Long Island IT leader rolls out rebranding and expansion initiatives

(Melville, NY)  Total Computer Systems, a communications technology leader headquartered in Melville-NY since 1988, is proud to announce its new company name, “Total Technology Solutions,” effective as of October 2013. Its new name overhaul is part of several strategic repositioning and rebranding initiatives that the company is rolling out to redefine and further distinguish itself within today’s Information Technology industry, which also include a redefined brand, new website and the addition of new key executives. Total Technology Solutions’ enhanced service model also includes expanded best practices network assessment and infrastructure services, along with a greater extension of the organization’s leading Essential Support Program (ESP).

Daniel Bernard of Rocky Point, new Director of Technical Services

Tim McKnight, Total Technology Solutions Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing, said, “We recognize that the future of Information Technology is dependent on meticulous and accurate assessment, preventative monitoring and efficient development of managed services that are tailored for each customer’s unique, specific need. This trend dovetails perfectly with the launch of our new service offerings as well as our fully reengineered identity, logo, and branding. As an IT visionary and leader within today’s rapidly changing Information Technology environment, we have a responsibility to our customers to clearly articulate our areas of specialty and develop new ways to broaden our offerings for ensuring the right level of attention and service according to their diverse needs.”

John Camello of Commack, new Vice President of Sales

In conjunction with its rebranding and expansion initiatives, Total Technology Solutions recently welcomed Daniel Bernard of Rocky Point as its new Director of Technical Services and John Camello of Commack as new Vice President of Sales. Mr. Bernard’s expertise in Lean Manufacturing and Process Improvement has had an immediate positive impact on Total Technology Solutions’ workflow while supporting the company’s organizational goals. A University of Phoenix graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology, Mr. Bernard worked as Manager at CPI Aerostructures in Edgewood, NY prior to joining Total Technology Solutions’ team. His prior work also includes serving as Manager of Information Technology and Continuous Improvement of Information at Aerodyne Controls (a Division of Circor International) in Ronkonkoma, NY.

Bringing advanced team building and leadership skills to Total Technology Solutions, Mr. Camello, whose mastery of Managed Services and Hosted VoIP Solutions, coupled with excellent client focus, is strengthening Total Technology Solutions’ core IT competencies for its growing technical and geographic marketplaces. A graduate of Manhattan College with 12 years of sales management experience, Mr. Camello has a strong record of stellar sales performance and has worked with such leading companies as Cablevision Lightpath in Jericho, NY, Platinum Communications in Somerset, NJ, and Avaya Inc. in Basking Ridge, NY.

For more information please contact: Mr. Jamie Stanco with Progressive Marketing Group, Inc. via phone at 631-756-7160 or via email, jpstanco@pmgstrategic.com.

(West Islip, NY) Good Samaritan Hospital offers a free lecture series, “Good Sam University.” The format features a monthly lecture in three categories: “Food For Thought,” showing the impact of nutrition on a person’s health at every stage of life; “Women’s Wellness,” addressing women’s health issues; and “Aging Gracefully,” providing expert advice on topics related to health and wellness in the senior years. The program is sponsored by Bethpage Federal Credit Union, with additional support from media sponsor WALK FM.

Speakers include physicians and allied health professionals from Good Samaritan’s expert staff. These free community lectures are designed to educate the community, raise awareness and to help explain risk factors, methods of diagnosis and treatments. September lectures sponsored by WALK Radio Group are:

Wednesday, November 6 – Aging Gracefully

• Hip Hop: What’s New in Hip & Knee Replacement?

• The rise in hip and knee replacements among baby boomers is putting a fresh spring in their step. Every year, nearly a million people have a total hip or knee replacement and numbers are expected to keep growing. End-stage arthritis is the leading cause for joint replacement.

