Former LI congressman Lester Wolff celebrates 100th birthday

How does a man who has influenced world events — helping establish relations between the United States and China, advancing Arab-Israeli accords — celebrate his 100th birthday?

There was talk of a celebration at the United Nations, but former Long Island Democratic Congressman Lester Wolff said he preferred a different option: A small get-together with family on Saturday.

"I really didn't want to make this occasion seem like a signoff or something like that," Wolff said. "It just feels like a number."

Besides, the oldest living person to have served in Congress remains busy. He is writing three books on topics ranging from Asian affairs to the keys to living a long life. He still makes regular trips to Washington, where he hosts an internet show called "Ask Congress." And he remains feisty as ever in his posts on Facebook and Twitter. (A recent tweet on the partial government shutdown: "Here LIES the Rep party. Dead on arrival.")

At the same time, the occasion of leaving a century behind him does conjure up some memories and thoughts on life.

Wolff, whose birthday was Friday, started that day as he does every day — working in the office of his home in Muttontown, answering emails, posting on social media and taking phone calls. On this day, most of the calls came from birthday well-wishers.

In between calls, the eight-term congressman pointed out some of the photos on the wall featuring himself with some of the world's most notable figures of the last half-century. The stories behind the photos serve as a kind of connect-the-dots tapestry of modern world history.

There's Wolff with President John F. Kennedy, the man he credits with bringing him into politics. Working at the time as a television interviewer, Wolff sat down with Kennedy before the 1960 Democratic convention. Kennedy started talking about a Long Island representative who was no fan of his, and suggested Wolff run against him.

Wolff eventually did, and won a trip to Congress in 1964 that lasted until he was defeated in 1980.

There is a photo of Wolff and Anwar Sadat, the former president of Egypt. During a trip to the Middle East, Sadat gave Wolff a message to bring back to then-President Jimmy Carter.

"At that time relations between Israel and the Arab world were very difficult," Wolff recalled. "Sadat told me to pass word to Carter that (then-Secretary of State Henry) Kissinger should make more trips back and forth."

That, Wolff added, helped spur the Camp David Accords, the 1978 agreements between Israel and Egypt that led to the first peace treaty between Israel and an Arab country.

Even at age 100, Wolff is sharp and alert. The years, of course, have taken their toll. He wears a hearing aid, gets around with a cane and needs help getting up and down stairs. He long ago stopped playing tennis. And cardiac troubles have left him with five stents near his heart. 

But the man who represented Long Island's North Shore retains his charm and the big smile that endeared him to numerous historic figures.

"He's able to get so many people to like him in a short period of time," said former New York Congressman Charles Rangel, who has been close with Wolff through the years. "He has an endearing personality."

Rangel recalled that 40 years ago Wolff was a major force behind the Taiwan Relations Act. The act has largely defined the U.S. relationship with Taiwan, which has become a major ally and trading partner.

Wolff also made a trip to China in 1978 and met with leader Deng Xiaoping. Their conversations are credited with helping to establish formal diplomatic relations between the People’s Republic of China and the United States. 

"We turned out to be good friends," Wolff said. "We stayed in touch for years after I left Congress."

In a statement Friday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said: “The service of Congressman Lester Wolff has been a gift to America. . . . In the Congress, he was a champion of a strong and smart foreign policy that forged new friendships and alliances across the globe that continue to keep us safe today."

'Most Fortunate'

If Wolff seems like a man who has cheated death, that's because he has, time and again. He was targeted for death five times over the years, he said.

A Burmese militia of 5,000 was dispatched to shoot down his helicopter in 1979, aiming to stop his efforts to interrupt the drug trade, Wolff said. He was the chairman of the House Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control, and visiting the country with the authorization of Congress. The militia didn't get him.

Around the same time period, Wolff said a Thai assassin, also wanting to stop his anti-drug work, also failed.

In the mid-60s, a father who lost a son in the Vietnam War was arrested after he sent Wolff a death threat because of Wolff's opposition to the war, he said.

In the late 60s, two Palestinian groups, angered over his support of Israel, tried to kill him as well, he said. In one instance, they hijacked a plane, but he had taken another.

"I think I've been most fortunate," said Wolff, giving much credit to God.

Though many of his accomplishments have been on the international stage, Wolff has also taken on major issues closer to home. Upset about a plan to build an 8.5-mile bridge connecting Oyster Bay and Rye in Westchester County, he pushed to create a wildlife refuge as a way to block it.

The Oyster Bay National Wildlife Refuge was created in 1968. Rep. Thomas Suozzi has introduced a bill to rename the refuge in Wolff's honor.

“The Long Island Sound is our national park and, without Lester’s tenacity and willingness to stand up to powerful interests, the environmental security of the Sound would have been compromised," Suozzi said in a statement Friday.

Looking Ahead

 On Saturday, Wolff's birthday party lived up to its billing — about 20 people, most immediate family, gathered around three tables in the restaurant of the Garden City Hotel.

His wife of more than 60 years, Blanche, died in 1997. But his son and daughter, who he hears from twice a day, were among those gathered.

Wolff sat at the head of the front table, looking dapper in a crisp navy blue suit. He appeared thrilled to see so much family around him, right down to his great-grandchildren. 

“Some are in college, and one is getting married in June,” he said.

There were no big speeches by celebrities or high-ranking officials. Just a lot of the feeling that only family can provide. And memories.

His granddaughter, Sonya Everett, who drove up from her home in the Washington area, recalled that when she was 4, her grandfather took her onto the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, where she sat on the knee of Massachusetts Rep. Thomas "Tip" O'Neill Jr.

“I made a speech,” Everett, 51, recalled. “I said, “You have to stop pollution now.’”

Looking ahead, Wolff aims to stay active as ever, keeping up on politics, posting on social media, hosting his show.

His keys to living a long life? A good night's sleep, a low-salt diet, good genes and some lox on a bagel every morning.

"It's been a great ride," he said. "After all, I've made it this far."

By Craig Schneider

craig.schneider@newsday.comScraigo

Craig Schneider is a Long Island native and Stony Brook University alumnus. He joined Newsday as a general assignment reporter in January 2018 after 20 years at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.