• Nik BonopartisPatch Staff Verified Patch Staff Badge

  • Port Chester, NY

<b>Email </b>nik&#64;patch.com<b><br>Phone </b>914-837-2495<b><br>Hometown </b>Harrison<b><br>Birthday </b>April 13<br><b>Bio </b><br><br>Hey Patch readers! I was born at Port Chester&#39;s now-defunct United Hospital and spent a large part of my childhood here -- my aunt and uncle live in town, as do most of my cousins. My grandfather, Frank Masi, was the familiar face behind Frank and Sam&#39;s Sawpit. I&#39;ve played basketball at Corpus Cristi, rocked out to concerts at The Capitol, and saw my favorite bands as a kid at 7 Willow Street. Port Chester was also the site of The Vinyl, my favorite record store. A decade later, I still miss its endless album racks and thousands of concert bootlegs.<br><br>Before joining Patch, I spent almost seven years with Gannett covering crime in Poughkeepsie, which was like a miniature version of <i>The Wire&#39;s</i> Baltimore. After moving on from newspapers, I worked briefly at a gaming magazine -- where the office banter could have doubled as dialogue from <i>The Big Bang Theory</i> -- and ran a PR campaign for a non-profit. Since 2008, I&#39;ve been a network engineering student and a freelancer in Port Chester and Rye Brook, mostly covering police.<br><br>I&#39;m looking forward to guiding Port Chester Patch as it grows into the premiere source of local news about our village. It&#39;s going to be a fun challenge, and I&#39;m hoping you -- the readers -- can help by giving us feedback and letting us know what&#39;s going on around town. We&#39;ll be competing with a large regional daily and a small weekly, but the great thing about Patch is its format -- untethered to a print schedule, we can cover things in the community as they happen. So if you&#39;ve got news, drop me a line at nik&#64;patch.com and we&#39;ll do our best to cover it.<br><br>Education:<br><br>B.A., Journalism and Philosophy, Marist College<br>Cisco Network Engineering Program (Cisco Network Academy)<br>Computer Technology Industry Association A&#43; Technician<br><br>Awards:<br><br>National Council on Crime and Delinquency PASS Award for Investigative Journalism, 2004<br>International Association of Firefighters News Award, 2007<br>Associated Press Award, Breaking News, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006,  2007<br>New York State Publishers Award, Breaking News, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2007<br>Gannett Quarterly Awards, 2001-2007<br>Contributor, Best of Gannett, 2004, 2006

<b>Your Beliefs</b><br>At Patch, we promise always to report the facts as objectively as possible and otherwise adhere to the principles of good journalism. However, we also acknowledge that true impartiality is impossible because human beings have beliefs. So in the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal their beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable. This disclosure is not a license for you to inject your beliefs into stories or to dictate coverage according to them. In fact, the intent is the opposite: we hope that the knowledge that your beliefs are on the record will cause you to be ever mindful to write, report and edit in a fair, balanced way. And if you ever see evidence that we failed in this mission, please let us know.<br><br><b>Politics </b><br>How would you describe your political beliefs?

Independent, with a strong disdain for ideology and incoherent politics.

Are you registered with a certain party?

Independent. (Not registered with any party.)

<b>Religion</b><br>How religious would you consider yourself? (casual, observant, devout, non religious)

Originally baptized Greek Orthodox, raised Catholic. I like reading Pope John Paul II&#39;s encyclicals and I appreciate philosophy- and science-based reasoning in religious texts. I&#39;m a work in progress.

<b>Local Hot-Button Issues</b><br>What do you think are the most important issues facing the community?

That&#39;s for the readers to decide.

Where do you stand on each of these issues?<br><br>I&#39;m keeping an open mind.

Posting Activity

Port Chester|News|

Trustees Want Public Feedback Ahead of Pawn Shop Zoning Vote

Almost two decades after the controversial Diamond Club opened its doors in Port Chester, the memory is still fresh – and trustees view pawn shop regulation as a pre-emptive move to regulate potential pawn broker interest.

Trustees Want Public Feedback Ahead of Pawn Shop Zoning Vote
Port Chester|News|

Police: Body Identified as Missing Pregnant Woman

The family of Gizela Andrade, 32, has made a positive identification after the Mount Vernon woman&#39;s body was found late Tuesday night in the Bronx.

Police: Body Identified as Missing Pregnant Woman