Where the non political voice of our membership is heard and old and new stories are told.

As reported in this issue our 2011 Alumni reunion will be held in Savannah, Georgia. This is a great vacation spot with rave reviews, don't miss this one! And now, on to this issue's news from our Alumni.

CHARLES ROGERS: Charlie left the Patchogue Post Office to join the ranks of the Suffolk County Police Department in 1963. He worked in the Fifth Precinct, the Marine Division and retired out of the Fifth Precinct Street Crime Unit in 1984. I remember his retirement party very well when he was presented with a live piglet for his farm which he ran for several years in North Carolina. In 1989 his wife, Patricia, had a triple bypass and Charlie went back to school for his commercial drivers license for an eighteen wheeler. Patricia also became a commercial driver as well. They purchased their own tractor-trailer and ran their own business for five years, travelling all over the country, clocking over two million miles. Charlie and Pat had a great time being "paid" to visit and tour our great country. Charlie had some bad weather along the road once, however, when he was run over by a tractor he was using and was pinned to the barn door until he was found by his son. More recently he was hospitalized with a blood clot in his lung, losing about 80% of its use. Today, he is fully recovered and they both are fully retired, for almost two years. Charlie and Pat have two children. Charlie, Jr. took after his parents and is an over the road trucker. Their daughter, Katelyn, has two children. She is a supervising nurse at a local hospital. Nice story Charlie, it was great to talk to you again.

JOSEPH SANTOMARTINO: Joe emailed the Alumni to advise the membership that his son, Nicholas, received a promotion to the Major Case Squad in the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office. He was transferred to the Riverhead office as a Senior Assistant District Attorney. Nick graduated Magna Cum Laude from SUNY Albany, New York, and received his law degree from St. John's Law School. Nick met his wife, Faith Loveill Santomartino, in college and she is also an attorney working for the Assistant Corporation Council at the New York City Law Department in Jamaica, Queens. Faith deals with youthful offenders. Joe retired out of the Fifth Precinct in 2005 and works part time in security for the Bay Shore School District. His wife, Peggy, worked for Grumman for sixteen years before working for, and recently retiring from, Good Samaritan Hospital, where she was a supervisor in the home health care unit. Peggy is an ovarian cancer survivor. In his spare time, Joe is into vintage trains, the Y.M.C.A., biking and golf. During his off time at school he travels to Florida and the Carolinas to visit family and retired Alumni friends. Thank you for your story Joe.

DAVID SCHAFFER: Dave, after serving eight years with the Air Force and two years with Gruman's, joined the ranks of the Suffolk County Police Department and was assigned to the Sixth Precinct. Dave also worked at the electronics shop, field training and finally retiring out of the I.D. Bureau. Along the way he picked up his pilot's license and instructors rating after ten years of service. They have three children: Kenneth, who is medically retired from N.Y.P.D. and lives in Vermont with his wife and two daughters; Cheryl, residing in Venice, Florida, with one daughter; and Jeffrey, who lives in Long Island and works for the L.I.R.R. and has two sons. In their spare time Dave and his wife do a lot of travelling in their motor home visiting their children. Thanks for your story Dave.

JOSEPH SKOVIRA: Joe, also known as "Ski", worked for Fairchild Corporation before wearing down the Town of Brookhaven Police uniform in 1956. Your reporter met up with Joe in the Engineering Office of the S.C.P.D. Highway Patrol Bureau, where her showed me the ropes in dealing with my new job in the mid to late 60's. By the late 60's we both were promoted, Joe went to the Sixth Precinct and retired as a Sergeant in 1978. Joe and his late wife, Yvonne (who passed away in 2006), settled in upstate Delhi, New York. He went into the business of selling oil and wood burning stoves for the next ten years, until he was approached, in 1992, by the Mayor and asked if he would take an appointment as the Town's Justice of the Peace. Joe accepted and was re-elected a few times and retired from the bench on October 31, 2010, completing eighteen years, serving seven police departments and the local State Police. Joe has three sons: Mike, who has two children and is a M.R.I. Tech in California; Pete, who has three children and is an electrical engineer at I.T.T.; and Chris, who has two children and works in security at the State University. In his spare time, Joe uses his boat at Cooperstown, New York, and has a motor home that he uses to travel south in the cold months to Florida with his female companion, "Chloe", Joe's favorite K-9. Great story Joe. Hopefully we will meet at the 2011 Alumni Reunion in Georgia.

That's about it for this edition. I will be travelling up to Long Island for the holidays and will spend most of the time with my family. Send in your stories to me at the addresses below or I just may pick your name to interview for the next edition. I wish each and every Alumni and their families a happy and safe Holiday Season. Until next time, KEEP BEATING THE SYSTEM.

Fraternally,
Jim Woods
4400 Flexer Drive
Hernando Beach, Florida 34607
norajim@tampabay.rr.com and reflections@suffolkcountypoilicealumni.org