By TIFFANY RAZZANO
The school budget passed, as did the library budget. April Wexler, running unopposed, earned a seat on the library board. In a close race that could have gone either way, Doreen Cordova defeated Mary Koppinger for the only open seat on the Board of Education.
The biggest surprise of the day was the emergence of resident Charles Kelleher as a write-in candidate for the empty library board seat for which no one was running. Seven people received write-in votes for the seat the day of the election, but Kelleher was the winner by far, with 101 votes. His closest competitor was Keith Gaskell, a former school board trustee, who received eight votes.
Little was known about Kelleher the day of the vote; Cynthia Geones, district clerk for the school district, wasn't even sure how to get in touch with him to tell him he had won. Bill Murray, president of the library board, and Maureen Chiofalo, director of the library, also didn't know much about Kelleher other than the fact that he had been a member of the library board's Strategic Planning Committee.
"That's all I know about him," Chiofalo said. "I met him through the committee. He was very nice and very interested. He probably knows more about the library than most residents."
Murray, who says Kelleher is often at the library and well-known by its staff, says he received a lot of phone calls after an article in the April 26 - May 2 issue of the Herald highlighting Wexler and mentioning there was another empty seat with no one running.
Kelleher, who grew up in the village and moved back here 10 years ago, says two members of the library staff, emphasizing that they weren't trustees or the director, asked him to consider running for the position. "They were concerned because they had heard someone else was starting a write-in campaign," he said. "So they asked me at noon on May 14. So I only had a day before the actual election." Kelleher does not know who it was the staff members were concerned might have been running a write-in campaign. He added, "I read in the Herald that there was an open board position, but it didn't cross my mind to run until the staff members came to me."
With only one day to campaign, Kelleher, a Suffolk County cop, simply printed out fliers on his computer and handed them out to parents of the friends and schoolmates of his six-year-old daughter, Erin, who attends St. Agnes Cathedral School. He also relied on word-of-mouth.
"I'm very excited," Kelleher said. "It's a new challenge for me. It's definitely a different thing for me in my life." He says he's already at the library four times a week with his daughter and three-year-old son, Chuck. "I spend so much time at the library, but predominantly in the children's section... But it is a great library. They do a great job."
Now he just looks forward to working for the betterment of the library. "As far as I know, I don't think there are any issues of contention at the library," Kelleher said. "Some staff members were saying they're some of the lowest paid on Long Island, so hopefully that will be something we'll address."
The school district has also released official results from the vote: 3,468 residents came out to vote on May 15, significantly fewer than last year. The school budget passed 1,781 to 1,539. The library budget passed 1,932 to 1,126. Cordova earned her spot on the Board of Education, defeating Koppinger 1,677 to 1,475. Wexler received 1,940 votes to retain her seat on the library Board of Trustees.
Comments about this story? TRazzano@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 221.
