Editorials: The chopper issue and Amanda Clark

Veteran Matt Rohde, who is helping to organize the Wounded Warrior Spur Ride on September 2 to support the Joseph J. Theinert Memorial Fund, graciously abandoned plans on Tuesday to land a Vietnam-era former Marine helicopter operated by a private organization at Fiske Field as part of the day’s events.

Sensitively reacting to concerns raised by the Town Board at its work session, he agreed to shift the landing site to the town’s airport on Burns Road, Klenawicus field, where there is more open space and fewer nearby neighbors.

If he’d insisted on sticking to the plan, and forced a vote of the Town Board, it just might have gone his way. No board member expressed outright opposition and, under the pressure of a vote, perhaps a majority would have sided with him. No one wants to go against any reasonable gesture intended to honor veterans, especially First Lt. Joe Theinert.

But last week, two neighbors, Mary Wilson and Bill Banks, vehemently objected to a helicopter landing in the school athletic field they live next to. Board members themselves expressed concerns and uneasiness this week. Not the least of their problems was the fact that the town code expressly prohibits helicopters from landing anywhere on Shelter Island but the private strip at Westmoreland, except in an emergency, according to the town code that can be viewed through a link on the town’s website.

(Curiously, the version online does not mention Klenawicus as an allowed landing site even though that notion has been a given during the board’s discussion. The code does provide exceptions but only for “practice drills and governmental business.”)

Supervisor Jim Dougherty last week said he didn’t see why the chopper couldn’t land at Klenawicus. It was he who revealed during Tuesday’s discussion that Joe Theinert’s mother Chrystyna Kestler had personally told him that transportation could be arranged so Wounded Warrior Spur bike riders and their supporters gathering at the American Legion Hall after the ride could get to the town airfield. Mr. Dougherty’s word that she had, in effect, accepted the Klenawicus option seemed to open the door for Mr. Rohde to acquiesce.

As can be seen from three letters to the editor on the chopper issue on page 9, there are some raw nerves when it comes to helicopters, what they may mean to some people and not others, and the noise they make. Mr. Rohde wisely saved the Island from some unnecessary angst when he let the Fiske Field option go.

Amanda

What a class act Amanda Clark is. Her graciousness, poise and good cheer say it all. The Olympics is about striving with every bone in your body and every part of your soul to win even though the risk of defeat is high when it comes to winning a medal. Amanda, a champion competing against champions, did great, finishing ninth. Her courageous Olympic journey, which dates back to 1999, ends with the brilliant glow of hometown pride and nothing less than a total victory of the heart.