A former Jupiter Island Town Commissioner died Monday in Rhode Island in what police there are investigating as a possible suicide.

Finn Caspersen, 67, was found dead Monday at the Shelter Harbor Golf Club in Westerly, R.I. from what police believe is a self-inflicted gunshot wound, said Westerly police Capt. Edward St. Clair.
Caspersen a philanthropist, was first elected as town commissioner in Jupiter Island in 2005. He resigned on Aug. 4. Caspersen also had a home in the Shelter Harbor Golf Club where he died.

“As a public servant, policy-maker and overall gentleman, Finn Caspersen exceeded every standard of good measure,” said Jupiter Island Mayor Charles Falcone. “Stoic and soft-spoken, he did a lot of listening during town meetings before carefully weighing in with insight and informed expertise.”

An assistant reached at Knickerbocker, LLC said the family did not want to comment. No funeral information was available.

Caspersen served as the chief executive officer for the Beneficial Corp., a major financial holding company, from 1976 to 1998. More recently he was serving as the chairman of Knickerbocker, a private management company that oversaw numerous trusts and foundations. Caspersen personally donated money to Harvard Law School in Massachusetts as well as the Morristown Memorial Hospital, and schools such as the Peddie School and the Drew University Caspersen School of Graduate Studies, all in New Jersey

Longtime friend Tom McNicholas described Caspersen as “approachable and genuine” and said: “Each time I would refer to him as Mr. Caspersen he would peer over his glasses, softly chuckle and say, ‘Call me Finn.’ He was a friend and always fair to everyone.”

As a town commissioner, Caspersen was pushed for a town referendum on whether to bury power lines on the island underground. He also got involved in Martin County’s contentious debate over real estate development, paying $17,000 out of his own pocket in 2006 to bankroll a phone survey of 500 Martin County residents about their views of population growth. He also created a political action committee, Keep Martin green, that ran advertisements opposing rapid growth in the county.

“Finn had strong convictions towards protecting our environment and he invested a lot of his own money and time to support local causes like Keep Martin Green which focused on smart growth and environmental protection,” McNicholas said.

This is the second longtime Jupiter Island official to die in recent months. Town Manager Joe Connolly, a friend of Caspersen, died of Lou Gehrig’s disease just days after Caspersen resigned from the town commission in August. Deputy Town Manager Gene Rauth said the town is considering a memorial to Caspersen.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

PORT ST. LUCIE — Shirley Littlefield’s eyes filled with tears as she picked up her daughter, third-grader Elizabeth, from what was truly her last day of school at Port St. Lucie Elementary.

“It’s heartbreaking,” Littlefield said. “We’re getting split up, and it hurts.”

The 34-year-old building closed its doors to students, teachers and staff on Wednesday as part of a plan to deal with St. Lucie County School District budget constraints.

Closing the school, as well as Southbend K-8 and Anglewood Center, which taught pregnant teens, is expected to save $30 million next year. (more…)

PORT ST. LUCIE — Cheers, tears and roses were on display before a standing-room-only crowd in the auditorium of Port St. Lucie Elementary Monday night.

The gathering was to say goodbye to the 34-year-old school that is being closed in June as part of the school district’s plan to save $30 million next year.

“We have always been a family,” said Deb Mock, a reading coach who has taught at the school 31 years. “We’ve been there for each other through all the challenges we’ve had — hurricanes, flooding, the deaths of faculty members. We always strived to do the best for our students,” she added.
(more…)

PORT ST. LUCIE — Treasure Coast is seeking a new boys basketball coach.

Titans coach Rob Recknagel resigned for personal reasons, but will remain at the school as a science teacher. In two seasons, Recknagel guided Treasure Coast to two regional appearances and a 32-22 record.

“It was a tough decision for me to make, and I will miss it, but basically I wanted to spend more time with my kids,” said Recknagel, who has two young children, 3-year-old Brady and 4-year-old Ella. “I knew eventually I would get to a point where I would want to spend more time with my kids than someone else’s kids.

“It was a good experience. We were successful, and it’s tough to leave the returning seniors and the kids in the program.”

Recknagel submitted a letter of resignation about a month ago, but athletic director Dan Comeau said he encouraged the coach to “let the dust settle and keep thinking about it.” Recknagel recently informed Comeau of his final decision and the job opening was posted last week through the St. Lucie County School District’s Paperless Applicant Tracking system online. (more…)