Janette Handley, of Stony Brook, ran print shop with husband, dies at 85

She came from half a world away in order to come home. Janette Handley, who emigrated from Australia in 1960, settled in the Three Villages and found her people among a host of civic organizations.

“She became adopted into this community in the United States,” said daughter Shannon Handley, one of Janette and her late husband Edmund Handley’s four children. “And I think she always felt thankful for that, to be this person who was not from here and who could be part of it by making herself a part of it.”

That said, her daughter added, “My mom never became an American citizen. She was very attached to her Australian roots.” And her Aussie accent. “She's famous for her accent. She never lost her accent. And her grandchildren loved it and did impersonations of her!”

Within the larger community, “She was a true friend to me and to my wife,” said Mari Irizarry, director of the Three Village Historical Society, where history buff Handley devoted much volunteer time and effort.

“In a lot of ways, I looked to her as my mentor,” Irizarry said. “I went to college for graphic design, and Janette and her husband had their print shop,” Budget Instant Print, in Stony Brook. “And I would design things for the historical society and Janette would say, ‘No, no, no. You're doing that wrong. Listen to me.’ And we would butt heads, but I learned so much from her. And at the end of the day, we'd kiss and make up — and I would, every single time, go in the direction she was leading me, because she knew better.”

Handley died of leukemia on Sept. 10, at age 85, at Good Shepherd Hospice in Port Jefferson. She had been diagnosed on Aug. 11.

Yet such was her dedication that even when facing mortality, she continued to contribute to one of her many initiatives, the annual Culper Spy Day 5K, which was held this year on Sept. 7, that she had created with her grandson Sean Grossman to benefit the historical society. “She's telling me we need to make sure we've called Suffolk County and that the correct roads are going to be closed,” said her daughter, with a combination of pride and sadness, “and she’s crossing the ‘t’s and dotting the ‘i’s, making sure everything is going to go well.”

Janette Ann Carter was born Dec. 7, 1939, in Brisbane, Australia, the younger of two daughters of John Francis “Jack” Carter and Emilie Helen Ensor Carter. Educated only through eighth grade, she took vocational courses and became a librarian for the Australian consulate in the United Nations. In 1966, she married Edmund Handley, who worked in construction sales, and settled in Flushing, Queens.

They moved to Stony Brook, spending about a decade there before relocating to East Setauket through the mid-2000s and then returning to Stony Brook. After Edmund’s retirement from sales, the couple operated their print shop from 1978 to 2012.

The couple were founding members of the soup kitchen Our Daily Bread at Setauket’s St. James Roman Catholic Church. Janette for many years was an officer of the Three Village Chamber of Commerce, as well as a fundraiser and organizer for the historical society and for the Setauket Neighborhood House. She helped to arrange such events as the 5K race, the annual Apple Festival and both the Spirits Tour and Candlelight House Tour, with she herself sometimes serving as guide.

Through the Three Village Rotary Club’s Youth Exchange, she and her husband hosted students from various countries while their own children were in high school. Each “lived with us for a school year,” remembered Shannon Handley, “because my parents believed in sharing our family and sharing this idea of the United States and being part of a larger community outside our own household.”

For her community service, Janette Handley was one of three honorees in 2005 presented with the Boys and Girls Club of Suffolk’s President’s Award. In May she received the Three Village Historical Society’s Fred E. Bryant Community Award.

Recreationally, she and her husband boated and were members of the Stony Brook Yacht Club. As well, said her daughter, “Gardening was her passion.”

In addition to her daughter, Shannon, of Port Jefferson, she is survived by daughters Siobhan Handley, of Manhattan and Stony Brook, and Tara Handley McKnight, of New Freedom, Pennsylvania; son Sean Handley, of Stony Brook; and six grandchildren.

A memorial Mass will be held at St. James Church in Setauket on Sept. 20. Donations can be made to the Three Village Historical Society or the Setauket Neighborhood House.