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Julianne Mosher

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P.J. Harbour Club is taking over the former spot of Due Baci. Photo by Julianne Mosher

A new Italian steakhouse with innovative cuisine is coming to Port Jefferson village, and it all started because of two friends playing golf.

Joe Guerra, of Port Jefferson, and Michael Russell met about a year ago at the Port Jefferson Country Club. While the two were playing, they got to talking — they decided to become business partners and open up a restaurant. 

And that’s how the P.J. Harbour Club was born. 

Joe Guerra (left) and Michael Russell (right) are preparing to open up a new Italian steakhouse in the village. Photo by Julianne Mosher

Guerra has over 40 years of restaurant, hotel, catering and club experience locally and globally. He studied at the Culinary Institute of America and received classical training — so when he retired from the industry, not too long ago, he just wanted to play golf. 

“And then he convinced me to come back,” he laughed, gesturing at Russell.

Russell, an East Setauket native, worked for several major Wall Street firms and said has been a partner and investor for restaurants throughout his career. When Guerra mentioned opening a new space, the active community member — who retired in April — said, “Why not?”

“It got exciting because of Joe and his experience,” Russell said. “We get along.”

It took about nine months to negotiate the building that once was the home to The Graceful Rose and, as of more recently, Due Baci. The Italian restaurant closed its doors shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic, in January of last year. Last week, the two were able to start renovating the space and make it their own. 

“We hit the ground running,” Guerra said. “Since last week, we’ve already done a lot of changes in the place, kitchen-wise, and are going through the permit process.”

The goal is to be a friendly place where everyone in the neighborhood can get together while enjoying good food and a glass of wine. 

“People are excited because they know us,” Guerra added. “It’s going to be gathering place where our old friends, our current friends and the new friends that we’re going to be making in the area can meet.”

And the two want to complement the other restaurants throughout the village. They don’t want to compete. 

“We know a lot of the people that own the restaurants in the village and they’re all doing a great job,” Russell said. “We’re just a little bit different. Our intention is to be different.”

The restaurant that sits on the second level of 154 W Broadway will bring classic and unique entrees to customers, in a trendy, but comfortable, setting. 

Along with the minor cosmetic renovations, Russell said they will be adding dining banquettes to sit in, with photos of Port Jefferson’s history along the walls. 

“It’s just something that we wanted to do — it’s not something that we needed to do,” Russell said. “I think that that’s the difference — we want to do this so that the public will really enjoy it.”

The P.J. Harbour Club is anticipating an early spring opening.

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Stock photo

School districts across Long Island have been offering free meals to children throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and the policy from the U.S. Department of Agriculture has extended the program to the end of the school year. 

Over the summer, at the height of the pandemic, the USDA allowed school districts to apply for free meals for all students. Usually, districts only provide free breakfasts and lunches to students who qualify for free or reduced lunch. 

But the coronavirus prompted the federal government to create child nutrition waivers based upon available funding at the time to end in June, then December and now throughout the 2020-21 school year. 

And it’s benefiting hundreds of students, local school representatives said. 

Mara Pugh, Elwood school district food services director, said when the pandemic started in March, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue gave schools the flexibility and waivers to be able to serve lunches to everyone in the community who were learning from home. 

“Back then, we had a grab and go for any family,” she said. “No matter what the financial eligibility was, they would get a free lunch.”

Before the pandemic, families who were struggling or below the middle-class line were able to enroll their children in the free or reduced-lunch programs. The pandemic, however, affected everyone, and some students who came from middle-income households were now struggling. 

When the waiver was passed again at the end of the 2020, Pugh said it was “a relief.”

“It definitely will help to ensure all the children in our district and community have access to the nutritious foods they need,” she said. 

Whether the student is remote learning or in-person, everyone is eligible if they so choose, no questions asked. 

“We have around 2,500 kids in our district,” she said, “And about 30% to 40% of them are taking advantage of it.”

Remote families are able to pick up their meals at the school, where the district packages meals for two or three days at a time, she said. 

“There’s no enrollment needed,” she added. “With these times, people who were well-off last year may not be well-off this year.”

In a release last year, USDA stated that the challenges facing the country called for an effective way to feed children. The waiver allowed changes, like serving meals in all areas at no cost, permitting meals to be served outside of the typically required group settings and mealtimes, waive meal pattern requirements and allow parents or guardians to pick up meals for their children. 