• Jonathan Owens, MD, Orthopaedic Surgeon

• Noon • Bay Shore Brightwaters Library, 1 South Country Road, Brightwaters

Thursday, November 7 –Women’s Wellness

• Underactive? Overactive? The Thyroid’s Role in Health

• The thyroid is responsible for the body’s metabolic processes. For an estimated 27 million Americans, the thyroid produces either too much or too little of the hormones we need, which causes an array of

• health symptoms. Thyroid disease is often misdiagnosed or simply overlooked leaving many unaware of a problem.

• Leonard V. Gioia, MD, Endocrinologist

• 7:00 pm • Villa Monaco Restaurant, 778 Montauk Highway, West Islip

• 10% o dinner for lecture attendees with reservations between 5:30 – 7:00 pm

Tuesday, November 19 – Food For Thought

DASH into Healthier Eating

• Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, also known as DASH, has been hailed one of the best diets, especially for those with diabetes. It has been proven to lower blood pressure and cholesterol, and is associated with lower risk of several types of cancer, heart disease and stroke.

• Susan Ardilio, MS, RD, CDN, CDE, Nutritionist

• 6:00 pm • West Islip Fire Department, 309 Union Blvd

For more information or to register, please call (631) 376-4444.
Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center is a 537-bed (including 100 nursing home beds), voluntary, not-for-profit hospital located in West Islip. The medical center, which has more than 3,775 employees and 900 physicians on staff, had nearly 28,000 patient admissions and nearly 100,000 emergency department visits in 2012. Good Samaritan is a member of Catholic Health Services of Long Island. Visit the website at www.good-samaritan-hospital.org.

The medical center supplies residents with the tools necessary to maintain good health. This includes community lectures, screenings, health fairs and other community programs and services.

(New York, NY) Gallery North is pleased to present Terence Netter: French Perspectives. Utilizing a distinct combination of simplicity and abstraction, Terence Netter creates paintings that are both captivating and intriguing. Abandoning photo-realism, Netter strives to take the viewer’s eye and mind “beyond the horizon”, guiding them from the visible to the invisible world. Netter hopes that after viewing his paintings, the mind will develop a sublime reality in which both peace and tranquility can be felt.

For a portion of each year, Netter lives in France, where he painted the collection of work showcased in this exhibit. Inspired by his surroundings, Netter’s style shifted toward creations that evoke mindful thought and deep contemplation. In a recent statement, Netter says, “I hope that the viewer will look beyond the local reference to where each of us can only go alone.”

Terence Netter has been an artist and educator for the majority of his life. He has taught at several universities across the country, as well as internationally. Throughout his career, Netter’s inspiring work has been the focal point of many critically acclaimed, solo exhibitions.

Gallery North is open Tuesday – Saturday 10 – 5 and Sunday 12 – 5.
For more information contact Gallery North, 631-751-2676, www.gallerynorth.org

Decision Applies Important Consumer Protections

(New York, NY) Signaling its desire to protect consumers, the New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) today denied Time Warner Cable Information Services, LLC’s request for a waiver of the Commission’s rules regarding the hours and days it can disconnect telephone customers who have fallen behind on their telephone bills to nights and weekends. The Commission said existing rules of only disconnecting customers for non-payment between the hours of 8:00 AM – 7:30 PM Monday through Thursday and 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM on Friday should remain firmly in place.

“We are saying ‘no’ to Time Warner’s request to waive our rules regarding when it would be authorized for suspensions and terminations of its telephone customers,” said Commission Chair Audrey Zibelman. “The Commission’s rules applicable to Time Warner are consistent with the hours of operation of the Commission’s consumer call center which receives consumer complaints’ and requests for assistance. To ensure telephone consumers’ rights are protected, especially core customers such as the elderly and disabled, it is essential customers are afforded the opportunity to contact our call center if their telephone service is threatened with a potential suspension or termination.”

While the Commission denied Time Warner’s request to make it more convenient to disconnect certain telephone customers, the Commission did approve other requests that Time Warner had made in terms of the telephone service that it provides to 1.2 million customers, which is regulated apart from the company’s cable television and internet business.

