gonzalez when she was elected supervisor. Ian has always been involved in service to his community and, as a farmer and business owner, he is focused on practical solutions that will benefit the East Hampton community and its residents. He doesn’t always agree with the other members of the town board, but he listens well and ably presents his reasoning and the positions he takes. As a local business owner, he supports local livelihoods, such as small businesses as well as fishing and farming. He is passionate about creating affordable housing so local workers can also live in East Hampton.
Ian’s approach brings diversity to the board and he is committed to transparent, open-minded and fair governance that puts the East Hampton community first.
Please vote for Cate Rogers and Ian Calder-Piedmonte on Nov. 4. Early voting starts on Saturday at Windmill Village, 219 Accabonac Road, East Hampton.
JEREMIAH MULLIGAN
Leadership That Listens
Springs
October 18, 2025
Dear David,
Cate Rogers is a dear friend and as a friend she is loyal, kind, funny, inspiring, nurturing, trustworthy, and supportive. She is a woman of integrity and is not afraid to voice her opinion and take on the tough issues and challenges that this community now faces.
As councilwoman she stepped up and took action to ensure that development better meets the needs of our fragile environment and an infrastructure that is already under assault through improving and updating the zoning code amendments.
As councilwoman she has helped to secure $2.5 million in state funding for coastal dune restoration for Ditch Plain.
As councilwoman she has sponsored a composting pilot program eliminating 12,245 lbs. of food scraps from the waste stream over two summers.
As councilwoman she has expanded community housing opportunities for working people by helping to rewrite the affordable housing codes.
As councilwoman she has taken on the tough issues that most politicians would not touch with a 10-foot pole — she is a champion for the environment and in 2017 became a climate leader through the Climate Reality Project and was tutored by former Vice President Al Gore.
By voting for Cate you will be giving her the power to continue working for this community and move on to her objectives for her next term, which include expanding child care opportunities across our town and supporting our democracy and the rights of citizens. Another very tough issue that she will take on is fighting against the economic exploitation of our neighborhoods by short-term rental investors and addressing the impacts of the climate crisis ensuring and increasing our coastal resilience.
What we need now is understanding and compassionate leadership that will inspire all to work in harmony. What we need now is to face all the challenges so that the actions taken are long lasting and resilient. What we need now is experienced leadership that listens, that welcomes diversity and community well-being. What we need now is experienced leadership fighting for our future. What we need now is a leader who stands up for families and the community.
Cate is all of these things which is why she should be re-elected in November. She is a born leader and has proven her loyalty and responsibility to this town. When we as citizens vote we act on who will make decisions on our behalf, which helps our democracy work. Cate deserves our continued support, and I ask that you vote for her on Election Day.
DENISE SAVARESE
Continue Good Work
East Hampton
October 20, 2025
Dear David,
With only weeks to go before we head to the voting polls to cast our votes, I’d like to comment on why integrity and decency matter. In a matter of months, we have seen our country’s core principles diluted and stripped away. American values have been cast aside in favor of a growing authoritarian government. Here in our small hamlets of East Hampton, we struggle to keep our faith in what our founding fathers constructed in our Constitution despite the turmoil in Washington.
However, in East Hampton, we are blessed to have a candidate who is focused on what is important today and for the future. A candidate who has integrity and decency as her core values. That Cate Rogers is my friend of many years, makes it even more wonderful that we can vote for her re-election to continue her good work as a member of our town board.
Cate Rogers has always been guided by integrity, compassion, and decency. It should come as no surprise that I, along with so many others in our hamlets, would gravitate toward a person who possesses character traits that are solidly admirable.
Cate is someone I know to be a caring and dedicated human being. She’s compassionate and kind. I am grateful for our heartfelt conversations, shared values, and robust laughter. In our many conversations over the years, Cate has pointedly provided a renewed hope and solace. She’s a wise friend whose ability to reach out when one needs comfort or kindness is an integral part of her personality and serves as a motivating factor that accompanies her work ethic.