“As our nation recovers and reopens, we want to ensure that children continue to receive the nutritious breakfasts and lunches they count on during the school year wherever they are, and however they are learning,” Perdue said. “We are grateful for the heroic efforts by our school food service professionals who are consistently serving healthy meals to kids during these trying times, and we know they need maximum flexibility right now.”

Three Village school district also has taken advantage of the waiver. Jeffrey Carlson, deputy superintendent for business services, said that he thought it was “a great idea.”

“I’ve felt for a long time that school lunches should be free for all schools,” he said. “Either the district pays for it or the federal government pays.”

Carlson said the free lunches also have gotten better than when parents were in school. 

“It used to be a lot more obvious as to which kids were getting free lunch and then the stigma comes along with it,” he said. “So, if every kid just got lunch in school then we wouldn’t have to worry about that anymore.”

While there are still snacks and extras that must be bought à la carte, he said that daily participation in the program has increased. 

“I think it’ll go up even more after COVID,” he said. “People will be more comfortable with food being prepared for their children again.”

Beth Rella, assistant superintendent for business at Middle Country school district, said they are “thrilled” to be able to offer the program to all of their students — whether they attend in-person, virtual or hybrid classes. 

“Although we began the year starting a little lighter than typical, which was anticipated due to COVID, we have noticed an increase in the number of meals served daily as the school year has progressed,” she said. “We see more and more students enjoying tasty breakfasts and lunches each day. We hope that students, who may have not tried out the food services program previously, use this as an opportunity to taste the various menu items.”

Carlson said that when USDA extended the program, there wasn’t a big announcement about it. Rella added that her district has “utilized ConnectEd messages, board of education meetings, printed flyers, the website and have even encouraged faculty and staff to spread the word about the program.” 

Middle Country students even had the opportunity to design and compete in a “Free Meals for All” poster contest, where the winning poster was used as a promotional display. 

Smithtown school district publicized the program via email to parents. Superintendent Mark Secaur wrote back in September, “The USDA recently announced that all school districts participating in the National School Lunch Program could temporarily serve free lunch to all students until Dec. 31, 2020. We have now also received approval from NYSED to participate in the free lunch offering.”

Memos were sent out to residents within the Port Jefferson School District, too, and Deputy Superintendent Sean Leister said that while “around 10% or 15% of students are remote, this brings a level of normalcy to them.”

Leister added his district has also seen an increase in families participating. 

“There’s always a gap of people who don’t feel comfortable with signing up for the reduced lunch program,” he said. “But the federal government, state and Port Jefferson School District all realize that not having a meal is important to keeping students engaged and attentive — and no one will know they got it for free.”

Rella said Middle Country offers a week’s worth of frozen meals so students can continue to enjoy hot meals during their time off. 

“Having the USDA free meals for all program has not only allowed more students to participate in the program, it has helped to lessen the financial burden that was produced,” Rella said.

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The Long Island Explorium was recently awarded a grant to help keep girls and young women in STEM fields. Photo from Explorium.

It’s time to break the stigma. 

The Long Island Explorium recently announced they were selected by the Association of Science and Technology Centers — along with 27 museums across the country — to participate in IF/THEN Gender Equity Grants, an initiative of Lyda Hill Philanthropies.

More than $300,000 is being awarded to ASTC-member science and technology centers and museums, seeking to address equity in gender representation across museum content and launch projects that increase the representation of women and gender minorities in STEM, as part of their broader efforts to advance diversity, accessibility and inclusion.

Executive Director of the Explorium Angeline Judex said the grant will help fund a multitude of different projects that will help amplify gender representation in STEM and enhance their workshops within the community and in schools. 

IF/THEN. Photo from the Long Island Explorium

The Long Island Explorium, located at 101 E Main Street, is a 501c3 nonprofit, and is chartered with the New York State Department of Education. Their vision is to be a leader in STEM discovery, learning and innovations to shape future generations, allowing children in kindergarten through grade six to express themselves as future leaders and innovators. 

“Our museum is small in footprint, but our impact is huge,” Judex said. “I’m excited because the grant validates all the impactful work we have done in the past to support young girls in science forward. We’re extremely honored.”

STEM, like many other fields, have been associated as a male-dominated career. The IF/THEN organization strives to get more girls and young women into the science, technology and engineering paths.

“We’re all helping to change the cultural mindset of what is acceptable, what is right, what is not right and who belongs where,” Judex said. “And now we’re part of that journey to encourage and promote gender equity.”

With the mindset of “If you can see it, you can be it,” Judex said the change won’t be easy. “There’s no a magic button that resets to this new normal,” she said. “But it’s a journey we want to be on.”

Judex said she believes young girls can succeed as scientists and innovators in STEM. 