The Commission authorized Time Warner, in the absence of instructions from the customer and a pending billing dispute, to apply the full amount of a partial payment to the basic local telephone service charges, and upon satisfaction of basic local service charges, to apply any residual, or subsequent payment received during the same billing period, to non-basic services.

The Commission also granted Time Warner’s request for a waiver relating to distribution of printed residential white page telephone directories, upon the condition that the company distributes those directories to customers who opt-in to receipt of directories in print and/or CD-ROM format.  Like other large telephone companies, Time Warner will no longer be required to automatically distribute residential white pages to all residential customers. Instead, they will be required to provide directories to customers who ask for them in print or CD-Rom format.

Many options for easy access to listings of telephone numbers are available to customers of telephone corporations. These include electronic contact lists available on many telecommunications devices and directories published by independent organizations and distributed free of charge to residences. Telephone directories have become less valuable; and, a significant amount of natural resources is required to produce and distribute the printed versions to serve a limited need.

Finally, the Commission conditionally granted Time Warner’s request for a waiver of its monthly service quality reporting requirements because, in Time Warner’s case, the need for regulatory action to ensure timely repairs for voice service has diminished due to the prevalence of competitive alternatives and the ability of residential and business customers to move to a different service provider.

However, before Time Warner is allowed to limit its monthly service quality reports to only reports on customer trouble report rates and timeliness of repair performance, and provide these reports only for core customers, the Commission will require the company to file complete service quality reports, without this limitation for a six-month period. Complete service quality reports will provide a known baseline of the level of service provided by the company. If the data meets Commission staff approval, the company’s request for a waiver of certain service quality reporting requirements may take effect.

The Commission’s decision today, when issued, may be obtained by going to the Commission Documents section of the Commission’s Web site at www.dps.ny.gov and entering Case Number 13-C-0193 in the input box labeled “Search for Case/Matter Number”. Many libraries offer free Internet access. Commission orders may also be obtained from the Commission’s Files Office, 14th floor, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12223 (518-474-2500).  If you have difficulty understanding English, please call us at 1-800-342-3377 for free language assistance services regarding this press release.

(West Islip, NY) The Christmas season will officially begin on Saturday, December 7 as Good Samaritan Hospital hosts its Christmas Angels Tree Lighting Celebration. The festival is FREE and open to the public. Bring family, friends and neighbors to experience this joyous event from

• 3:30 pm – 6:30 pm in the front parking lot of the hospital. Festivities will include:

•  A visit from Santa

• Photos in a giant snow globe winter wonderland

• Victorian carolers

•  Blessing of the Christmas Tree and Nativity

• Children’s activities

•  Holiday refreshments

The lighting of the Christmas Tree will also serve as a symbolic tribute to your “Christmas Angel.” With a small donation, an angel will be displayed in the hospital lobby in honor or memory of a loved one. All proceeds will benefit The Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation.

For more information or to make a donation, please call (631) 376-4444 or visit www.good-samaritan-hospital.org.

Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center is a 537-bed (including 100 nursing home beds), voluntary, not-for-profit hospital located in West Islip. The medical center, which has more than 3,775 employees and 900 physicians on staff, had nearly 28,000 patient admissions and nearly 100,000 emergency department visits in 2012. Good Samaritan is a member of Catholic Health Services of Long Island. Visit the website at www.good-samaritan-hospital.org.

The medical center supplies residents with the tools necessary to maintain good health. This includes community lectures, screenings, health fairs and other community programs and services.

(Long Island, NY) Fight for Charity, one of Long Island’s largest and most anticipated charity networking events of the year, has announced its boxer matchups for the 10th Main Event on Monday, November 25, 2013 at the Hilton Long Island in Melville. Boxing matches feature local business professionals going toe-to-toe on the canvas as the main attraction. This popular fundraising event includes food and beverages provided by local restaurants.

