Letter: Johnson fought to save lighthouse
Former state Sen. Owen Johnson, of West Babylon, is shown in his office in Albany in an undated photo. Johnson, the longest-tenured state senator in Long Island history, died of natural causes on Dec. 24, 2014. He was 85.
Newsday's obituary for Owen Johnson
Credit: Dave Oxford
Newsday rightfully gave the late Sen. Owen Johnson glowing accolades for a sterling career and for always thinking of his beloved Long Island and ways to improve it.
He worked across the aisle, leaving an incredible legacy. However, I want to add one important achievement. As the wife of the late Thomas F. Roberts III, the founding president of the Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society, I witnessed constant attention as the senator fought for our organization in Albany.
If he hadn't procured the seed money, the Lens Building would not have been built. It houses a first-order Fresnel lighthouse lens and attracts more than 100,000 visitors a year. This is a definite jewel in the crown of a prince of a man.
Marilyn Miller Roberts, Bay Shore
