Hundreds Turn Out In Riverhead To Honor Iconic Farmer

RIVERHEAD, NY — The room was filled with music, sunflowers, tears, laughter and memories as hundreds packed Martha Clara Vineyards in Riverhead Thursday to say farewell to a beloved North Fork farmer who touched not only the lives of his family and friends, but an entire community.

The North Fork was devastated when Lyle Wells was killed in an equipment accident last week.

Family, friends, and members of the Long Island agricultural canvas came together to speak about Lyle Wells at a moving, emotional and joyful celebration of Wells' life.

"Lyle had a saying: 'Positive is how I live.' So positive is how we will worship," said Rev. Anton DeWet of Old Steeple Community Church in Aquebogue, who led the service.

The memorial began with the showing of an interview Wells had done, where he spoke of his family's deep roots in farming, dating back to 1661, that spanned generations.

"I grew up not knowing any other way," Wells said in the interview. "Our blood is dirt," he said, adding that his family's blood ran, not red, but brown, rich with the earth they farmed so diligently for decades.

One of Wells' children, Jessica, spoke and said she was forever blessed to be his daughter.

Fellow farmer Frank Beyrodt, wearing a cow tie in his friend's honor, gave a heartfelt eulogy but began by saying that Wells would not have wanted a eulogy — instead, he said, it was a celebration of his life.

Beyrodt painted a vivid picture of Wells' life, beginning with his family's land on Phillips Lane in Aquebogue, Wells Homestead Acres, where services were initially set to be held before Mother Nature intervened, he said.

Wells, he said, was born to the land, the property that he spent years nurturing and cultivating.

The fourth of five boys, Wells' childhood was spent sledding, skating — all the joys of a normal upbringing, he said. But the penchant for farming ran deep.

"As soon as he could handle a hoe, he was gardening," Beyrodt said.

Active in 4-H, Wells also played soccer at Riverhead High School, where he was president of his graduating class — something that Beyrodt said didn't surprise him, as Wells was one of the most popular men he knew, a born friend and teacher to so many.

At SUNY Delhi, one little known fact about Wells was that he was the head baker at the student commissary, Beyrodt said.

Later, working at Cornell Research Laboratory, he met and married Susan — just nine months after they first met — the mother of his children.

While he worked at a number of jobs, including as a bus driver for Riverhead High School and as a baker for Dunkin' Donuts, the siren song of the sweet harvest called him back to farming, Beyrodt said.

The young couple saw their dreams initially dashed when a fire, which started in the chicken coop, destroyed the barn and tractors, Beyrodt said.

"They had to start from scratch," he said.

But start again, Wells did, keeping the farm's long legacy — one which now spans more than 350 years and 11 generations on the North Fork — alive.

When his three children, Jessica, Matthew, and Logan were born, they were indoctrinated early on into the farming life, Beyrodt said, with Jessica's car seat hooked up alongside Wells as he continued farming and both boys riding along on John Deere tractors.

"Lyle always made time for his kids," he added, sharing the memories of when he'd go to his son's baseball games, where he'd act as catcher.

And, Beyrodt said, Wells was a "Mr. Fix-It," who loved to weld.

But nothing gave him as much joy, he said, than his two grandsons Laird de Vera and Warner de Vera, who made him "act like a 40 year old again," whenever he saw them, he said.

Wells, Beyrodt said, was an adventurous farmer, ready to plant anything, try anything. He'd work long, hard hours, but was also a self-professed night owl. One night, during a Long Island Farm Bureau trip, Beyrodt, who likes to retire early, said he woke up at 2 a.m. to find Wells playing poker. When he asked him why he didn't want to go to bed, Wells said, "I'm winning!"

Wells, Beyrodt said, had a huge heart that touched countless lives and a door that was always open. "He would help anybody," he said — and leaves a long legacy, having educated scores of young farmers, always eager to lend a hand, support, and advice.

He'd fill his church with sunflowers that he brought, DeWet said.

When he met his partner, Wendy Kukla, "the love of his life," Beyrodt said, "On their first date, he came to the door with a bouquet of asparagus."

As the crowd smiled, tears in their eyes, Beyrodt said he first met Wells around 2000. "He had great charisma. Passion for everything he did. He cared so much about the community."

Wells, he said, "loved being on committees." He was instrumental in introducing the transfer of development rights, or TDR, program, which was critical in preserving farmland, as well as serving on the board of Farm Credit East, helping farmers with the financial aspect of the industry, and was a former president of the Long Island Farm Bureau.

