Pictured: The Wind Phone was unveiled on April 21 by members of Gabriel’s Giving Tree. From left are Lori Carbonaro, Paulette Phillippe, Carole Trottere, Claudia Friszell, Charlie Limbach who constructed the phone, and his wife Grace Limbach.
Photo courtesy of Gabriel’s Giving Tree
It might draw some quizzical looks from people who just don’t get it. How can someone make a call on an old rotary phone, which is obviously not “connected” to anything? But to people grieving the loss of a loved one, like those parents who have lost children and grandchildren to the opioid epidemic, when making a call from the Wind Phone they know the connection is real.
Long Islanders can now visit the Gabriel’s Giving Tree (GGT) Memorial and Serenity Garden at the Suffolk County Environmental Center at the Scully Estate, located at 550 South Bay Avenue in Islip to make a call themselves. Members of GGT recently installed a Wind Phone, the second one on Long Island.
The Wind Phone was approved by the Suffolk County Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation. There are over 160 wind phones worldwide, modeled on Japan’s first wind phone in 2011.
Paulette Phillippe, founder of Gabriel’s Giving Tree, was one of the first people to use the phone after it was unveiled on Sunday, April 21. Her grandson Gabriel died of a fentanyl poisoning in 2014 when he was just 15 years old.
“I believe in the importance of ritually grieving and do speak to my grandson Gabe every day,” said Phillippe. “But picking up the phone gave me a sense of not only speaking to Gabriel, I listened for him to answer me back and we had a touching conversation filled with love. It really works.”
“The Wind Phone will serve as a special connection between us and our loved ones,” said Carole Trottere, a Suffolk County resident who lost her son Alex to a fentanyl poisoning in 2018. “I know there will be tears, but I know Alex will be listening.”
“I pray to myself nightly,” said Lori Carbonaro of Selden, whose son Nick died in 2014. “I speak to Nick almost daily. I share him with family and friends. Now I can pick up the phone and know he and anyone not on planet earth will answer my call.”
“Using the wind phone to talk to my loved one who is no longer here physically was so cathartic,” said Claudia Friszell, whose son Marc died in 2000. “It brought back good memories of long conversations and surprisingly ‘connected’ me to my son in a very physical way. We all miss someone, wish there was just one more (or many more) conversation we would like to have, the Wind Phone gives that opportunity.”
Charles and Grace Limbach of St. James volunteered their time to create the phone for GGT. A plaque will eventually be added to the phone’s cubby which will read:
“Wind Phone, for people with no earthly phone number. The Wind will carry your message.”
GGT is a program under the umbrella of Long Island Council Against Alcohol and Drug Dependence (LICADD).
“As our country and our region continues to contend with the collective grief surrounding the ongoing substance use crisis, LICADD commends the family members of Gabriel’s Giving Tree in their persistent efforts to provide support, comfort and grief and loss services for families that have been adversely impacted by this devastating public health crisis,” said Steve Chassman, LCSW, CASAC, LICADD Executive Director. “Their courage and commitment to turn their pain into purpose is a powerful example of genuine compassion and community service for their loved ones and their neighbors. LICADD is a proud supporter and partner of their incredible efforts within our Long Island communities.”
In 2023, more than 112,000 people died from fentanyl across the country and other substance overdoses, 395 of those were Suffolk County residents, with 118 cases still pending in Suffolk. Once these pending cases are finally determined, the number will go well past 500.
For more information about GGT visit: https://licadd.org/ggt
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