Cate Rogers is also a thoughtful individual, with a natural curiosity to learn and understand. I continue to hear her say, “We can and we must.” It is Cate’s mantra, Cate’s goal, and one that we all share, to preserve and protect our town’s beauty and natural resources. She is the first to remind us that there are viable solutions to problems — there always are. And Cate is right, if we’re willing to do the work.
In Deputy Supervisor Cate Rogers, we are fortunate to have a candidate who is a leader with high standards. She has proven herself to be a committed and hard worker, supported by data and research, and who shares with us the core values of our democracy and our country’s Constitution.
Not one to yield to poor or wrong decisions made in haste, Cate Rogers comes to the town board meetings prepared with peer-expert scientific and factual data to support her position on numerous topics and issues our town has and is facing. For Cate, the challenges our town faces must always be met with common-sense governance that will serve the people she represents. And, she accomplishes goals with grace, professionalism, integrity, and intelligence.
Now, more than ever, we need leadership like Cate’s to continue to lead East Hampton.
I’m happy to once again endorse and vote for my friend Cate Rogers. I hope you’ll join me, because integrity, dedication to solving problems, and decency do matter!
Vote for Cate Rogers!
Sincerely,
SUSAN MCGRAW-KEBER
The Town Clerk
Springs
October 19, 2025
Dear David,
When I announced back in the spring that I was running for town clerk, I was met with both excitement and some skepticism, not about my qualifications, but as to why I’d want to do that. It’s something I’ve considered for many years from conversations with Fred Yardley, then Fred Overton, and lastly, Carole Brennan, which takes me back to the title of this letter. The clerk is the keeper of all the records of the town, but it’s so much more than that. The clerk’s office is the heartbeat and nerve center of Town Hall. Everyone has to pass through it at some point.
From parking permits, clamming licenses, marriage certificates, and so on, the clerk is the face of Town Hall. It should be an individual with a deep knowledge of the town and the people that make it up. I remember as a child going there with my Mom to get our beach parking permit and Andy Anderson smiling and welcoming us. It’s something I can still recall almost 50 years later.
Years later when my mother, Linda Miller, worked at Town Hall as a legislative assistant under many different council members, Deb Foster to Pete Hammerle, Diana Weir to Nancy McCaffrey, I’d visit her. I’d then walk down the hall and speak with Fred Yardley, my former Springs School social studies teacher, and a good friend’s Dad.
It’s a community-oriented job. It requires technical expertise, being able to organize and file required reports. But also requires public-relation skills, managing people and different tasks effectively and efficiently. Inter-departmental communication is a must. My 35-plus years of working with many different governmental and community organizations — Springs Fire Department (chiefs office for seven years), Springs School Board, East Hampton Little League Board and coaching, Suffolk County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Services deputy fire coordinator (18 years), Suffolk County Police Academy (recruit class 1992, 111 graduates), Southampton Youth Association volunteer, East Hampton Presbyterian Church, president Springs Fire Department Benevolent Association, East Hampton Village Department of Public Works (36-plus years) and others — have prepared me for this next chapter in my life and East Hampton’s rich history.
I want to also commend the current staff in the clerk’s office for doing an amazing job with the thousands of people they deal with in the office. Are there improvements to be made? Certainly. Offering multiple payment options, online permit accessibility, digitizing more records (for both clarity and ease of operability). We must also make a more secure area for the records that need to be both protected and preserved, as they are now in various locations, which is not fitting for an entity such as East Hampton Town. I could continue, but in finishing I feel that I’m uniquely qualified being a 13th-generation Bonacker with many different leadership roles in my résumé, to be that person who helps lead East Hampton into the future.
Sincerely,
JEFF MILLER
Tremendous Asset
Simpsonville, S.C.
October 18, 2025
Dear Editor,
It is a honor for me to endorse Jeff Miller for East Hampton town clerk. Knowing the Miller family for over 30 years was a very special part of my life. Linda, Jeff’s mom, was my secretary while I was on the town council and we developed a strong friendship. We shared many happy and sad moments throughout those years. I miss her beautiful smile and all the laughs.
