Former longtime Brightwaters Village Mayor Joseph McNulty dies at 86

Joseph "Tony" McNulty, mayor of the Village of Brightwaters for 18 years, died Sunday of complications with pneumonia. He was 86.

McNulty is believed to be the longest continuously serving mayor of that village to date. He was first elected in 1996, held the position until 2014 and was fond of saying he presided over the "crown jewel of the Great South Bay."

Current Mayor John Valdini described McNulty as the "perfect symbol of a mayor."

"He had the straw hat, he had the bright jacket," he said. "He’s the kind of person who loved being the mayor."

His son Jody McNulty described him as "big as life" and a devout Catholic who was committed to public service. Joseph McNulty started the cherished annual ice cream social event Brightwaters holds each August for the community.

McNulty was determined to increase the number of trees in the village, his son said. During his nearly two decades as mayor, his son estimates McNulty was responsible for adding hundreds of trees. Once when McNulty faced a fine from the state Department of Environmental Conservation due to the height of grass along a waterway, he bartered with the department and settled on planting 50 trees instead, his son recalled.

Joseph McNulty leaves behind a long legacy of leadership. He served in the U.S. Navy, Bay Shore Fire Department, Bay Shore Lions Club and the Boy Scouts and as a coach for children’s sports. In addition to being mayor, he formerly served on the planning and zoning boards and was a trustee on the village board.

He was named the 2012 Distinguished Bay Shore-Brightwaters Citizen by the Chamber of Commerce of Greater South Bay.

McNulty was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where "when he was old enough to reach the pedals on the Jeep," he helped his father deliver groceries, his son said. He moved to Brightwaters in 1965 with his wife.

He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Ann McNulty of Brightwaters; children Jody McNulty of Brightwaters, Jeri McNulty of Scranton, Pennsylvania, Michael McNulty of Brightwaters, James McNulty of Miller Place, Stephen McNulty of Moscow, Pennsylvania, Anthony McNulty of Scranton and Michael Barone of Bay Shore; and 22 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be held Thursday and Friday from 2 to 4:30 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. at the Overton Funeral Home in Islip. His funeral Mass will be celebrated Saturday at 11 a.m. at St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church in Bay Shore. A cousin, the Rev. Edward "Monk" Malloy, president emeritus of the University of Notre Dame, will give the sermon.

By Brinley Hineman

brinley.hineman@newsday.com

Brinley Hineman covers the Town of Hempstead and the City of Long Beach for Newsday. She previously was a reporter in Nashville, Tennessee, and is a West Virginia native.