“Girls and young women do have a seat at the table,” she said.

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Torte Jeff's front door now boasts East Main & Main. Photo by Julianne Mosher

A local business owner decided to combine two of her shops, creating a one-stop-shop for all things sweet in Port Jefferson.

Lisa Harris, owner of several village shops, recently chose to downsize and put all her bakery goods into one place a few storefronts away.

“In order to make the most of business during these challenging times, we want to use the space to generate more income,” she said. “We decided to combine our pies and donuts into one.”

Lisa Harris at her shop. Photo from Lisa Harris

Her first shop, East Main & Main, opened in June 2017. Known for their extensive menu of fun, creative and over-the-top homemade donuts, the entrepreneur opened up Torte Jeff Pie Co. just a block away on East Main Street in the Village of Port Jefferson two years later. 

There, she sells both sweet and savory pies, along with local, small batched grocery items.

“It’s been working really well,” she said. “If we run out of donuts, at least we have other stuff in the shop.”

To try and eliminate the rent, she decided to relocate the donut shop and put all her baked goods into one basket — or store.

For the last month, she moved her donut case into the pie shop, showcasing a few selections just for the weekend. 

And everything is made from scratch, around the corner at her third location, Prohibition Kitchen located on Main Street. All the other items for sale come from local merchants.

“We wanted to become more of that one-stop gourmet shop,” she said. “Torte Jeff is a mini gourmet grocery and we want to be as supportive of small businesses as possible.” 

For now, the East Main & Main donuts are only available at the pie shop Fridays through Sundays. They offer 10 different varieties and two specials that change every day. She said that if customers come to the store at 10 a.m., the hand-filled donuts are still warm — that’s how fresh they are.

And on top of the homemade pies, donuts and dinners available at

Inside Torte Jeff Pie Co. Photo by Julianne Mosher

Harris’ businesses, she also just launched a new custom-blended ice cream that incorporates their baked goods, sold in pints.

She said that if the ice cream line takes off, customers can expect more flavors down the road. Currently on the shelves is Billionaire Banana Pudding Ice Cream — homemade vanilla ice cream with the shop’s banana pudding, fudge brownies and caramel. 

When asked why people should stop into Torte Jeff, Harris responded with, “Pie not?”

“We’ve been so fortunate during the past year from the community’s support for small business,” she added. “There’s so much love that goes into everything we make, and I think everyone needs a little extra bit love — especially now.”

Torte Jeff Pie Co. is open Thursday and Friday noon to 5 p.m. and weekends from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

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Kyle Spillane with three students during one of his past trips to Kenya. Photo from Kyle Spillane

By Julianne Mosher

An initiative built a school for kids in Kenya, and now they need a way to get there.

Kyle Spillane, a graduate of Shoreham-Wading River High School and board member of the local nonprofit Hope Children’s Fund, recently set up a GoFundMe fundraiser online to buy a minibus to safely get Kenyan students to school.

“It has the potential to save lives,” he said. 

Incorporated in 2003, Hope Children’s Fund is a New York State licensed 501(c)(3) that provides for the physical and emotional needs of some of the most vulnerable AIDS-affected children who had been living on the streets of Meru, Kenya.

With the goal to provide food, clothing, shelter and medical care to enable children to be enrolled in local schools, the Jerusha Mwiraria Hope Children’s Home was built in 2005, taking in children that are HIV affected or who come from tragic backgrounds with families who can no longer care for them. 

According to Spillane, two of the group’s kids unfortunately — and tragically — lost their lives while walking home from school, due to the dangerous surrounding area. Their names were Glory and Michell.

“We wanted to fund a vehicle to transport our kids and doctors to and from the school,” he said. “We have never had a vehicle, and it’s been very costly for us to rent taxis and buses for them.”

Photo from Kyle Spillane

Over the years, the organization lacked a vehicle to transport the children to and from their regular activities of attending school, shopping for food and supplies for the home, and visiting medical providers. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, public transportation is no longer the safest option for the group’s immune-compromised children, who regularly travel to the doctor. 

Spillane said the GoFundMe, called A Vehicle for Hope, which was posted early last month has raised more than $4,600 to date. The total cost for a 16-seater minibus, from a Toyota dealership in Kenya, will cost $42,000. They have received a $10,000 grant from World Orphan Fund and received a partnership from an anonymous donor who has offered to match the first $5,000. 

“We just got over 50% of our goal,” he said.