The role of town clerk is very different from other elected positions in the town. The town clerk does not create policy and is of vital importance to our town residents, most of whom will use the clerk’s office. It is the only place where residents and visitors alike, at some point or another, come to resolve issues, get permits, and even get married. In order to give the best service, the person at the helm should have a deep knowledge of the town and what its residents need. Having strong local roots in the community is a tremendous asset, and Jeff is absolutely qualified!
In the tradition of town clerks over the years, Fred Yardley, Fred Overton, and Carole Brennan, all locals who served professionally and honorably, Jeff will be an asset to East Hampton. Jeff’s years of service in the Fire Department and working throughout the community make him the next best clerk for our town!
I am so pleased to give him my wholehearted endorsement for town clerk. East Hampton residents are fortunate to have an outstanding community servant in Jeff Miller!
DIANA WEIR
—
Ms. Weir is a former East Hampton Town Board member. Ed.
Suited for the Job
East Hampton
October 15, 2025
To the Editor,
Michael Hansen is the right choice for East Hampton town clerk. What makes him so well suited for the job is his intricate knowledge and savvy in the technology world. His opponent does not have that experience.
Mr. Hansen is no stranger to public service. He is currently serving on the East Hampton Town Planning Board and has in the past been on the East Hampton Energy and Sustainability Committee, as well as the Wainscott Citizens Advisory Committee.
The Town of East Hampton will be well served to have Michael Hansen as its new town clerk.
ROBERT J. CARDONSKY
Right Choice
Wainscott
October 16, 2025
Dear Editor:
For many years my father, born and raised in Wainscott, would get for me my shellfish license to clam and crab whenever I spent time with him and my mother on the East End. It always made me feel special, getting this license. It felt like I was a part of this local world I so valued, an invitation to enjoy and benefit from waters I adored. I was always grateful to the town clerk’s office for making this happen — this privilege. To me, it was a place that made my experience here better, even more special.
Now there is an election coming up to pick a new person as town clerk. Since my father’s passing a few years back, I have moved to Wainscott full time, and have been the one to go to the office and get my license and permits. It’s made me value it even more. Under Carole Brennan’s leadership, my experience has always been positive. She and her staff are genial, efficient, and helpful. That said, I believe Michael Hansen, the Democrat running for this position, is the right choice to take the office into the future.
I’ve known Michael since we were children. In many ways, we’ve had similar paths to the East End; like me, his father was born here, and like me, he has made a choice to become a resident and set roots. He is dedicated to the area. He is a member of the planning board and has been on several committees. He doesn’t just support good causes, he actively participates, be it volunteering to clean roads and beaches or delivering healthy farm fare to local food pantries. He’s a good person. He’s a family man with children in local schools. He’s nice. He’s smart. He’s inclusive. He is a modern man with an old-school sensibility when it comes to hard work and honesty. I believe his education and knowledge of technology and his career as a top web designer will be important in an effort to make the town clerk’s office even more user-friendly for all of us. He’s my choice for town clerk. I hope he will be yours as well.
Sincerely,
JOHN MCCAFFREY
Entirely Wrong
North Haven
October 20, 2025
Dear David:
This Saturday, many good and honest Americans joined together to protest our own government for its voluminous lies and deliberate sabotage of vital services and agencies. Lives and well-being are being destroyed, and the nation’s military is being remodeled to attack peaceful residents and weaken our international defense.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson, who I consider the house-mouse squeaker for Trump, repeatedly called the No Kings protesters of Trump’s shameful presidential conduct, “people who hate America.”
The mouse got that entirely wrong, since we dearly love America, and we wish to defend and save our beloved country from Trump’s obvious authoritarian sabotage of our democracy, and the increasing tyranny currently underway.
Our numbers in this open protest scare the hell out of the Project 2025 team. Russell Vought, Stephen Miller, Mike Johnson, and the rest of the MAGA-heads, including the likes of Lauren Boebert and Kristi Noem, the Heritage Society, and the Department of Government Efficiency, all know they can become the ashes of the past. We have the power to do that!
