A routine roll call began with the deputy clerk of the Suffolk County Legislature reading the names of three lawmakers who dutifully acknowledged their attendance.

After the clerk announced the fourth name at a late July committee meeting, Legis. Samuel Gonzalez (D-Brentwood) leaned into the microphone, smiled and emphatically responded, "Present!"

He swiveled his head, savoring the moment.

A few months earlier, there was no guarantee that Gonzalez — a three-term legislator representing areas of Brentwood, Central Islip and Bay Shore — would ever return to sit among his colleagues. Beginning in late winter, Gonzalez underwent a series of health setbacks in rapid succession that required three surgeries.

WHAT NEWSDAY FOUND

Suffolk County Legis. Samuel Gonzalez (D-Brentwood) returned t

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