FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MAY 6, 2021 • BUZZ • THE QUEENS COURIER 55
Victoria’s
SECRETS
Victoria
SCHNEPSYUNIS
vschneps@gmail.com
tweet me @vschneps
A love letter to my homes
Have you sold your home
and cried? I did twice
this year.
When the garage door came
down on my last day at my home
of 18 years, I sat in my car and
sobbed as so many memories
ran through my mind.
It was where I lived with my
late husband Stu for almost a
dozen years until his death and
then was home to my daughter
Elizabeth and my grandchildren
for seven years.
Stu had died in March and
my daughter’s husband suddenly
died in May, so it was great
comfort and joy to have her little
family move from Texas to my
home in New York.
One of the sweetest memories
I will cherish is granddaughter
Addy, an early riser, dancing
and somersaulting endlessly in
the early morning hours. I had
to remove the carpet and push
the furniture aside to give her
more room! Her beautiful smile
always warmed my heart.
Another sweet memory was
seeing the kids off to school
on their fi rst day. I cried as
Elizabeth and I waved good bye
and took pictures to remember
the moment. Each day, I
would say, “Good bye. I love you.
Have a great day!” I miss those
moments.
Th en the pandemic hit and
everything changed. My family
moved out and I decided
it was time to downsize and
sell the house.
Th e journey of sift ing
through the collections of
the years began, but it wasn’t
just my years of accumulation
— but also Stu’s and his
children, too!
I found his graduation
diploma from Jamaica High
School and his certifi cate from
his medical school from over
50 years ago. What do you do
with these? I couldn’t bear
throwing them out!
Th en there were collections
of Stu’s daughter
Eve’s jewelry making
parts, as well as multiple
wedding and family photo
albums. I think the hardest
part of the move was going
through a lifetime of memories,
both sweet and bittersweet. But
where do you store memories?
Aft er buying Dan’s Papers
in the East End, my co-op,
Westhampton House on Dune
Road, wouldn’t work as my fulltime
home any longer, since it is
closed during the winter.
Th e building is designed like
a half-moon facing the ocean
and was my weekend getaway. I
adored its location on the ocean
and I always felt rejuvenated by
the ocean views. Walking down
the steps to the ocean made it
even more magical and always
put a smile on my face.
But as I’ve learned “everything
has its time,” and my time there
was needed to end. When I left
the lawyer’s offi ce aft er the closing
to my next-door neighbor, I
just cried.
I loved the homes I’ve had
and all the memories they held.
It was not easy giving them up,
but life is about change and I’m
learning to go with it.
KENTUCKY DERBY FUN
It’s good to have friends and
when Todd Shapiro suggested
it would be fun for Dan’s Papers
to hold a Kentucky Derby party,
I immediately said yes.
Hosted by Zach Erdem, owner
of 75 Main and the beautifully
restored Blu Mar Hamptons in
Southampton, we cheered on my
friend Brendan O’Brian’s horse
Hidden Stash out of the gate at
6:57 p.m., with the crowd transfi
xed on the race. What a way to
launch the summer season!
GREEK EASTER
CELEBRATION
Being a curious person, I was
fascinated by how the Greeks,
like the Jews, have a week of
celebration and prayer.
I was invited to the
Dormition of the Virgin
Mary Greek Orthodox
Church of the
Hamptons for a sacred
midnight candle-lighting
service.
At 11 p.m., I sat with my
colleague Stephanie Bitis
near Dr. Peter Michalos
and Lisa Liberatore as
the lights went dark in
the sanctuary. Father
Alexander Karloutsos
and Rev. Father Constantine
Lazarakis, in their luxurious red
and gold silk robes, lit the fi rst
candle, which was then passed to
each person until everyone
in the congregation held a longstemmed
cupped candle. With
candles in hand, we left the sanctuary
to pray in the courtyard.
Church bells rang and the voices
of everyone praying was a cherished
moment in time.
I was told it would bring
good luck if I took the lit candle
into my home and carefully
placed it
between my console
and the
passenger seat.
By 1 a.m., we
were both
safely home.
A sweet
end to an
e x t r a ord
i n a r y
week!
I will miss the peaceful walks on
the Westhampton House beach.
I brought home my lit
candle from the vigil.
Gail and
Dr. Stephen
Greenberg
Todd and
Liz Shapiro
Dottie Herman
and Zach Erdem
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