Service memorializes East Hampton family lost in plane crash

Hundreds packed a church Friday morning to memorialize three members of an East Hampton family lost in a plane crash a week ago.

Luxury developers Bernard and Bonnie Krupinski, both 70, and their grandson, William Maerov, 22, were aboard a twin-engine Piper PA-31 Navajo that went down Saturday off the Amagansett coastline. The pilot, Jon Dollard, 47, also died.

The Krupinskis’ family members and friends streamed into the First Presbyterian Church of East Hampton about an hour before the 10 a.m. service, which was closed to the media.

The crowd grew so large that mourners had to be directed to the parish house next door, where they watched a livestream of the service on a television.

Several family members spoke at the two-hour memorial along with media businesswoman Martha Stewart, who met the Krupinskis in the early 1990s when she came to East Hampton looking for her dream home.

Stewart told mourners how she had found an older home that Bernard Krupinski had worked on for years and how he had so successfully conveyed its potential to her, according to a man leaving the service.

Government officials, including East Hampton Town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc, also attended the service.

“Ben and Bonnie Krupinski will best be remembered for their generosity in helping those in need and their support of local charities and institutions,” Von Scoyoc said on his way to the service. “Their influence reached into every aspect of the East Hampton community.”

At the rear of the church’s sanctuary stood an American flag that had flown atop the U.S. Capitol on the day of the crash. The House of Representatives presented it in honor of the Krupinskis and Maerov, according to the service program.

The Krupinskis and their grandson were active in politics, supporting both local and national candidates. Maerov had been studying government at Georgetown University in Washington.

“Devout patriotism and exemplary citizenship were trademark characteristics of the Krupinskis and Willie,” the program said.

Since the crash, many have talked openly about the couple’s kindness and generosity.

In an interview Thursday, Father Ryan Creamer of the Most Holy Trinity Church of East Hampton described the Krupinskis as “quietly generous — both to the parish and the community.” “It’s a good, strong memory we have of each of them,” he said.