The 2013 boxers for the LI Fight for Charity 10th Main Event are Terese “The Knockout” Arenth vs. Joanne “The Tigress” Hutchins; Wendy “The Sweetest Sin” Sincuir vs. Roseanne “Ro-Hammad Ali” Beovich; Steve “SlowHand” Bernstein vs. Jamie “Fly Boy” Austin; Keith “The Realtor” Dawson vs. Leaf “Field Artillery” Steuernagel; Steven “The Tank” East vs. Scott “The Diversifier” Zuckerman; Sal “The Hammer” Ferro vs. Kevin “Spider” Kelly; Joe “The Limo King of the Ring” Palumbo vs. Alex ‘’El Torito the Baby Bull’’ Gallego and Hugh “Hands of Stone” Tanchuck vs. Michael “The Closer” Haltman. Bill “Samurai” Mabanta, Robert “The Tax Reducer” Renda, Christine “Crusher” Ippolito, Christopher “The Telecom Guy” Whittelsey and Jeff “The Founder” Cohen opponents to be announced soon.

Local businesses and professional firms sponsoring this year’s 10th Main Event include Event Sponsor Alure Home Improvements; Presenting Sponsor Caring People; Judges Sponsor Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz, Mineo & Terrana; Round Card Sponsors Resorts World Casino New York City, Genser Dubow Genser & Cona, LLP, and Morrit Hock & Hamroff, LLP. Boxer Sponsors are Knockout Pest Control; Vehicle Tracking Solutions; Freshy Fresh Bagels; Merola Tile; Blackman Plumbing, and Hunter Electrical. Other sponsors are Chateau Briand – Scotto Brothers; Price Waterhouse Coopers; Farrell Fritz PC; Sir Speedy – Westbury, Melville and Hauppauge, and Carlyle OnThe Green.

Proceeds from this unique LI Fight for Charity fundraiser will be donated to The Long Island Community Chest, The Genesis School and the National Foundation for Human Potential. Long Island Fight for Charity since 2003 has donated $700,000 to Long Island charities. This event is expected to sell out and break previous records.

Tickets for the main event are available online. Ringside V.I.P. seats are $195, premium seats are $125, and both include admission to a pre-event special networking and cocktail reception. The V.I.P. reception starts at 5:30 p.m. The doors open at 6:00 p.m. and the boxing matches begin at 6:30 p.m. More than 20 local restaurants will provide food and beverages for the event. For tickets and information, please visit www.lifightforcharity.org or call 877-240-7821. To see great photos, visit http://flic.kr/s/aHsjKqa8oK.

FOR INFORMATION CONTACT:

BILL CORBETT, JR.

TEL: (516) 775-0435 ext 1 wjcorbett@corbettpr.com

www.lifightforcharity.org

(Long Island, NY)  Long Island’s annual Arts Alive LI festival, going on now through October 31, 2013 at venues across Long Island, is giving way free tickets to help celebrate its month-long showcase of Long Island’s many art, entertainment and cultural attractions.

Here’s how it works:
Use the hashtag #artsaliveli on Facebook, Twitter or Foursquare starting now, through October 31, 2013, and you will be entered to win one pair (2) of tickets to one of six possible events at the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts.  Six winners will be selected randomly and notified publicly by the social media platform they used to enter the contest. For more information and contest details go to ArtsAliveLI.org.

Prizes include two tickets to Godspell at the Tilles Center Friday, November 8 at 8 PM, or two tickets to Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain at the Tilles Center Saturday, November 9 at 8 PM, or two tickets to Amphion Quartet at the Tilles Center Sunday, November 10 at 3 PM, or two tickets to Philadanco – Philadelphia Dance Company at the Tilles Center Friday, January 24 at 8 PM, or two tickets to Patti Austin with the Duke Ellington Orchestra at the Tilles Center Saturday, March 8 at 8 PM, or two tickets to Moscow Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra at the Tilles Center Saturday, May 17 at 8 PM.

