Dan's Papers - June 27, 2008 - The Weekly, Suffolk Life, Closes its Doors After 46 Years

Next week, when thousands of people across Suffolk County go to their mailboxes, they will not find their usual copies of Suffolk Life stuffed inside. After 46 years of reaching a loyal audience through free home delivery, this chain of weekly papers will sadly go the way of many other newspapers today, and close its doors.

As one of the many former employees of this county-wide empire, I remember the days when it cranked out dozens of editions every week, starting in the company's first office on Montauk Highway in Westhampton Beach. As a reporter during the 1970s, I made $125 a week, and got a free tank of gas each week to cover the numerous town, school, zoning and planning board meetings from Montauk to Moriches. But in those days, as an eager young reporter, I took this job more for the training it gave me, cranking out 10 stories a week and covering a large variety of issues.

During those years, and as the paper grew, Suffolk Life was like a big family, overseen by its publisher, Dave Willmott, who was larger than life, opinionated and always making sure everyone was doing his or her job. He was an inspiration, with his enthusiasm on the issues, in keeping the politicians honest, and in exposing any corruption in the county. His column, "Willmotts and Why Nots," became famous throughout the Island for being hard-hitting and no-nonsense.

Many of its 100 employees stayed at Suffolk Life for decades, helping the paper to grow and thrive. Others moved on to different papers or other jobs, but Willmott was always supportive of his workers, no matter where they ended up.

Rick Brand, my news editor during the 1970s, has had a long news career at Newsday, where he now has his own political column. But he remained friends with Willmott to this day.

"When I heard the news about Suffolk Life, I was both surprised and sad," he said. "Dave was a loud and independent voice when a lot of the papers here were controlled by Republicans - that's what made his editorial endorsements so important. Dave's paper gave chances to candidates who were looking to break Republican domination in Suffolk County. Because he had clout as an independent-minded guy, people took his opinions to heart. He took no party's line, and I think people appreciated that."

Another former editor, Paidric South, is now the spokesperson for the Suffolk County Water Authority. Dan Aug, a former reporter during the 1980s, is now a spokesman for Suffolk County, and Peter Scully, another reporter in the 1980s, is now the Regional Director of the New York State Department of Conservation.

But like any business trying to ride the tides of change, as the world became more Internet-dependent, the newspaper business began to feel the squeeze. And that included Suffolk Life, an icon of continual growth through the 1980s and 90s. Slowly the economy and rising Internet popularity began to take its toll, and profits began to fall. For the past few decades, the papers have been published in the larger offices located in the Lowe's Plaza in Riverhead, still employing a large staff.

And over the years, Willmott succumbed to health problems of asthma and a heart condition, leaving his son, Michael Willmott, to handle all advertising sales.

The paper came a long way after starting in 1961 on Willmott's mother's kitchen table in Riverhead. It has carried hard-hitting editorials and stories about such heated issues as the Shoreham Nuclear Power Plant, the Millstone Nuclear Plant, the county budget, LILCO and LIPA issues, and the rises and falls of politicians across the county. At its height, Suffolk Life claimed to have a circulation of 545,000 throughout its 29 editions in Suffolk County. It also claimed to be the "largest weekly paper east of the Mississippi."

As news circulated in recent weeks that Suffolk Life would cease publishing as of this week, and that its June 25 issue would be its last, calls were not returned from the administration. Irl Krause, the company's general manager, said he had "no comment" when asked about the folding of the paper this week.

Susan Greenberg, a reporter at the paper who covered all five East End towns and county government, said this week that she will miss everyone in the newsroom.

"Everyone was professional and wonderful to work with, and they were also highly dedicated to this paper. It's such a shame that newspapers, which are a wonderful medium, are becoming dinosaurs."