Last year, Eleanor Russell published Roslyn Restored: The Legacy of Roger & Peggy Gerry (Mount Ida Press, Albany, NY). This past Saturday, Feb. 26, Mrs. Russell traveled from her home in New Jersey to the Nassau County Museum of Art in Roslyn Harbor to discuss both the book and how other villages might conduct their own successful restoration projects.

Currently a resident of Frenchtown, NJ, Mrs. Russell, along with her husband, lived in Roslyn in the early 1970s and assisted the Gerrys on numerous restoration projects.

At her talk, she recalled the many virtues the couple brought to their desire to preserve the small town nature of Roslyn. First, was simply the desire to do preservation work and the belief that the special ambience of the village was worth saving.

Second, came their ability to work with local government to get the proper zoning and quality of life ordinances approved. This also included the creation of the Historic District Board, the Roslyn Preservation Corporation, and the Roslyn Landmark Society.

Finally, there was the Gerry's talent in getting local residents involved in their various restoration projects. As Mrs. Russell recalled, Roger Gerry would see every resident as a potential volunteer, while also matching that person to a particular task. Gerry, Mrs. Russell added, was also generous to the point of crediting others for their contributions.

"He roped in as many people as possible and made it fun for them," Mrs. Russell recalled. "There are other towns that have charm. We can take a leaf from Roger and Peggy in this book to see how we can make a difference just like they did."

Also speaking at the event was Sargent Russell, Mrs. Russell's husband and someone who is also involved in historic restoration.

Russell praised the Gerrys as people who not only were driving forces behind restoration, but as people who did their work "with a creative spirit."

In addition, the Gerrys, Russell said, were noted for their good taste when doing restoration work. He noted that Peggy Gerry was an artist herself and that her husband's work entailed its own artwork. While performing dentistry during World War II, Roger, according to Russell, "rebuilt [the] faces and jaws of severely wounded soldiers."

In all, Russell claimed that there are "tremendous economic values" in restoration. Obviously, a community that keeps its older homes in good shape will be attractive in an aesthetic sense. In addition, a community that does restoration work, while also keeping excessive development at bay, keeps its small town flavor.

"A small town community is valuable, especially for older people," Russell said, pointing to conditions where older people can walk to the post office or the doctor's office without using a car, where, also, children can walk to school rather than taking a bus.

In closing, Russell implored the audience to become inspired by the spirit of Roger and Peggy Gerry and do what they can to preserve their own towns and villages.

Roslyn Restored traces the history of the village from the 1950s onward. A key moment came in the late 1950s when Nassau County officials hoped to increase access to the Long Island Expressway by widening all the secondary roads that lead to it, including Old Northern Boulevard.

Stopping that expansion plan was the first of many victories for Roger and Peggy Gerry. The book also details how Roger Gerry solidified restoration in the village by helping to establish a Village Planning Board and a Historic District for Mill Dam, Main Street, and Broadway. Homeowners living in such a district must apply to the historic district board for any and all restoration, even minor ones such as window alterations.

In the 1960s, preservation work went forward with the establishment of The Roslyn Preservation Corporation and the Roslyn Landmark Society. According to Mrs. Russell, the preservation corporation helped local residents with renovation projects by "acquiring properties, completing the architectural plans for restorations, and then marketing the buildings with recorded covenants to assure proper restoration."

By the 1980s, restoration efforts had preserved 10 buildings and 39 houses in the village. By now, the village was also being recognized nationally for its preservation efforts. In 1982, at a White House ceremony, Roger Gerry received a National Trust Honor Award from then-First Lady Nancy Reagan.

Roslyn Restored closes with an overview of Roger Gerry's involvement with the Stop & Shop supermarket controversy of the mid-1990s. At first, Gerry opposed the plan, but then believing it represented the best possible situation for the 11-acre site in downtown Roslyn, he became a supporter.