Town Board Bids Adieu to Graboski

Members of the Board, employee unions, and the public wished a fond farewell to Councilwoman Nancy Graboski Thursday at her last town board meeting before her second and final term ends at the end of the year.

"There are few who can leave office but leave such an indelible impression on the town," Councilman Chris Nuzzi said. "I'm proud to have served alongside her."

Councilman Jim Malone said that while some elected officials are politicians and others are public servants, "Nancy is the epitome of public servant."

He went on to say that Graboski has a wealth of knowledge and is a "constant rudder of calm and perspective."

"She has left this town ... in a better place than where she found it," Malone said.

Prior to serving eight years as councilwoman, Graboski was a member of the town planning board from 1991 to 1999, and she said she thought that would be the extent of her time in government. "When former Supervisor Skip Heaney asked me if I would run for town board, I thought maybe I'm not all that done yet," she said, and she was sworn in to the town council at age 60.

Graboski, a Bridgehampton resident and former teacher in Riverhead, also served as a member of the Suffolk County Planning Commission and the Peconic Land Trust Agriculture Committee.

Graboski said that every time she pulls into town hall and sees her name, "I'm really mindful of how my name got there, and what it means."

She's learned during her time at town hall that it is hard to get things done in government, she said. "A simple no parking sign is not simple," she said. "Government likes to make things difficult."

But it hasn't stopped her from trying.