Week in Review: Local Vet Honored, Band on the Rise

Joe Tapler, assistant principal at Joseph A. Edgar Intermediate School, was placed on administrative leave in late June, the school confirmed, with an interim principal currently handling his duties. Hundreds of children, parents and grandparents packed the last school board meeting – captured in a YouTube video of the meeting – to protest the move and though the next meeting is still weeks away, and though summer typically equates itself with a break from school, many are at the ready to 'Rally For Mr. Tapler.'

Town Honors Late Navy Cross Recipient

Just under 70 years ago, a Marine on a Pacific island in the middle of World War II acted in an instant when an enemy grenade was thrown into a trench with him and five other men, picking it up and throwing it back out as fast as he could. The grenade took his hand, though Pfc. Frank Celentano would go on to live to the ripe old age of 90, with most of his years at a home on King Road in Rocky Point.

Recently, the Brookhaven Town Board honored the fallen Marine and Navy Cross recipient – who died just over a year ago – by dedicating King Road after him.

Man Dies After Cops Use Taser, Pepper Spray

Suffolk police used a taser and pepper spray during a conflict with a man residing in a Maryhaven facility in Middle Island, and the man later died at a hospital in Port Jefferson, police said Thursday.

On Wednesday evening at 8:18 p.m., Maryhaven staff at the Currans Road facility called for police to transport Dainell Simmons, 29, to Stony Brook University Hospital for a psychiatric emergency evaluation, saying he became violent.

Local Family Walking for Alzheimer's Research Again

It's hard these days for Irene Acker and Evelyn Cramer to keep their family members in mind. So, Rebecca Cramer and her family are asking for others to.

Cramer, a Miller Place resident, real estate agent and printing shop owner – and granddaughter to two woman who have been struck with Alzheimer's Disease – is leading a team for the second year in a row to raise funds for Alzheimer's research. Her family's team, named "Keep Me in Mind," is walking in the Second Annual Walk to End Alzheimer's at the end of August in Riverhead.

Stray From the Path: Long Island’s Homegrown Band

With a symbol of a lighthouse representing the love for their home, the four members of the Long Island-based band Stray From the Path took the stage at the Paramount in Huntington Friday night and showed that they have come a long way from their Suffolk County roots.

The hardcore band -- made up of drummer Dan Bourke (Rocky Point), bassist Anthony Altamura (Selden), vocalist Drew York (Medford) and guitarist Tom Williams (Selden) -- are signed to metal giant Sumerian Records and have quickly become one of the most recognizable acts in the industry.

Video Produced to Honor Rocky Point Man Killed in Crash

The family of Nicholas Pieloch, 20, who was killed in a tragic Wading River accident last week, has created a loving tribute to celebrate the memory of the young man who will live in their hearts forever.

"My cousin Savannah made the video," said Lexi Pieloch, Nick's sister. "We wanted to pay to a tribute to Nicholas and show how from the time he was little, he always had a smile on his face and was always making everyone else around him smile, as well. He touched not only his family's lives but many others and he will never be forgotten."