Holbrook Scout Brendan Wasserberger fixes Ronkonkoma underpass for runners
Brendan Wasserberger, center, of Holbrook, recently spearheaded the construction of a wooden boardwalk across a formerly muddy train underpass on the Long Island Greenbelt Trail. Credit: Bill Wasserberger
Hikers and joggers will be able to keep their boots and sneakers dry on one of Long Island’s longest trails thanks to the efforts of Brendan Wasserberger.
The Holbrook teen, 18, coordinated the construction of a roughly 40-foot wooden boardwalk this summer in a graffiti-filled pedestrian tunnel that passes beneath the Long Island Rail Road in Ronkonkoma. It is near the halfway point of the 32-mile Long Island Greenbelt Trail, which stretches from Heckscher State Park in East Islip to Sunken Meadow State Park in Kings Park.
The underpass, which connects Lakeland County Park in Islandia to the northernmost portion of the Connetquot River State Park Preserve in Ronkonkoma, often accumulated puddles and mud due to ongoing drainage problems, according to Wasserberger.
“My dad is a runner who runs on all different trails, and he noticed the drainage problems there,” said Wasserberger, who pursued the project as part of his Eagle Scout Award, the highest achievement attainable within Scouting America (formerly the Boy Scouts of America). “We thought it would be a good idea to fix it.”
Wasserberger, a member of Troop 636, built the wooden span in June with the assistance of about 15 friends, family members and fellow scouts. The total cost of the project was about $1,000, which was partially funded by donations, he said.
Wasserberger received a discount on materials from GTS Builders Supply in Holbrook and got approval for the project from the Long Island Greenbelt Trail Conference, which maintains the trail and has created more than 200 miles of hiking paths on Long Island.
“It was pretty gross down there,” said Wasserberger, a 2026 graduate of Sachem High School North in Lake Ronkonkoma who is now a student at Suffolk County Community College. “Even when we were building it there were people running through, and they all said it was a great thing that we were doing this.”
David Reisfield, the executive director of the Long Island Greenbelt Trail Conference, said he was “very excited” when Wasserberger first proposed the project to the organization. The underpass, Reisfield said, is a part of the trail that was “constantly flooded.”
“Hikers and runners would have to navigate the makeshift boards, planks and pieces of branches to keep their feet dry,” Reisfield said. “With this boardwalk project, which included the removal of a large amount of dirt and mud, those who pass under the tracks will enjoy a much more pleasant and clean crossing. We cannot thank Brendan enough for his Eagle Scout project as well as those that helped to make it possible.”
Nominate a Long Islander who goes above and beyond or serves as an inspiration to their community. Send details and a photograph to Michael Ebert, michael.ebert@newsday.com, (photos should be high-resolution). Photos may be used in other publications affiliated with Newsday.
Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.
