Jeffrey Rosenking

Talk to Jeffrey Rosenking and you’re likely to leave the conversation having learned something about him you never knew. The 52-year-old Salisbury resident is an instantly recognizable face on the East Meadow School District Board of Education — largely because he’s the only trustee who sports a bow tie at meetings — and is also well known for being a community leader and a dedicated family man.

But it’s the lesser-known activities Rosenking is involved with, and the things he rarely talks about, that make him special. During the day, he’s a project manager for JPMorgan Chase. At the end of the day, he doesn’t exactly step into a phone booth and don a cape, but he comes pretty close. He’s a search-and-rescue pilot for the U.S. Civil Air Patrol. An Eagle Scout. A marathoner. A cyclist. An advocate for veterans. And a fundraiser for diabetes research.

“As a Boy Scout, I was taught, always leave your campsite better than the way you found it,” Rosenking said. “That phrase can be applied to many things in life, such as how we can impact the communities we live in. Just think of the potential if more people followed this advice.”

Because Rosenking rarely touts his extracurricular activities, he tends to amaze others when they learn of his busy schedule. Even the people who have known him longest admit they’re still learning things about him. His neighbor, Mindy Perlish, has known him for 20 years, but learned only a couple of months ago that he is a pilot. “He doesn’t talk about his accomplishments,” said Perlish, who, like Rosenking, is involved in Salisbury’s Community Association of Stewart Avenue. “Some people are always in your face about what they do. I think it’s the people who do it the most quietly who are the most unsung heroes.”