The 26-year-old Shoreham resident found out about the Setauket-based organization through the Global Awareness Club at Shoreham-Wading River High School. Since becoming a part of it, he has been to Kenya four times, returning more recently in 2017 and 2019. 

“This is an organization I hold close to me,” he said. “They have really grown to be what I consider my family, and I wouldn’t still be interested if I didn’t believe in those children. The amount of growth I’ve seen them go through is amazing.”

Hope Children’s Fund is a completely volunteer-based nonprofit.

“The education is what they really want,” he said about the students. “It’s incredible — these students are coming from nothing and are becoming doctors. They are not taking anything for granted.”

Spillane is asking the community to donate and help keep these students safe. 

“This GoFundMe will support and provide protection to some of the brightest youth minds, who are also some of the most vulnerable AIDS-affected children in Meru, Kenya,” he said. 

To donate, visit the GoFundMe here.

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Photo from Jeff Cobb

A longtime Port Jefferson Station resident, who loved and valued her community, is going to be missed.

Nancy J. Cobb was born in the Bronx to parents Joseph and Elsie Pandolfo. She then moved to Suffolk County, where for 55 years she lived in the same house in Port Jefferson Station, keeping busy with many different roles.

“She was very active in the local community,” said her son Jeff who now lives in Florida. “I have received tons of letters and cards since she passed — I knew that she impacted lives, but I didn’t understand how many people she touched.”

Cobb said his mother, who passed away at age 82 on Dec. 10, 2020, was “a bundle of energy.”

While he and his brother, Ken now of East Setauket, were growing up, he said that she decided to go back to school to become a teacher. 

Cobb started at Suffolk County Community College, while raising two sons, and then earned a teaching certificate and master’s degree at Stony Brook University.

“She’s definitely my hero,” he said. “She raised two young boys and had to figure out how to make a living. She established a career in the process, and wound up having a great life.”

Cobb took a job teaching both second and third grades at Clinton Avenue Elementary in the Comsewogue School District, and when school wasn’t in session, she’d host foreign exchange students in her home.

“She hosted young women from all over the world; Italy, Spain and Japan,” he said. “She maintained relationships with those girls up until the end. She was active in all their lives, and even went to visit them.”

He added that “they would call her their second mom.”

Cobb was also an avid member of the Christ Church Episcopal on Barnham Avenue, where she also taught Sunday school for many years.

On top of being an educator, Cobb loved playing tennis. For 30 years, she would play on the courts at the Port Jefferson Country Club.

She supported the local arts, often volunteering with Theatre Three and with the Comsewogue Library. She also was a member of the Port Jefferson Station Civic Association.

“She put a lot into those 82 years than most people do in half their lives,” her son said, adding that she loved to travel, she loved her house, her backyard and tending to her garden. “She had a tremendous number of friends.”

But there were five things she loved more than anything — her grandchildren; Alaina, Joseph, KJ, Kasey and Cody.

“She loved her family, she loved spending time with them and loved hearing about what they all do,” he said. “She was a lot of fun to be around. We always just had a lot of fun.”

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Phil O’Brien (left) and his brother Patrick show off their apperal company, Anchor East, with their slogan,’No suits, just sand.’ Photo by Julianne Mosher

Two Port Jefferson Station brothers used quarantine to create something special — a new clothing brand they’re calling Anchor East.

Phil and Patrick O’Brien are finalizing the unisex T-shirt, hoodie and hat brand that could create a community of people who love Long Island, by aligning their platform with several causes.

Photo by Julianne Mosher

Born and raised in Port Jeff Station, the family became integrated in the community, also owning O’Brien Insurance Agency on Main Street in the village. Phil, now an insurance agent, works out of the offices that his father started up there nearly 15 years ago. 

When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit in March, he was at home with a lot of free time. 

Like many throughout the COVID crisis, he decided to start dabbling in a hobby — graphic design.

He began throwing around ideas with his brother about things he always wanted to accomplish — one of them being to create an apparel brand.

“I wanted to make something that was a very local thing that all the locals know about,” he said. 

His brother, Patrick, got let go from his employer at the same time, so that’s when the two decided they could “make something good out of a bad situation.” They called Anchor East their passion project.

“We’ve always wanted to work together and now it was almost like we had a clean slate,” Phil said. “The way that everything came together was just so organic. He’s my best friend and having the opportunity to work together, while also giving back, is important to both of us.” 

It isn’t about making money, Phil said. They are choosing to give back to two different groups from the proceeds of their sales. 

Photo by Julianne Mosher

Growing up, Patrick was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, so he knew that he’d want to donate to diabetes associations and research. 