Presented by the Long Island Arts Alliance (LIAA) and Bethpage Federal Credit Union, Arts Alive LI runs through October 31, 2013.  From visual, musical and performing arts, to community festivals and epicurean delights, Arts Alive LI is a tribute to Long Island’s arts and entertainment world and is taking place on stages, in galleries, at film houses, and in neighborhood restaurants across Long Island’s Nassau and Suffolk counties.

Long Island families and visitors to the region are invited to attend and participate in the 40 signature events, many offered for free.  For a full calendar of events and to purchase tickets, visit www.artsaliveli.org.

(Smithtown, NY) Developmental Disabilities Institute (DDI), the leading service provider for children and adults with autism on Long Island, will have one of its employees honored at the New York State Association of Day Service Providers (NYSADSP) annual Symposium. NYSADSP is a non-profit devoted to advocating for the rights of people with disabilities.

Steve Gagas DDI’s Recreation Manager

Steve Gagas is DDI’s Recreation Manager who will be awarded the Leadership Award from NYSADSP.  This award is presented to an individual who has provided strong and consistent leadership for direct support staff and exemplifies these qualities consistently.  Steve will be recognized at NYSADSP’s annual Symposium held in November at the Gideon Putnam in Saratoga Springs.

“Steve’s imagination, dedication, and leadership has transformed our recreation program for the individuals we serve in our Adult Day Program,” commented John Lessard, DDI’s Executive Director.  “Steve’s ability to create innovative ways to engage the individuals we serve is remarkable.  We are truly proud of Steve’s many accomplishments and thank NYSADSP for recognizing his outstanding achievements at DDI.”

The NYSADSP promotes a service environment that offers personal growth and development for people with developmental disabilities to live to their fullest potential. NYSADSP acts as a resource to provide its members with current technological, programmatic and regulatory information, education, training, technical assistance and the opportunity to advocate, network and collaborate on issues with other members.

DDI is a not-for-profit agency headquartered in Smithtown, NY, with more than 30 locations throughout Suffolk and Nassau Counties.  Serving nearly 1,000 children and adults with a diagnosis of an autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), DDI is the largest provider of services for individuals with Autism on Long Island.  It provides special educational, vocational, day and residential programs, as well as healthcare services for over 5,000 children and adults with autism or other developmental disabilities.  DDI also operates family-centered preschool programs for both children with disabilities as well as typically developing students.  DDI was founded in 1961 by a group of parents to address the special educational and therapeutic needs of their children with autism or other developmental disabilities.  DDI is a member agency of the United Way of Long Island.  For more information about DDI, visit www.ddiny.org.

(Riverhead, NY) East End Arts is pleased to announce the exciting new art show at the Rosalie Dimon Gallery, at the Jamesport Manor Inn (located at 370 Manor Lane in Jamesport, NY) featuring East End Arts members: abstract painter Kryn Olson and assemblage artist Meredith Rose. The show opens on Friday, November 1, 2013 and will be up for viewing until February 5, 2014. An Artists’ Reception will be held on Sunday, November 10 from 3 PM to 5 PM at the Rosalie Dimon Gallery, where the public will have the opportunity to meet the artists. Local wines and artisan cheeses will be served. The public is invited to this free event.

Abstract acrylic painter Kryn Olson has studied both the sciences and the arts simultaneously throughout her schooling, and earned her Masters Degree from Stony Brook University in the sciences, where her thesis was based on Teaching Science through the Arts. She studied painting and printmaking earning her a BFA in Michigan, with a double major in both Biology and Chemistry.

