Henry Fayne - President

Having spent numerous weekends with friends on Shelter Island, Henry Fayne and his wife Niki bought their Deer Park Lane home in August of 2019. They continue to maintain their residence in Manhattan.

As a long-term board member of a non-profit organization serving youth and families, Henry came to appreciate how important it is to have a place that is safe and nurturing, a place where one can be part of community, and a place where learning can be fun. It was immediately evident to him that the Shelter Island Library is such a place. He is delighted to have the opportunity to help make it even better for the entire community.

During his thirty-year career with American Electric Power (AEP), one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, Henry held senior positions on both the operating and financial sides of the business. Most recently, he served as Executive Vice President of Energy Services and was responsible for transmission, distribution and customer service operations for the AEP system. He also served as Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President - Financial Services and was responsible for financial planning and budgeting, risk management, internal audits, accounting and treasury functions. Since retiring from AEP in 2004, Henry has been providing advisory and consulting services to various energy-intensive industrial companies and has served on several corporate and non-profit boards. He is currently a director of JPMorgan Infrastructure Investments Fund, Chairman of the Board of Summit Utilities, and President of the Board of 140 East 83rd Tenants Corp. Henry holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Columbia College of Columbia University and a Masters of Business Administration degree in Finance from the Columbia School of Business.

Jo-Ann Robotti - Vice President

Jo-Ann Robotti is a passionate proponent of public libraries, and traces some of her best childhood memories to the library in her hometown of Stamford, Connecticut. Jo-Ann and her husband, Joe Messing, came to Shelter Island as newlyweds in 1978, bought their first home ten years later and became full-time residents in 1999. Active in the Island’s community, she is a member of The Lions Club and the Town’s Comprehensive Planning Task Force as well as a frequent contributor to the Shelter Island Reporter. She represents the South Fork and Shelter Island as a trustee of Suffolk Cooperative Library Services (SCLS), the county-wide cooperative serving the 56 member libraries.

For 15 years, she served as a Trustee of Simmons College in Boston, where she received a BA, with honors, in management and chaired the presidential search as well as numerous other committees. She holds an MBA degree in marketing from Columbia University. Her long career in consumer products marketing and consulting includes a stint with Faith Popcorn’s BrainReserve and her own marketing consultancy in New York, The Next Group. Currently, she focuses on executive coaching and library activism.

Donald Regan - Treasurer

Donald Regan grew up in Freeport, New York and from the age of one came with his family to Southold for one to two weeks every summer. His wife Jill visited Greenport with her family as a child. When Jill and Don began looking for a summer location for their six sons, they rented and then bought in Sagaponack, spending summers there and winters in Rockville Centre, frequently visiting friends on Shelter Island. After 26 summers – in December of 2019 -- Don and Jill bought a house on the Island and (never really) retired.

Don graduated from the College of the Holy Cross with a double major, earning a BA in Economics and a BA in Studio Art. A Liberal Arts degree is not for everyone, but he thrived; studying art honed his problem-solving ability, an asset in finance as well as a being a teacher/player coach.

His career in finance includes 20 years at Goldman Sachs and Co., 12 years at Lehman Brothers and five at Barclays Bank, mostly focused on derivative financial product sales and management, guiding his clients in the use of new financial risk management products.

Don’s extracurricular interests include all sports -- playing when younger and then coaching his six sons in soccer, baseball and lacrosse. He and two friends began the Rockville Center PAL lacrosse program with 30 boys in 1989, which today serves more than 500 boys and girls. His love of the ocean manifested itself in lifeguarding at Jones Beach for 10 years.

Additionally, Don actively works to foster support for education, particularly on improving health care and research. He has served on the Board of “Swim Across America” since 2001 during which he helped raised more than $7 million to fund cancer research. Don also sat on the Friends of Mercy Hospital Board, was a supporter of the De Lasalle School and has recently joined the Shelter Island Emergency Medical Service, where he hopes to train in becoming an EMT.

Linda Kraus - Secretary

Linda Kraus came to Shelter Island in 1976 when she married her husband Chuck. Linda came to know and love this island community through working at the family business, the Kraus Crescent Beach Restaurant and Motel.

Linda and Chuck raised three children, Janelle, Amanda, and Patrick, who are all Shelter Island High School graduates. They have gone on to have their own careers and families but return frequently to this beautiful island where they grew up. Linda and Chuck are now excited to share this special island with their grandchildren, Josephine, Sloane, and Rhys.

Linda saw early on how this community thrived, encouraged, and supported each other through its many organizations and programs. Linda is a member of the Lion’s Club and through the years has volunteered at Island organizations including St. Gabriel’s, the Shelter Island Chamber of Commerce, the Shelter Island Fire Department, and the Shelter Island Ambulance (as secretary and EMT). She also has served as the RN Medical Coordinator for the Shelter Island 5K and 10K races.

