Cover photo – Stacey Martella (Credit – Matt Meduri)
While local elected leaders are no strangers to hosting and sponsoring blood drives, one drive in particular has more personal roots in the governmental and political worlds.
Scott Martella, a former aide to then-Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) and former spokesperson for then-County Executive Steve Bellone (D-West Babylon), was tragically killed in a car accident in Manorville on August 21, 2016. The crash involved three vehicles and took four other lives. Martella was twenty-nine years old at the time of the accident.
Martella was hailed by elected officials on both sides of the political aisle for his public service and was generally seen as a rising political star.
Suffolk County, in collaboration with the New York Blood Center (NYBC), hosted a blood drive in his honor on Thursday afternoon at the H. Lee Dennison Building in Hauppauge and at the Suffolk County Fire Academy in Yaphank.
Martella, originally a native of Nesconset, was elected to the Smithtown Central School District Board of Education at the age of twenty-two and soon thereafter became Governor Cuomo’s representative.
“He was very skilled, very capable, and very stable,” said County Executive Ed Romaine (R-Center Moriches). “All I can say is that he is not forgotten; he is remembered and he is missed. He was a phenomenal young man, and I always thought: ‘there’s a young man who’s going places.’”
Romaine stressed the importance of donating blood during the summer months, when supplies tend to dwindle to critically low levels, emphasized by closed schools and universities, an absent donor population due to summer vacations, and general activity that make donating blood an after-thought in some circles.
“Scott focused on giving, he never asked for anything,” said Minority Leader Jason Richberg (D-West Babylon). “Scott always pushed people to do more,” he added, saying that giving blood would be appropriate to honor Scott’s legacy of selflessness.
Suffolk County Comptroller John Kennedy (R-Nesconset) remarked on his memories of watching Scott grow up as a neighborhood kid.
“He was a man of consequence, commitment, and giving,” said Kennedy. “The only way people survive when they’re in crisis is what we give when we roll up our sleeves,” he added, urging residents to donate.
“Be in a nice setting, get your Lorna Doone, get your juice, and more importantly, give what everyone else needs,” he concluded.
Stacey Martella, Scott’s mother, thanked the County and the NYBC for their roles in organizing a blood drive in her son’s honor.
“I would like to thank everyone for their continued support over the last eight years in honoring my son and his passion to give back and pay it forward,” said Martella.
Scott’s fiance, Shelbi Turau (pictured below), also spoke in his honor.
“The shadow of the past might try to be lost to time, but it’s the light of the season that we reach out, come together, and help those in need that reminds you of the best of what communities have to offer,” said Turau.
Maureen Mills-Marcello, a representative for the NYBC, said that the collection of blood is “everyday” and “constant.”
“Every pint of blood can go to save three lives, since blood has three components: red blood cells, platelets, and plasma,” said Mills-Marcello, adding that the blood types of O-Negative and O-Positive are most in need.
The County also took the opportunity of giving back in Scott’s honor by hosting a back-to-school drive, wherein school supplies can be donated to give to children around the county who might not be able to afford new items required of them for the upcoming school year.
“We’re working with the Coalition for the Homeless to make sure kids can be equipped to go to school,” said Executive Romaine, asking attendees to remember the joy they once felt by receiving a fresh pack of crayons, or a new notebook ahead of a new school year.
School supplies can be dropped off at receptacles at County buildings ahead of the new year.
Also in attendance at Monday’s press conference were Suffolk County Legislators Leslie Kennedy (R-Nesconset) and Rebecca Sanin (D-Huntington Station), as well as Suffolk County Clerk Vincent Puleo (R-Nesconset).
