Dennis Cannataro, of GOP family, has died

For the past six years, Dennis Cannataro organized a series of summer concerts that ranged from oldies groups to Beatle imitators and drew thousands of local residents weekly to the lawn of the Smithtown Public Library

"It was something he had a passion for," said friend Dan Hickey, Suffolk's former social services commissioner. "It was his way of giving something back to the community."

Cannataro, 64, scion of a prominent Smithtown Republican family, died early Wednesday at St. Catherine of Siena Hospital in Smithtown after suffering a heart attack late Tuesday night.

"My brother was my best friend," said his sister, Legis. Lynne Nowick (R-St. James), the one for whom Cannataro organized the concerts. "He was a gentle man and a gentleman. He was my go-to person."

A lifelong St. James resident, Cannataro lived across the street from the house where he grew up. His father was the late former Smithtown Deputy Supervisor Eugene Cannataro, who served on the town board for nearly a quarter century.

But Cannataro himself played only a supporting role in politics, pursuing a wide range of interests. He was an instrument-rated airplane pilot who flew until recent years out of Republic Airport in Farmingdale. He was an avid skier who once ran ski bus tours throughout the northeast. He also liked to tinker with tractors. He had been scheduled to drive one as part of the St. James Tractor Club in this weekend's local St. Patrick's Day parade. He also could be seen riding his bike in his neighborhood or walking his yellow lab, Bailey.

"I thought the world of Dennis," said Jeff Casale, president of Suffolk Off-Track Betting Corp., where Cannataro worked for the past 13 years, first as a telephone room manager and later an assets account manager. "He had a terrific work ethic -- he was in at 7 a.m. every day -- and every once in a while we turned a blind eye when he brought Bailey to work."

Other survivors include his wife, Patricia, his daughter, Cheryl Ann of Vail, Colo., and his mother, Vera.

A wake will be held Sunday at St. James Funeral Home -- South Chapel from 2 to 4 p.m. and from 7 to 9 p.m. A Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Monday at Sts. Philip and James Roman Catholic Church in St. James. A private cremation is planned. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind Inc. 371 E. Main St., Smithtown NY 11787-2976.