Long Island notable deaths of 2019
Long Island lost many beloved individuals in 2019, including first responders, community activists, educators, chefs and students.
Credit: Jeffrey Basinger
Patrick Day, a Freeport boxer who was a world-rated junior middleweight, died Oct. 16 in Chicago after suffering a traumatic brain injury during a fight. He was 27. Read Newsday's story about Patrick Day.
Credit: Newsday/Karen Wiles Stabile
Victoria Ruvolo, the Lake Ronkonkoma resident who publicly forgave a teenager after he tossed a 20-pound turkey through her windshield that shattered every bone in her face, died March 25. She was 59. Read Newsday's story about Victoria Ruvolo.
Credit: Newsday / John Paraskevas
Patrick Vecchio, who served as Smithtown town supervisor for 40 years, a Long Island record, died April 6. He was 88. Read Newsday's obituary for Patrick Vecchio.
Credit: Steve Pfost
Luis Alvarez, the Oceanside resident who came into the national spotlight alongside Jon Stewart during a televised appearance on Capitol Hill about the Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund, died June 29 of cancer linked to his work at Ground Zero. He was 53. Read Newsday's obituary for Luis Alvarez.
Credit: Keyanna Morris
Khaseen Morris, the Oceanside High School student who loved to skateboard, died Sept. 16 after being stabbed at an Oceanside strip mall. He was 16. Read Newsday's story on Khaseen Morris.
Credit: James Carbone
Barbara Kahn, a Lloyd Harbor resident and retired Suffolk County Family Court judge who presided over many high-profile criminal cases, died March 14. She was 71. Read Newsday's obituary for Barbara Kahn.
Credit: US MARINES
Marine Sgt. Robert Hendriks, a Locust Valley Marine reservist, was killed April 8 when his armored vehicle struck a roadside bomb near Bagram Airfield north of Kabul, the U.S. military's main base in Afghanistan. He was 25. Read Newsday's story about Sgt. Robert Hendriks.
Credit: MediaPunch / IPx / George Napolitano
Ashley Massaro, a Smithtown resident and former WWE star who was a "Survivor" contestant, magazine cover model and a Long Island disc jockey, died May 16. She was 39. Read Newsday's obituary of Ashley Massaro.
Credit: NYPD Twitter
Det. Brian Simonsen, of Calverton, a 19-year veteran of the NYPD, died Feb. 12 after being shot while responding to an attempted armed robbery in Queens. He was 42. Read Newsday's story about Det. Brian Simonsen.
Credit: Joseph D. Sullivan
Melissa Marchese, of Shoreham, was a standout softball and basketball player and a senior at Shoreham-Wading River High School. She died June 14 from injuries suffered in a car accident on her way to a school ceremony. She was 18. Read Newsday's story of Melissa Marchese.
Credit: Stony Brook University
David Ferguson, of Port Jefferson, a professor who pioneered programs and initiatives for marginalized communities at Stony Brook University, died July 12. He was 69. Read Newsday's obituary of David Ferguson.
Credit: Julia Xanthos
Joan B. Johnson, a Great River resident who served 16 years as Islip Town clerk, was the first African American official in town history and ran as Suffolk Republicans' first black congressional candidate, died Aug. 10. She was 85. Read Newsday's obituary for Joan B. Johnson.
Credit: Newsday/Dick Kraus
Thomas Gulotta, the lifelong resident of North Merrick who served as Nassau County executive for 14 years, died Aug 4. He was 75. Read Newsday's obituary for Thomas Gulotta.
Credit: Hartman family
Maria Hartman, who co-founded what's now the Association for Children with Down Syndrome in Plainview, died April 14 after a long struggle with Alzheimer's. She was 83. Read Newsday's obituary of Maria Hartman.
Credit: Daniel Brennan
Michael Maroni, the Northport resident and chef-owner of Northport's Maroni Cuisine, died March 8 after suffering an apparent medical event while swimming in an indoor pool. He was 57. Read Newsday's story about Michael Maroni.
Credit: Newsday/Alejandra Villa
Former Army Capt. Mary Ann Galterio, who treated gravely wounded soldiers as a captain with the Army Nurse Corps during World War II, died Jan. 5 at a Southampton nursing home. She was 101. Read Newsday's obituary for Mary Ann Galterio.
Credit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara
Robert Grable, the principal of Mount Sinai High School and former professional baseball player who nearly made it to the big leagues before devoting himself to teaching, died July 19. He was 49. Read Newsday's obituary of Robert Grable.