A passionate naturalist, Kryn has explored and studied ecosystems all over the world. She combines her field experiences, education and excitement for life to create paintings that reflect how and what she experiences. Kryn has shown both with the Parrish Art Museum in “Artists Choose Artists” and also at the Guild Hall Museum’s “East End Ten” exhibit. She now shows exclusively with the Peter Marcelle Gallery in Bridgehampton and with the Gerald Peters Gallery both in New York City and Santa Fe, NM. Kryn describes her own process: “I witness and observe life, internalizing it through all of my senses. I use my head and my gut, so that when I go to put an experience onto the canvas it is rearranged, recombined. As in history, my paintings are created layer upon layer—paint, concept, paint, and so on until the cycle of the conceptual issue is worked through and the final image is defined. I record moments, the beauty of a time witnessed. They are always as I experienced them—in color, filled with line and form.”

Assemblage artist Meredith Rose is a self-taught artist who works in Manhattan and Westhampton Beach. Her art is influenced by her upbringing in a small Catholic parish in the Bronx. The beautiful pictures of the Annunciation, as well as the macabre depictions of saints and martyrs, left a big impression on her. She comments “One Easter I received an egg made of sugar. When you looked through a cellophane window you could see a village filled with trees, houses and flowers, and I was amazed that a world could be contained in such a tiny object.” The objects she collects are miniature and sealed in wood or Lucite. She uses them to explore their power of suggestion: the unfinished narrative that abandoned toys and clothing can conjure, the mystery that juxtaposing incongruous faces can evoke. She uses time, size and texture as material to create an entire imaginary world set in suspended animation.

More Information about the Rosalie Dimon Gallery
Exhibits at the Rosalie Dimon Gallery are a joint effort by East End Arts and the Jamesport Manor Inn to introduce exceptional artists and their work to the East End communities. East End Arts members who wish to be considered for exhibits at the Jamesport Manor Inn should have updated representations of work in the East End Arts Artist Registry at the East End Arts Gallery, located at 133 East Main Street, Riverhead, NY. The artists selected for East End Arts’ off-site gallery shows are chosen by committee.

For more information, contact Jane Kirkwood, East End Arts Gallery Director: 631-727-0900 or gallery@eastendarts.org or visit www.eastendarts.org.

Exhibit is open for viewing during the Jamesport Manor Inn’s open hours. For more information call 631-722-0500 or visit www.JamesportManorInn.com.

ExteNet Borrows $260M to Help Grow Wholesale Business

(New York, NY) The New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) today authorized wholesale wireless telephone service provider ExteNet Systems, Inc. to borrow up to $260 million to expand its distributed antenna systems business, a move that will allow the company to improve services to existing customers, including those in New York, and refinance existing debt.

“The transaction approved today will enable ExteNet to expand its wholesale network in U.S. and in New York, while also improving services the company provides to customers,” said Chair Audrey Zibelman. “As a result of the expanded wholesale network ExteNet intends to create, the company’s wholesale customers will be able to deliver better wireless services to their own retail customers, including improved access to emergency services.”

The Lisle, IL-based ExteNet designs, builds, owns and operates distributed networks nationally for use by wireless carriers and venue owners. Using distributed antenna systems, small cells and other technologies, ExteNet deploys networks to enhance coverage and capacity and enable wireless service in both outdoor and indoor environments. Distributed network installations consist of minimally sized antennas and boxes installed on poles and streetlights that are in rights-of-way, with fiber optic cable attached to each pole aerially or underground.

The approved financing plan will facilitate the continuation of a competitive telecommunications market by providing ExteNet with the additional capital it needs to both maintain, and expand, its existing facilities. According to the company, some of these new networks are intended to be completed as quickly as possible, but no later than February 2014.

The Commission’s decision today, when issued, may be obtained by going to the Commission Documents section of the Commission’s Web site at www.dps.ny.gov and entering Case Number 13-C-0417 in the input box labeled “Search for Case/Matter Number”. Many libraries offer free Internet access. Commission orders may also be obtained from the Commission’s Files Office, 14th floor, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12223 (518-474-2500).  If you have difficulty understanding English, please call us at 1-800-342-3377 for free language assistance services regarding this press release.