In Room 808 at Bay Shore Middle School, Philip M. Carpenter Jr. shaped, influenced, and enriched generations of students for over 36 years, becoming an institution in the Bay Shore community. Carpenter died April 2 at his home in Bay Shore, surrounded by his loved ones. He was 84. At the beginning of each year, […]

Sixty-four years ago, in spring 1962, as a reporter in Suffolk County, I was working on my first big story—a plan to build a four-lane highway on Fire Island conceived by Robert Moses. It would have devastated much of the exquisite nature of that barrier beach, along with its 17 very special communities. I was […]

Revolutionary War Capt. Austin Roe, a Culper Spy Ring patriot, reportedly of modest demeanor, would likely have been surprised by the April 19 turnout at Cedar Grove Cemetery. The rededication of a marker in front of his gravestone (1749-1830), along with comments on his life as a significant risk-taker, drew 100 people, thanks mainly to […]

The Fire Island Dance Festival, returning July 18-19 to Fire Island Pines, is set on a waterfront stage overlooking the Great South Bay. The festival gathers extraordinary dancers in a place where salt air, open sky, and communal memory become part of the performance. Here, dance is not merely entertainment. It is witness, offering, and […]

Saturday, May 23 (Noon-8:30 p.m.) Flynn’s Fire Island Memorial Day Dance Party Get ready for the ultimate Memorial Day weekend celebration at Flynn’s Fire Island, 1 Cayuga Street, Ocean Bay Park. Experience a Holiday Dance Party – Memorial Mash-Up, with doors opening at noon and the party running until 8 p.m. DJ Sim, DJ Savage, […]

Memorial Day is a time when people come together to remember, pay honor to, and show respect for those who served our nation. Find the parade most meaningful to you in our area. Ocean Beach Memorial Day Parade The Village of Ocean Beach Memorial Day Parade will take place in Ocean Beach, Fire Island, from […]

It may have been a gray, damp Thursday morning, with shops still busy making final touches as Memorial Day Weekend loomed large on Fire Island, but things felt a little warmer as vibrantly colored editions of Fire Island News (FIN) graced with the cover artwork of Margery Gosnell-Qua were loaded off the water taxi and […]

Ocean Beach village residents have been closely watching what has become a competitive mayoral and trustee election. However, a surprise came out of left field when the Village Court Justice race heated up in recent weeks, bringing both candidates into a Riverhead courtroom and reopening a perennial question about election law and residents’ legitimacy in […]

Juliann Bachmann, age 30 and a resident of Bellport, was pronounced dead at NYU Langone Hospital in Patchogue on May 16. She had been found that morning at 7:25 a.m. by the Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD), injured and in an unresponsive state, inside a vehicle parked at a Speedway gas station on Horseblock Road […]

Friday, May 15 (7-9:30 p.m.) COMMUNION: the acclaimed autobiographical play by Matthew LaBanca A teacher is fired after marrying the person he loves — and his community must confront what faith really asks of them. The internationally presented solo play Communion arrives in Sayville this spring for a special one-night engagement at Saint Ann’s Episcopal […]

In the wake of a harsh winter that froze the Great South Bay for a full month and devastated Long Island’s shellfish industry by damaging boats, harvesting equipment, and disrupting operations, the state of New York is investing in the industry with $3 million in grant awards. The funding will go toward 14 projects as […]

On May 11, the Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Disaster & Recovery Resilience announced the availability of low-interest federal disaster loans to small businesses and private nonprofit (PNP) organizations in New York to offset economic losses caused by freeze, ice floes, and tidal surge incidents between Jan. 26 and February 23. Suffolk, Nassau, and […]