People of Sayville: Kathleen Prokesch, museum employee

It's the people that make a community come to life. And part of our TOWN FOCUS series this week, Erin Geismar will give you a glimpse of life in Sayville with quick interviews of everyone from community leaders to everyday people on the street.

Kathleen Prokesch

Marketing and special events director, Long Island Maritime Museum

The museum is pretty well-known for its special events, but tell me what else goes on here.

Well, the county decided to turn this into a museum in 1966. This was a garage of a former estate, the Meadows Edge golf course building was the main house. What we really offer is sort of a look into how life was on Long Island when shellfishing, oysters, clamming were the main business here. We have our permanent exhibition on U.S. Lifesaving, which predates the Coast Guard; we have a library and trophy room that features nautical-themed books and trophies won from races on the Great South Bay. And what a lot of people who come to our events don’t know is that we have nine historic buildings on this property.

Who do you see at the museum - local people or others from the island or elsewhere?

They come from all over. A lot of people come from out east, or from Huntington and Cold Spring Harbor, where they have a rich heritage for this kind of thing. People come from Connecticut if they’ve been to Mystic and they say, ‘Now I want to see the Long Island heritage.’ Kids and families tend to be local.

Why do you think this is an important part of the community?

We celebrate a lost art here. It’s important to learn what it was like to earn your keep from the bay or what it’s like to be on a wooden vessel that’s been handcrafted. For kids, everyone wants to hop on a ferry and go over to Fire Island but it’s important to know about the history of the community and its reliance on the bay. But, you know, I’m a sucker for that kind of thing.

How long have you worked for the museum?

I’ve only been here since January, when they decided they needed someone to do special events. But I live in Sayville, so I was always here with my kids.

What brought you to Sayville originally?

My husband and I grew up in St. James, but for a while we were both living and working in the city. When I had my daughter we started looking to move back to Long Island. We knew we wanted to look on the South Shore - my husband is a surfer so he had to be near the beach - and we fell in love with Sayville. It’s a little gem.

What was it that made you fall in love?

After living in the city, I was really adamant about finding a place on Long Island where I wouldn’t have to get in my car to do stuff. And here you don’t. It’s really nice to live in a town that has a Main Street. It makes it community-focused. And it’s the kind of place that when your kids are old enough, you can let them get on their bikes and take off. You don’t have to worry about if they are doing something wrong, because if you don’t see it, someone else will.