They all know we can vote them out of office, if we keep our courage, keep speaking our truth to this situation, and actually vote!
Meantime, we have the courts and a few honest politicians to help support us in this fight against his unauthorized and unlawful conduct. We have only this year to get our act together and do this.
We must prevail.
ANTHONY CORON
Lion of MAGA
East Hampton
October 20, 2025
To the Editor,
At the No Kings protest, where many saw scorn poured on the intricately threaded hair of our beloved president, I sensed only love.
With the government blessedly shut down, he pointed his laser mind to getting George Santos out of jail and sending $20 billion to those needy gauchos down Argentina way.
Other presidents were weak — they cared about us domestics. No, the lion of MAGA roars and slips his hand into our pockets.
So please, my fellow citizens, give joyfully to our thin-skinned president the adoration he so needs — or else!
TOM MACKEY
A Brilliant Turnout
Amagansett
October 20, 2025
Dear Mr. Rattray,
Remember when we used to count the number of seniors we’d see wearing comfortable shoes in a single day? It was better than Travel Bingo! The highest you reached was 23; my personal best was 58. But that was on a beautiful spring Saturday in Central Park — there were more seniors than squirrels! So maybe you’d want to disallow it, like someone caught doping. Or maybe there should be an automatic 30-seniors deduction for large cities? Either way, I win. Haha.
But that’s not why I’m writing, Mr. Rattray. I’m writing because Mary and I attended the No Kings demonstration along the highway in front of Town Hall a few days ago. It was a brilliant turnout, and gratifying to know that millions demonstrated across the country and around the free world — such a good feeling to be among friends, neighbors, and fellow citizens in a righteous demand for the return of our constitutional Democracy. I’m praying we’ll see tangible results of a pushback against our current president, his domestic policies, and cavalier transformation of our noble military into a personal gestapo.
I also had several occasions to take personal satisfaction from Saturday’s gathering. One in particular involved an exuberant compliment given by a woman Mary knew well but hadn’t seen for years. When we were introduced she shook my hand and said, “Oh my God, I’ve always wanted to meet you! I love your writing, your letters. I look for them every week!” I’m not even paraphrasing, Mr. Rattray. As big as my ego is, I’m always insecure about the things I write. And this is not some attempt at false modesty, even though, I admit, I do look for my letters in The Star. And if I don’t see one, I go to my room and pout. Anyway, thank you, wonderful lady, for giving me that happy moment.
Now back to No Kings. You know I’ve been somewhat obsessed with the idea that in just over eight months our country will be celebrating its 250th birthday. Our semiquincentennial. Honoring the signing of our Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. That was the very first No Kings Day, as we declared our severance from England’s monarchy and King George III. July 4, 2026 — what a perfect day to re-declare our independence from the very idea of a king. Or monarch. Or dictator. I’m excited to join that parade. (I’ll be wearing comfortable shoes, Mr. Rattray. You?)
Flag in hand,
LYLE GREENFIELD
Connective Thread
Springs
October 18, 2025
To the Editor,
It was a stunningly beautiful day for our community to gather for the worldwide rally declaring no kings in America. The sun reflected on my phone where my speech notes were housed, rendering my mapped-out speech a circuitous chopping block of ideas. Here are the points I made, inarticulately at best, and I hope we, everyone together, can keep marching in the right direction, deepening our roots of belonging on the East End.
I have lived in Springs for 25 years, (still not a “local”) and my organization is the Neo-Political Cowgirls — a devising theater-arts collective utilizing the arts as engine for amplifying the human voice, creating shared spaces of belonging where dialogue and curiosity spur creative empowerment and societal change.
We have six Little Free Food Pantries scattered across our towns here. I hope you will give to them and receive from them frequently as we de-stigmatize the word “need” and support the great work of our local food banks. Find our pantry locations on our website: npcowgirls.org .