Wells, said fellow longtime North Fork farmer Tom Wickham, in a prior Patch story, was a "prominent farmer", with asparagus a signature crop, who leaves a legacy.

"He and I and a few other growers out here have begun selling our crop to FreshDirect," Wickham said. "Both he and I have been trying to promote that. He's one of the growers out here who has not been afraid to try new ventures."

From the time he first planted his signature asparagus, to a forward thinking approach when it came to applying fertilizer to his fields, Wells was a trailblazer, Wickham said. "He's tried a lot of new things," Wickham said. "He's been a real leader in the agricultural industry, and we will miss him."

Wells, a leader and also, a humble man was fierce in his commitment to preserve farmland, all agreed. And now, it's incumbent upon the community to keep his legacy alive. "This is a call to us, as a community, to pass preserve the land Lyle loved. We're passing on the mantle," DeWet said.

Added Beyrodt: "He was very intelligent. And his laughter — it was from another world."

So distinctive was that laugh that when Wells and his family and friends went to California on a vacation and attended a taping of the "Golden Girls," when they got home and watched the episode, "all you could hear was Lyle's laugh."

Remembering his friend and colleague, a father, farmer, and force in the community, Beyrodt said: "My life and my world have been enriched by the company of Lyle Wells. And I will never forget him."

Wells was also honored in Washington, D.C. by Rep. Lee Zeldin this week.
Wells' longtime friend and fellow LIFB colleague Joe Gergela flew from Florida, where he now resides, to attend the memorial.

"He kept some famous company," Gergela said, recalling how, when Wells met with the Clintons, he brought his sunflowers for Hillary. "She enjoyed Lyle very much, as did all of us," he said.

Gergela was emotional as he remembered his close friend.

Wells, he said, worked tirelessly long hours; when Gergela worked at the LIFB, he said he'd call Wells at midnight, only to hear that Wells was busy irrigating. The pair would spend hours talking about policy and farming and forged a friendship that spanned decades. Wells and Wendy had been planning to visit Gergela in Florida soon, he said.

Well's lifetime legacy and the many, many he'd touched with his work and generous spirit was evidenced by the hundreds who'd turned out to say good-bye, including Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone and Peconic Bay Medical Center President and CEO Andrew Mitchell, Gergela said.

Describing Wells, Gergela used many words, words that echoed through the room in stories and memories, laughter and music on Thursday: "Family, tradition, love, passion, compassion, independence, leader, community, country, string-tied, Tommy Bahama," Gergela said.

The two shared a penchant for the oldies, and one song that reminds him of Wells is "Turn, Turn, Turn," Gergela said, reciting the words: "To everything there is a season. . . And a time to every purpose, under heaven. . .A time to be born, a time to die. . .A time to plant, a time to reap. . .A time to laugh, a time to weep, To everything, there is a season, And a time to every purpose, under heaven."

Gergela said, on his sad trip home for the memorial service, he passed by Wells' home and the house where his own father had lived, reflecting on the many years of his life he'd spent living on the North Fork. Breaking down in tears, he said, "I'm glad I got to spend it with the best buddy I could ever have."

After the memorial, guests were invited to raise a glass to Wells. Beyrodt said the toast would be, "Cheers to a life well spent."

And parked outside Martha Clara, standing tall in tribute to the man who'd spent his life advocating for farmers, was Wells' bright blue tractor. In memory of a man no one who attended his service will ever forget.

Keeping Lyle Wells' legacy alive

In lieu of flowers, his family has asked that donations be given in his memory to a fund they have created to support aspiring farmers.

The "Lyle C. Wells Passion for Agriculture Fund" is a YouCaring page created by his children.

"Our dad, Lyle Wells died on January 25, 2018," the page reads. "In memory of him we are starting the Lyle C. Wells: Passion for Agriculture Fund", which will support aspiring farmers who are studying or beginning their careers in local agriculture.

"Dad's passion and love of farming spanned his whole life. He was recognized as a true leader in the Long Island Farming community with an outspoken voice and a gift for growing produce. He established a reputation for growing some of the finest asparagus in the region. . .

"We loved our dad, he taught us to have passion for what we loved, he supported us and was an amazing person. . . Thank you for helping us keep his memory alive. 'Positive is how I live" Lyle Wells.'"

To donate, click here.

At his service Thursday, his daughter said she knew her father would be ecstatic to see his life's dream of nurturing farmers, living on.

Patch photos by Lisa Finn.