Fr. Thomas Donohoe Dies at 75

West Hempstead native remembered for uniting multi-ethnic congregation in Long Beach.

When he wasn’t leading his congregation at St. Mary of the Isle Church in Long Beach, Fr. Thomas Donohoe, West Hempstead native, was often reading books about the Civil War, collecting memorabilia related to the war, or visiting battlefields such as Antietam and Gettysburg. “[Abraham] Lincoln is important because he got us through a war that divided the nation, and saved our country,” Donohoe told Patch about the 16th president’s legacy on the 200th anniversary of his birthday in 2011. “We tend to forget now our founding fathers like Washington, as well as Lincoln. It’s important to take days to remember them.” Last week, West Hempstead and Long Beach residents gathered at funeral services to remember Donohoe, who died in Amityville on …

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Long-Time Malverne Resident Don Paone Dies

Paone, who was active in village politics, passed away Thursday.

Don Paone was Malverne. In the more than 50 years he called the village home, he helped shaped its politics, raised his family here, attended church regularly and even wrote about Malverne in the local papers. "I suspect every mayor Malverne has had since Fran Purcell knew my father," Paone's son Dave said of his father, who passed away Thursday a few weeks shy of his 90th birthday. Paone was born in Haverhill, Mass. on Feb. 10, 1922, but spent most of his childhood in the mining town of Archbald, Penn. He earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Scranton in 1944, but was not able to attend his graduation ceremony because Uncle Sam called. His sister, Elvira, collected his diploma for him while he went off to boot camp for the U…

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Robert Powers

4:33 pm on Monday, January 23, 2012

What a great tribute. It was great to have known both Don and Peg. They are together once again and most likely starting a new club and giving advise to friends and family as they did here on Earth.   more ›

West Hempstead Grad, Sonia Sethi, Dies at 24

Memorial services will be held at C. Wagner Funeral Home in Hicksville on Tuesday.

"Genuine," "compassionate," "beautiful," "brilliant" and "caring" — rarely do so many words describe one individual, but these were just a handful of the many terms used to describe Sonia Sethi on her Facebook wall a day after it was announced that she had passed away. Sonia, a 2005 graduate of West Hempstead High School, was diagnosed with a high-grade form of sarcoma in August 2011. According to the National Cancer Institute, "sarcomas are malignant (cancerous) tumors that develop in tissues which connect, support, or surround other structures and organs of the body." Seth Sethi, Sonia's brother, said the sarcoma, which is very rare and nearly incurable, was a surprise to everyone. "It was a real shock to us," Seth said. "Everything was …

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OBIT: Malverne Grad Frances LaBarbera Eisleben

Long-time Burbank resident grew up in village and graduated from Malverne High School.

Long-time Burbank resident Frances Bollinger LaBarbera Eisleben, who grew up in Malverne, passed away on Dec. 9 in Atascadero, Calif. shortly after her 76th birthday. Fran was born on Nov. 24, 1935 in New York City, but grew up in Malverne. After graduating Malverne High School, Fran married John LaBarbera and moved west. She was an office manager for American Can Corporation & James River, and she enjoyed arts and crafts, ceramics and music. When Fran became GranFran, she moved to Olympia, Washington and then to Atascadero to be near her granddaughters. For the past six years, Fran was well taken care of by the dedicated staff at Danish Care in Atascadero. She is preceeded in death by her parents, Charles and Frances Bollinger, and her …

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Dave Paone

5:29 pm on Monday, January 2, 2012

I grew up in Malverne and graduated from Malverne High School and I lived in Burbank for seven years. Had I known Frances was there when I was there, I would have looked her up. When I arrived in California I purposely looked for an area that was the closest thing I could find to Malverne and that was Burbank. I can't help but think Frances did the same thing.   more ›

Lakeview Activist Who Fought For Desegregation in Malverne Dies

Lincoln Lynch, a vocal civil rights activist during the 1960s, dies at the age of 91.

When most students study the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, they learn of the efforts of Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and Thurgood Marshall. But the name Lincoln Lynch belongs in textbooks as well, especially when the discussion focuses on Long Island's own struggles to integrate blacks and whites. Lynch, a former Lakeview resident, was a key leader of the local civil rights movement during the 1960s. He even pursued sued the Malverne school district after his children were prevented from attending "the district's mostly white elementary school," according to Newsday, which reported on Lynch's passing this week. He died of stomach cancer Saturday at the age of 91, but his legacy lives on through the lasting impact he …

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Apple Co-Founder Steve Jobs, 56, Dies

News spreads across the world about Jobs' death.

One month after stepping down as chief executive, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has passed away. The New York Times reported: Mr. Jobs stepped down from the chief executive role in late August, saying he could no longer fulfill his duties, and became chairman. He underwent surgery for pancreatic cancer in 2004, and received a liver transplant in 2009. In a statement, Apple said “Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve. If you would like to share your thoughts, memories, and condolences, please email rememberingsteve@apple.com." Here is the Times' full Steve Jobs obit. The news comes just one day after the …

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Andrew J. Hyatt

10:57 am on Thursday, October 6, 2011

Steve Jobs made getting stuff done easy, fun and insanely cool.   more ›

Joan Franks: Malvernite and Dedicated Social Worker

Joan Franks passes away at 88 years old from Alzheimer's.

West Hempstead's Beloved Bob Smith Dies

Robert "Bob" Smith passes away after collapsing during scholarship dinner.

Robert Smith, a veteran and active member of the West Hempstead community, passed away late Sunday night at the age of 87. Smith collapsed earlier that evening during a scholarship dinner at Pompei restaurant not long after he presented one of the awards to a deserving local student. Rosalie Norton, president of the West Hempstead Community Support and Civic Association, recalled hearing a commotion toward the end of table and turning to see her good friend, Bob, as most called him, in distress. As everyone in the room rushed to his aid, Smith, conveying his signature sense of humor, had tried to make light of the situation by joking at first, but his condition quickly became very serious. He was rushed to Mercy Medical Center in Rockville…

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Malverne Mourns Death of Boxing Legend Gil Clancy

Services will be held in Malverne for the Hall of Fame Boxing trainer.

Malverne is mourning the loss of a great man and world-class coach. Funeral services will be held this weekend for the late great Gil Clancy, a long-time Malverne resident and Hall of Fame boxing trainer, who passed away Thursday morning Clancy died on March 31 of natural causes at an assisted living facility in Lynbrook. He was 88. Clancy was known in the sports world for training world champion boxers including fellow Hall of Famer Emile Griffith, who won both welterweight and middleweight titles in the 1960s. "They were absolutely like father and son," said Kathleen Burke, Clancy's daughter and a Malvernite herself. Burke recently spoke to Patch about her memories of her father and his love of Malverne, a place he called home for 56 …

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Video: Nassau Police Honor Fallen Officer

An army in blue showed up in Selden Thursday for the viewing of fallen Nassau County Police officer Geoffrey J. Breitkopf.

Thousands of police officers in dress blue uniforms lined up outside the Selden Fire Department Thursday evening to pay tribute to fallen Nassau County police officer Geoffrey J. Breitkopf. Breitkopf, 40, a decorated veteran of the elite Bureau of Special Operations, was accidentally shot and killed Saturday by an MTA officer while responding to a call in Massapequa Park. He also was a volunteer firefighter in Selden, where he lived with his wife and two children. Among those on hand for Thursday services were Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano and Police Commissioner Lawrence Mulvey. Services for Breitkopf will be held Friday at St. Margaret of Scotland Roman Catholic Church, located at 81 College Road in Selden, beginning at 12:30 p.m. …

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