After
I sent out the notice to all the Dinosaurs, I started receiving comments
from many of our group. It was obvious that Tony Jerome was loved
and
respected by everyone who knew him and worked with him. I am taking
the liberty of posting all of these comments here.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Chris Hatch
Oh my God! What a wonderful man. Such sad news.
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Deborah Webbe
I’m so sad about Tony.
I wrote him in Nov. after we got the contact info. on the Dino email.
I just wrote to him again on Tuesday night to say hello.
I’m attaching what he sent me, just for you to see.
He was fighting and happy that we thought of him.
;-(
~From Deb~
Hey Tony,
The Dino’s received some email about you the other day and I
thought I’d drop you a line to let you know you’re being
thought of, and prayed for.
When times are tough it’s good to know you’ve got so
many friends.
Keep your spirits up, we’re all rooting for you!
;-)
~From Tony~
Hello Deborah. I am fighting, trying to get back, but for the first
time in the 5 or 6 years since I came down with this disease ...
I am beginning to think it may be winning. But. I am putting
up the fight of my life.
Wish me well.... and thanks for your caring, concern, and prayers. Best
Regards; Tony
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Al Cohn
Dick,
thanks to your intervention, I was able to have the one
last bit of correspondence with Tony a few months ago.
I wish he had gotten the medical breaks he needed
instead. Tony was everything you said. He may have
been the most dedicated journalist I've known.
He deserved more time to enjoy, that's for sure.
best to you,
al
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Ellen Yan
hi dick, i am glad u found out; i was gonna email u after work (which
is now!). i heard that he had been taken off the liver transplant list
and earlier this month had plans to go to chemo soon. i am glad he
went peacefully with his entire family there. i wish i had kicked myself
in the butt to go see him instead of just emailing, but then he said
he was not up to visitors..... guess i'll see u at the wake/funeral.
___________________________________________________________________________
Arnie
Abrams
Dick--
It was painful to hear of the death
of Tony Jerome, whom I contacted recently after you sent news of his illness.
If the Dinosaurs plan
to make some sort of contribution in his name, please count me
in.
--Arnie
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Cliff DeBear
Dick, I got off the phone moments ago with my Office Girl; She
informed me about Tony's death before I had read your email. Tony
was one of my favorite people at Loseday. I met him on an assignment
in Setauket covering the funeral of some fireman in a church there
This was long before he came to the paper; I don't remember who
he was shooting for at the time. I was brought up to date on
the happenings going on with our beloved paper. Thank
God (or whatever) we got out of there at the right time!!
See you next month--
CLIFF
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Sal D’Aguanno
Hi Dick I guess I worked closer with Tony then anyone else in Newsday he
was the nicest person at ND. I spoke with him just before Christmas
he sounded weak but was still fighting. He is at peace now.
Sal
__________________________________________________________________
Bill
Kaufman
Dick;
Terribly sorry to hear about Tony. He was always a real pleasure
to work with and a kind and gentle soul.
Bill Kaufman
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Kathy Kmonice
Thanks Dick for all your messages. I had corresponded with
Tony also after you sent us all a note to reach out to him.
Like Deborah,
he
spoke of his continual fight and truly appreciated my card
and well wishes. Tony was a pleasure to work for. He was
passionate
about his
photography and his job as a photo editor. Most of all, Tony
was a really nice man. He will surely be missed.
Kathy
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From Ken Spencer’s Blog
Tony Jerome, a photographer, editor, and one of the nicest
guys I have ever known died last night, well before his
time. He
had been
fighting
liver disease for a number of years, and passed away in
the hospital with his family by his side. He was my editor at the
paper,
and
a good friend as well. He was such a good photographer
and so committed to
doing the best work imaginable. He was also so supportive
of all the photographers who worked with him. He was a
wonderful editor
as well,
taking great care to talk with writers and editors to understand
the nature of the stories, and then to talk to the photographers
with suggestions
of some of the best ways to illustrate them. He also worked
harder than anyone, both as an editor and a photographer. Writers
and
editors
loved him and he would always bend over backwards to help
anyone - to make everyone's job easier. He was also a passionate
fisherman,
and loved nothing better than to spend a day in his boat
on the water, fishing. He would come to the office after
a weekend completely
sunburned,
and grinning from ear to ear when he talked about his fishing
expeditions.
It just seems inconceivable to me that he is gone...
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Ellen Mitchell
Dick......As a frequent freelancer at Newsday writing for
umpteen various desks and getting photo memos from a variety
of editors...everyone
seemed to want something done a bit differently, it was
Tony who put
it all together for me. No matter when or why I phoned with a
dilemma or a last minute request it was Tony who took over and made
sense of it all. If I had a question about a photo I went to
Tony ....I live out here in Orient and it was always his wish to come
out and visit...he loved this part of Long Island. Sadly he never
made it to my home here. I e-mailed him recently to wish him
well and he spoke of hoping at long last to get out here to Orient
this summer if he had the strength. Wish it had been so...I will
remember him in my thoughts as I look around at the beauty of this
area. He was a very special guy. Ellen Mitchell
__________________________________________________________________
Leslie Coven
This is Tony's response to me after you let us know he was
feeling so discouraged and weak. I feel very sad that he
lost his battle,
he was certainly one of the most decent humans I have ever
met. He never,
never said a bad word about anyone at the paper, even if
they were turning him in ten directions at once. And he always,
always thanked
you for whatever you did to help him out. I remember how
compassionate he was with the Powell twins stories, just
a kind, hard working
man.
I am sorry I could not attend the wake, I am upstate taking care of
my mom, and truthfully I really didn't think I could
go back into that funeral home. I'm sorry.
To Leslie From: Tony Jerome <tjero@optonline.net>
Subject: Re: Thinking of you
To: "Coven Leslie" <lekke4@yahoo.com>
Date: Monday, November 23, 2009, 9:52 AM
Leslie, Of course I remember you. You were one of the most pleasant
people I ever met. You were always very capable
,devoted and you got things done without complaint and
very professionally.
It is excellent that you are doing things that make you happy. Leslie,
I am not giving up. I am in the biggest battle I have
ever fought and I will march forward. With support and prayers from
people like you.
Perhaps I can win. Tony
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Sandy Garry
I was
so sorry to hear about Tony. He was such a "good" guy,
a decent hardworking person, who was under appreciated and undervalued
by Newsday....by those who should have known better! So what else is
new!
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