Linda has a BSN from Stony Brook University. She has been a registered nurse at Eastern Long Island Hospital for over 30 years. Linda has been honored by the Town of Southold-Greenport Rotary Club as the 2010 recipient of the Laura Goodal Award for Nursing Excellence and the 2005 Nursing Preceptor Award form 1199 National Benefit.

Linda considers the Shelter Island Public Library to be part of the lifeblood of this island. She states how along with participating in and enjoying the many programs, she has watched our library evolve over the years, striving to provide current and varied services. “The Library is a safe haven for learning and sharing for both young and old alike.”

Linda is excited to be given the opportunity to serve the Library as a member of the Board of Trustees.

Susan Binder

Susan Binder has spent her adult life actively engaged in our Island’s community through service; from playful and creative endeavors like creating the “little” playground and managing backstage for the Shelter Island Drama Club to more serious board commitments. She has served on the boards of The Shelter Island Educational Foundation, Mashomack, The Shelter Island Board of Education, and currently, The Lions Club, to name a few. She became a year-round resident almost 30 years ago, soon after graduation from St. Lawrence University where she earned degrees in fine art and sociology. Susan and her husband, Darrin, feel lucky to have raised their 3 children here. Doug is now a resident of Minnesota while Katy and Charlie have returned to live and work on the east end. Susan cares deeply about our community and understands the important role the library plays and the outstanding job it does for for our Island. The mission is clear and she believes the library has become the cultural and educational center for all our residents and visitors. She knows that programming and outreach are things that need to be tended to, are a constant work in progress, and that even the best staff needs volunteer support. She looks forward to serving the library as a board trustee.

Marianne Carey

Marianne Carey is a lifelong Shelter Island resident. She and her extended family have summered on the Island for generations and are now spending more and more of the extended season here.  Members of her family – of all ages – have been active library card holders, and many have been seen on a chilly Thanksgiving weekend at Crescent Beach, rushing in and out of the water at The Turkey Plunge to benefit Friends of the Library.  

Marianne is an agent at M.Wein Realty. She is inspired by the close-knit community and quality of life on the Island and takes great pleasure matching clients with the perfect home to “shelter” in. She has current professional experience in finance and philanthropic support for not-for-profit organizations, specializing in fundraising galas and is dedicated to bringing her professional experience to library events and fundraising.

Marianne holds an MBA from Columbia University and a BA cum laude from Boston College. She met and married her late husband, Dennis Hayes, on Shelter Island; their children, Owen and Delia Hayes, spent many summers here enjoying the library.  The Carey family foundation, The Paul Robert Carey Foundation, joins with generous donors and island vendors to support the local community organizations. 

"From my time growing up in Brooklyn, to my college years in Boston and as a parent of a son and daughter who I raised in Bronxville and summered in Shelter Island, I have found libraries to be a tremendous resource and place of retreat and renewal. I have witnessed over decades the increasingly important role that libraries play beyond the fundamental access to literature. Libraries are the gateway to advancement and equitable opportunities.” 

Archer Brown

Archer Brown retired to the Island in 1998 after more than 35 years in the field of international education, working for non-profit agencies in Manhattan and then in Washington, D.C. where she was the Deputy Executive Director of NAFSA: Association of International Educators, a 10,000-member worldwide group of college and university administrators. Beginning when she was a teen-age exchange student, Archer has traveled extensively in the U.S. and abroad, been a speaker on related topics at more than 150 national and international conferences. She continued in her retirement to consult and sit on education boards and then was the Community Editor at the Shelter Island Reporter, where she worked part time for 15 years. Archer previously served as a library trustee and secretary on the board for nine years and then volunteered as a “Book Sale Lady.” She also assisted the Sylvester Manor Board as recording secretary and currently is a board member of the Lions Club of Shelter Island.

A graduate with honors from Mount Holyoke College, Archer was the college’s first Russian major. In her spare time, she is an avid reader. Second only to signing up for a PO Box when she moved to the Island was applying for her library card.

Donald Dunning

Donald and his wife, Corinne, became enchanted with Shelter Island when they often visited their friends and two of their children who had moved to Shelter Island in the late 1990s. In 2005, they both semi-retired, sold their house in Seaford and followed their “boys” to paradise.

Soon after arriving on the Island, Don transferred his Lions Club membership to the Shelter Island Lions Club, became immediately involved with many activities in the community, and is currently a Board member.

After building their dream house on Griffing Lane, Don and Corinne resumed their respective careers on a part-time basis. Don, as a general contractor and Corinne as a Registered Nurse with East End Hospice.

Donald was elected a Trustee on the Shelter Island Library Board in 2011 and served a maximum of three 3-year terms. He says that “those 9 years just flew by” and has good memories of being on the search committee for an Executive Director that culminated in the hiring of Terry Lucas. Donald was involved in two construction projects that significantly repurposed the wasted space on the lower level and the renovation and rehabilitation of the front entrance, as well as, various areas of the library that needed updating.