Credit: Joseph D. Sullivan
Dari Schwartz, the highly regarded former chief of the Child Abuse and Domestic Violence Bureau for the Suffolk district attorney's office, died July 6. She was 62. Read Newsday's obituary for Dari Schwartz.
Credit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara
Richard Dormer, the former Suffolk County police commissioner who oversaw a boost in anti-gang policing and decreases in crime, died April 21 after a three-year battle with cancer. He was 79. Read Newsday's obituary for Richard Dormer.
Credit: Neufeld Family
Muriel Neufeld, of Great Neck, who fought against racial discrimination, capital punishment and gun violence for more than half a century on Long Island and elsewhere, died Jan. 25. She was 98. Read Newsday's obituary for Muriel Neufeld.
Credit: Daniel Brennan
Phil Pasfield, the Patchogue resident who was the chef-partner of The Brixton in Babylon, died unexpectedly on April 26. He was 34. Read Newsday's story about Phil Pasfield.
Credit: Newsday / Jim Peppler
Myrna Taylor, an Amityville resident who was the first woman to lead the Central Long Island branch of the NAACP, died Nov. 17 of complications from heart and kidney problems. She was 83. Read Newsday's obituary of Myrna Taylor.
Credit: Kenneth Braswell
Kim Hardwick, the Nesconset resident who served as principal of Clayton Huey Elementary School in Center Moriches, died April 15 after complications from surgery. She was 50. Read Newsday's obituary for Kim Hardwick.
Credit: NYPD Highway Department
Officer Marc St. Arromand, a veteran NYPD highway officer and married father of five from Elmont, was killed April 11 in a motorcycle crash in Queens as he rode to work. He was 42. Read Newsday's story about Officer Marc St. Arromand.
Credit: Long Island Pine Barrens Society
Robin Hopkins Amper, the Lake Panamoka resident who was the steadying force to protect the Long Island pine barrens and their environment, died April 26. She was 72. Read Newsday's obituary for Robin Hopkins Amper.
Credit: Family of Christine Kay
Christine Kay, formerly of Newsday and a longtime New York Times editor who helped shape coverage of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, died Feb. 5 after a long struggle with cancer. She was 54. Read Newsday's obituary of Christine Kay.
Credit: SCPD
Officer Fadi Rafeh, an investigator in the Fifth Precinct for Suffolk County Police who also served as an Arabic translator, died Jan. 20. He was 38. Read Newsday's story for Fadi Rafeh.
Credit: AP / Nell Redmond
Cathy Inglese, Hofstra women's basketball associate head coach, died July 24 after suffering a brain injury in a fall. She was 60. Read Newsday's obituary for Cathy Inglese.
Credit: Roberts family
Cynthia Perkins-Roberts, the Westbury resident who was a television executive and dedicated herself to multicultural marketing and creating diversity initiatives, died Jan. 1 of complications from colon cancer. She was 54. Read Newsday's obituary for Cynthia Perkins-Roberts.
Credit: Ed Betz
Frances Hornberger, left, the lifetime Floral Park resident believed to be one of the oldest living triplets, died June 2. She was 98. Read Newsday's obituary for Frances Hornberger.
Credit: Family photo
Mary Langhorn, a longtime Riverhead resident and the only woman in Suffolk County history whose son was granted the Medal of Honor for valor during the Vietnam War, died May 4 at a hospital in Mechanicsville, Virginia, after complications from a fall. She was 94. Read Newsday's obituary of Mary Langhorn.
Credit: Mammen family
The Rev. T. Chacko Mammen, a North Bellmore resident and retired priest, died April 19 after a crash allegedly caused by an impaired driver on the Southern State Parkway. He was 69. Read Newsday's story about the Rev. T. Chacko Mammen.
Credit: Mike Dames
Sister Monica Kevin, the first woman and first nun to head the Faculty Senate at Fordham University, died March 24 at the Maria Regina nursing home operated by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Brentwood. She was 99. Read Newsday's obituary of Sister Monica Kevin.
Credit: Bryan Warsaw
Wayne Warsaw, the Manor Park resident who grew up in Brentwood, was a former semi-pro football player and offensive line coach at Brentwood, died Dec. 8 after a monthlong battle with neuroendocrine cancer. He was 45. Read Newsday's obituary for Wayne Warsaw.
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