Issue #46, February 23, 2007

The North Fork: Deer and Bears?

Where Are These Bears Coming From And What Do We Do About It?

By Phyllis Lombardi

They’ve kept it pretty quiet – but about 75 bears were sighted on the North Fork last week. Specifically in the area of Eastern Long Island Hospital in Greenport. Now we all know there’s a deer problem on the North Fork. But why haven’t Riverhead Supervisor Phil Cardinale and Southold Supervisor Scott Russell, as well as police officials, alerted us to this amazing bear situation?

And to make matters worse, there’s a woman in Cutchogue who is doing everything in her considerable power to see that the number of bears on the North Fork increases almost on a monthly basis. Her home (I dare not give you the address) is a kind of den-nursery where baby bears are prepared to go out into the world – in this case, all over the North Fork.

Well, I will give you this bear-woman’s name. It’s Anne Cutolo. Now before you attempt to turn her over to the authorities, let me tell you a bit about her.

She’s a wee bit into middle age with a big bit of Irish in her background. She’s perfectly respectable looking (one would never profile her as endangering the entire North Fork) and she’s more than a respectable golfer.

Anyway, Anne spearheads what I’ll call the bear brigade. This is a group of North Fork women who craft (sew, stuff and decorate) teddy bears – hundreds and hundreds of them. But why in the world would they do this?

Check out ELIH and you’ll understand. Every child who is brought to the emergency room at ELIH is given a bear to hold and hug. Who can describe the calming comfort the teddy bear brings to the frightened youngster? Doctors, nurses, parents, police officers – all relate the immediate effect a cuddly bear has.

Speaking of police officers, stop by Southold Police headquarters in Peconic. They’ve a box full of the furry friends just waiting to be given to anxious children. Some bears even travel around all day all over the North Fork in the trunks of police cars. Then, in any emergency, a bear is at the ready.

But back to the North Fork women whose business is bears. They’ve been at it for more than five years and have literally lost count of their output. Their bears stand about a foot tall and come in a variety of colors – some bear-brown, others in light, bright shades. All the fabric is donated. Never, said Anne, have the women had to purchase fabric.

Anne cuts the fabric, does the required stitching. Then the stuffing women do their thing. Most of the “stuffers” belong to North Fork homemaker groups. Stuffing, great mounds of it, is provided by ELIH.

Once a bear is sewn and stuffed, it’s ready for a face. Now two North Fork artists get in on the act. Joan Fabian and Sophia L’Hommedieu, both of Cutchogue, get out their acrylic (non-toxic) paint and work their magic. Blue eyes, brown eyes, winking eyes (these face-painters are more than a bit whimsical), smiling, cheery faces, all. No child can resist. Matter of fact, an occasional lucky adult has received a bear at ELIH with the same happy results.

Now we have a bear with a face that’s almost ready to meet the public. But first he has a bow tied about his chubby neck. Anne takes care to stitch the bow to the bear so a child is unable to remove it. Our bowed bears are all lined up in one of Anne’s bedrooms, ready for delivery to police headquarters or ELIH.

“We need more bears.” When that call comes from ELIH, the delivery women spring into action. A recent delivery found Southold’s Bobby Rubenstein loading her car with the bears and heading east. I can see it now. Bobby, eyes staring straight ahead, of course, while from every window of her car, bear faces smile at North Fork folks on Main Road.

in a perfect world, there’d be no North Fork child who has an accident or is ill. Until such time, however, it’s reassuring to know that our youngsters receive tender care from police, the medical professionals, and members of the community who offer love in a bit of cloth and a dab of paint.