After a mandatory one-year hiatus, Donald is happy to be back on the Board of Trustees and plans to be active in continuing the mission of the Shelter Island Library to “provide state-of-the-art resources, services and technologies to meet the current and evolving needs of the community.”

Jody Geist

Jody Geist began spending summers on Shelter Island with her husband Bill in 1997, driving out from Ridgewood NJ for weekends. After their children left New Jersey to begin careers, Jody and Bill moved into Manhattan in 2002 and, on retirement, to Riverside, Connecticut with their two dogs – and find they’ve extended those weekends on the Island longer and longer. This includes regular visits to the Shelter Island Library and its events. Now Jody's grandchildren have fallen in love with the island and spend happy hours at story time, or just checking out books there as Jody and Bill enjoy more time here and contribute to the island's causes.

In Ridgewood, Jody served as President of Friends of the Library. Under her leadership, its Book & Author Luncheon program was launched in 1988 with Mary Higgins Clark as the first featured author; the program is still running strong. Before moving to Manhattan, she was an active volunteer in the Ridgewood community, including fundraising for the complete redesign of the Ridgewood Public Library, expansion of its Red Cross facility and, as a member of the Woodlea/PATH group homes board, working to provide enrichment of its children. She spent many hours a week volunteering in her children's schools.

Jody has served on variety of boards, most recently as a founding member of the New York Harbor Foundation for which she co-chaired the annual cocktail and auction fund-raiser held at the NY Yacht Club. During her tenure from 2003 to 2013, it was a sold-out event, providing much of the income for the school’s maritime theme courses.

A licensed Clinical Social worker, prior to her retirement, Jody worked as a school social worker for Catholic Charities in Newark, NJ and at the Harlem Academy in New York City. While living in New Jersey she spent eleven years as a residential realtor and still has an interest in houses, especially the lovely homes on this island.

Karyn Ginsberg Greenwald

Karyn Greenwald and her husband Bruce and came to Shelter Island in 2011, an enchanted place to begin the next chapter of their lives. They love the ability to be physically active all year round, socializing with friends and creating family memories for their children and grandchildren.

Karen is most fortunate to have a studio in her home where she creates both functional and sculptural ceramics, and she also has a photography practice. The changing landscape of Shelter Island allows her to never be bored with what she sees.

In addition to the Shelter Island Public Library, Karen sits on three boards --The International Studio and Curatorial Program (in Brooklyn), The Michael Kalil Endowment for Smart Design at Parson’s School of Architecture, which she helped found, and the Anti-Defamation League, where she serves on the National Board.

For many years Karen was a member of the Friends of Greenwich Library and a member of the Society of Book Writers and Illustrators for Children. She has a small collection of children’s books, including one not-yet-published written for middle school children called Summer Camp Secrets. She served on the board of trustees at her daughter’s school, Greenwich Country Day School.

For a community of our size we are incredibly blessed to have a library that offers such a broad array of services and programs for all age groups. Being part of a board that is driving the evolution of our library will be both challenging and rewarding.

Thomas Hashagen

Tom Hashagen came to Shelter Island in 1979 as chef at the Shelter Island Yacht Club after working as an apprentice as a cook for nearly ten years. Two years later, he met and married Lisa Shaw, an Island native. Together they raised two hareleggers, Sara and Adam, and are now grandparents of Lucy, Sam, Max, and Laila. Tom began a second career as a culinary arts instructor for Eastern Suffolk BOCES in 1993 and spent the next twenty years in the vocational classroom.

Although now retired, Tom is a frequent substitute at East End Schools, as well as a part-time employee of Sylvester Manor, producing their musical events. He has shared his knowledge of food and music as a featured presenter and panelist for several different organizations, and was a Shelter Island Reporter columnist from 2007-2014. He is an active musician with his wife Lisa, and enjoys fishing, travelling, woodworking, doting on his four grandchildren, and rooting for the Winnipeg Jets.

Tom is a member of the Lions Club and has volunteered for many Island organizations, including the Shelter Island 10K and 5K races, the Shelter Island Bucks, the Historical Society, St. Gabriel’s and the Gift of Life. He considers the Shelter Island Library one of the Island’s premier assets.

Tim Sheehan

Tim moved with his family to Shelter Island eight years ago and is currently employed as a project manager for a construction company in East Hampton. He believes his related construction experience will be particularly helpful to the library as it embarks on its renovation project.

Tim brings to the board the perspective of a younger parent with a relevant background and expertise in the multiple facets of the construction industry-cost analysis, budget tracking, subcontractor bids and oversight, etc. His earlier experience in business management will also contribute to the general oversight of the library’s operations.

Tim’s wife is a member of the Shelter Island School Board and his young son is a fan of the library’s youth librarian, Sara.

Tim is a 2004 graduate of the University of New Hampshire with a major in political science and a minor in psychology.

He believes that the library is an invaluable institution for the community – “the programs the library offers, for children and adults alike, engage members of the community from all backgrounds and provide much needed resources for the Shelter Island community.”