I want to leave you with three bullet points for consideration, unpacking, and activation:
First off: The organizational model called mutual aid is where voluntary, collaborative exchanges of resources and services for common benefit take place amongst community members to overcome social, economic, and political barriers to meeting common needs. This is of the utmost importance in these days for our community. And it is also a first requirement of implementation for us to build the movement for a national strike, which is one of our greatest weapons in the hands of the societal collective that can advance against fascism. But our collective caring must first be strongly in place to support this.
Two: Voices and ears, each of us must engage our voice to speak up on behalf of each other — especially those most targeted which at any moment could be you if it’s not already. And for every bit of speaking we do, do twice as much listening (leading with curiosity), putting judgment aside, because committed listening is where we learn what it is that requires our voices. Remember that gossip is bad for trust; knowledge and truth is where trust is expanded.
Three: People often say, “I don’t trust the government.” Understood. What we must remember is that the government is made of people, and people have built these broken systems that we do not and should not trust when they harm people and the planet and misuse our money and hard work. So at every single government level know who you are voting for, why, and where they stand on issues that strengthen our roots. Don’t be tantalized by the bright and shiny decorations that politicians present; look at what they are feeding the roots of our community. Be very questioning of those politicians who show you fancy, exciting business and call it a reason to vote for them. We need to always inspect the roots, follow the money, and demand transparency, fairness, and open-forum discussions. And if you are an elected official or running for office, build the roots of trust. Have the hard conversations. It takes all of us to build trust in our government and it begins in our communities. We need to demand trustworthiness from the people who are in our government, and we ourselves must be the roots of trust, every last one of us. So what does that look like?
Every one of us is a connective thread that creates our world. Please ponder your part. Please ponder these points: mutual aid, voices and ears, the roots of trust building.
And let’s meet again soon to activate next steps. Happy, courageous No Kings, No Fascists Day!
KATE MUETH
Partisan Opportunism
East Hampton
October 18, 2025
Sir,
Representative Nick LaLota’s Oct. 8 “tele-town hall” exposed not leadership, but calculated deceit and partisan opportunism. He parroted party propaganda while ignoring the urgent realities facing his constituents, using them instead as props to advance President Trump’s political agenda. If Mr. LaLota and his Republican allies genuinely represented their districts, they would back a clean, bipartisan funding plan that protects veterans, air safety, health care, and essential services, instead of holding them hostage to score political points.
His support for a “clean” funding approach sits in stark contrast to his backing of the Medicaid cuts and American Care Act changes embedded in the One Big Beautiful Bill. Claiming to seek stability while pursuing policies that will slash coverage for millions and increase premiums is a betrayal of the people he was elected to serve.
Furthermore, his refusal to address questions about Jeffrey Epstein signaled a troubling prioritization of partisan theater over transparency and ethics. Leaders responsible for governing must answer hard questions, not dodge them to protect a political narrative.
The fact is Representative LaLota has abdicated his duty to represent his constituents honestly and to seek solutions that preserve safety, health care, and economic stability. He and his Republican colleagues should drop the brinkmanship, abandon hostage-taking, and immediately back bipartisan funding that sustains the services Americans rely on every day.
Sincerely,
ANDREW VAN PRAAG
Took Great Issue
Sagaponack
October 16, 2025
To the Editor,
One of your weekly “columnists” has taken objection to a letter I wrote recently.
He wrote, in support of a similar-minded and thinking friend, “Actually, the person he is attacking, whom I have gotten to know well in the past two years through our mutual participation in the Sunday Sag Harbor vigil, is one of the most compassionate, ethical, and committed people I have ever met.”
Never into a back-and-forth with this kind of thing, I will simply submit the paragraph I took great issue with for its, yes, ignorant absurdity, and leave it to your educated, aware, and rational readers to contemplate.
She wrote: “We are witnessing the final solution in Gaza: Israel’s intent is to kill everyone. Everyone who is Palestinian. Every child, mother, uncle, grandfather, sister, husband. Every schoolteacher, carpenter, farmer, baker, doctor, journalist. Everybody with a pulse.”
Thanks,
LOU MEISEL
Not Civilians
East Hampton
October 17, 2025
To the Editor,
I was deeply disturbed by Christopher Gangemi’s recent column and the way it framed Israel’s release of prisoners. To write that “Israel released 1,700 Gazans who were detained after Oct. 7, 2023, and 250 ‘life sentence’ prisoners” — without context — dangerously distorts the truth. The so-called Gazans referenced here are not civilians wrongfully detained. They are individuals responsible for bloodshed, rape, murder, and unspeakable atrocities.
To draw any moral equivalence between the release of innocent Israeli civilians — hostages who were abducted, tortured, and terrorized — and the release of convicted terrorists whose stated mission is to kill Jews is both ignorant and profoundly dangerous.
I have stood in Kfar Aza myself. I have seen where entire families were burned alive, where parents were bludgeoned to death before their children, and where these acts were filmed and celebrated by their perpetrators. To omit that reality, or to blur the lines between victim and aggressor, fuels antisemitism and erases the horror of what happened on Oct. 7. Responsible journalism demands moral clarity, especially when lives and truths are at stake.
PATTY STEGMAN
Most-Coveted Prize
East Hampton
October 16, 2025
Dear Mr. Rattray,
The White House accused the Norwegian Nobel Committee of placing “politics over peace” for not awarding its most-coveted Peace Prize to Donald Trump. According to its website, the committee awards the prize to leaders who champion “arms control and disarmament, peace negotiation, democracy and human rights, and work aimed at creating a better organized and more peaceful world.” Can the White House honestly claim that Trump deserves this prize in view of what he has done as our country’s leader?
Trump was impeached for inciting a riot against the Capitol. He issued an executive order, changing the name of the Department of Defense to the Department of War. He said that American cities should be testing grounds for the military. He oversaw the dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development, which provided humanitarian assistance throughout the world. He promotes mass deportations of immigrants, sparking protests across the country and drawing criticism from humanitarian groups. He calls for the arrest of elected officials and former administration advisers without any evidence of wrongdoing, and he has threatened what he calls “rogue judges.” He called for his supporters to “knock the crap” out of protesters at his campaign rallies.
To support his qualification for the peace prize, Trump has said, “I stopped seven wars, and they were, they’re big ones too.” Foreign policy experts say that conflicts cited by the administration were not full-scale wars and many remain unresolved. The White House has never clarified why Trump has repeatedly labeled all seven conflicts as settled wars.
Following the announcement of the recent cease-fire deal in Gaza, Trump declared, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” Little, if any notice, has been paid to Article 10 of the 20-point cease-fire agreement. It begins, “A Trump economic development plan to rebuild and energize Gaza will be created . . .” Is Trump really a peacemaker for the world or just a dealmaker for himself?
SALVATORE TOCCI
Posthumous Pardons
Plainview
October 20, 2025
To the Editor,
It would not shock — only disgust — me if or when King Trump follows up his disgracefully unjust pardons of George Santos and 1,500 Jan. 6 insurrectionists with posthumous pardons for some or all of the following monsters of history: Hitler, Dr. Mengele, Adolf Eichmann, Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein, Mussolini, Stalin, Idi Amin, Timothy McVeigh, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, Adam Lanza (the Sandy Hook kid-killer), other school shooting mass murderers, and Rex Heuermann.
RICHARD SIEGELMAN
Triangulation
Amagansett
October 19, 2025
To the Editor,
When someone creates tension between you and others then steps back and plays innocent: triangulation. It’s a control tactic, not just drama. They manipulate trust, stir conflict, and dodge responsibility while everyone else is left picking up the damage. To quote Robert Wilkinson, “They use triangulation to pit people against each other while they hide behind the drama. It’s not just conflict, it’s strategy. Stirring chaos protects them from accountability while everyone else is distracted fighting each other instead of seeing the source.”
Still here,
JOE KARPINSKI