“My entire life, the things that were important to me were the companies that would donate or do something in return, which back then obviously, wasn’t many,” he said. “So, us being able to create a company to do that for me and my story was crucial.”

But their charity doesn’t stop there. Both brothers grew up on the water, and are raising their kids there, too. They said they want Anchor East to become a movement, where people in the community can come together and clean up local beaches — like Pirate’s Cove, which they frequent with their family.

“We have this local company now that people can see,” Phil said. “We’re here to help and we want to give back. We want to clean up the local beaches because this is our home.”

They said they’d like for their beach cleanups to become an annual and well-known event every summer. They’re also hoping to open up a storefront for the brand Down Port. 

“I think that’s really important to us,” Phil said. “Being a part of the community, specifically Port Jeff, where we were born and raised.”

Patrick now lives in Coram. Phil is raising his family in Port Jeff Station, and his wife is a teacher at Port Jefferson high school. 

Photo by Julianne Mosher

“Between the beach cleanups and the diabetes associations that we want to work with, I think that we have something really special, and it’s something that we’ve talked about that we would love to give to our children one day,” Phil said. “We want them to see how important it is to give back when you’re in a position to do so.”

Patrick said that since they began the project early in quarantine, they haven’t stopped planning. 

“Doing something like this with my brother, someone who I trust and love more than anything in the world, with the mission that we have was an explosion,” he said. “We haven’t stopped since March.”

Their planning for Anchor East was full-speed ahead in July, when the duo spent the summer working on different designs and logos. On Jan. 18, they launched their social media accounts, teasing what merchandise would soon be released.

The brand’s website is now being finalized. Anchor East is expected to have a spring opening. 

“Showing people that we care, we want to clean up our beaches, take a step forward to make a difference, and to be able to give back to my disease which hundreds of thousands of people around the world are dealing with,” Patrick said, “We want to show them this is our mission and we’re not doing this for a paycheck. We’re doing it for the benefit of Long Island.”

Anchor East will be launching soon, but for now you can keep an eye out on their brand by following them on Instagram @AnchorEast or on Facebook.

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County Steve Bellone announced Suffolk County's third mass vaccination site. Photo by Andrew Zucker

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D) joined other elected officials on Wednesday, Feb. 17, at Suffolk County Community College’s Selden campus to announce its new vaccine site.

The campus will be home to Suffolk County’s third mass vaccination site, and will administer some of the nearly 8,000 vaccines that were delivered to the state earlier this week. 

“The college is uniquely situated for this effort,” Bellone said. “These campuses are strategically located throughout the county on the west end, east end, and now in the middle of the county with the Selden campus.”

He added the Selden campus will focus on vaccinating those with comorbidities, municipal employees and Northwell Health employees. 

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Doug Jansson spent 63 days away from his family, battling and almost dying from COVID-19. Photo by Julianne Mosher

Doug Jansson finally got to spend Christmas with his family — nearly two months after the holiday.

Friends and family gathered outside St. Charles Hospital to cheer Doug on. Photo by Julianne Mosher

On Dec. 12,  the 42-year-old pastor was brought into Stony Brook University Hospital after he and the rest of his family contracted COVID-19 in late November. He was intubated in the Intensive Care Unit on Christmas Eve, and placed on life support where it was thought he wasn’t going to make it.

“I think I remember him being sick only a handful of times in the 20 years we’ve been married,” his wife, Kelly, said back in January. “When we got COVID, he was worried about me — nobody was worried about him getting hit this hard.”

But now, the lead pastor of Living World Church in Hauppauge is back home in Smithtown after 63 days.

On Feb. 12, the father of three was wheeled out of St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson, where he was undergoing rehabilitation for nine days, since being discharged from Stony Brook on Feb. 3. Jansson said he was able to get up and walk out because of prayer. 

Early on in the pandemic, Jansson organized prayer parades with his church, often visiting local hospitals to support essential workers and victims of the virus. 

Doug embraces his family after two long months apart. Photo by Julianne Mosher

But then he became ill, himself. After being in the ICU for not even two days, he began complaining of severe pain. A CT scan revealed a pleural effusion (fluid in the chest), a secondary pneumonia, pleurisy and a small pneumothorax (air in the chest). His right lung collapsed.

That’s when his wife knew she had to share his story. Kelly logged into his Facebook account and began updating his friends, family and followers of his progress. Some days were better than others, but one thing she kept asking of everyone was to keep praying. 

Kelly said she began receiving messages from people all over the world, telling her they were keeping Doug in their thoughts and prayers. Now he’s finally home.

Doug embraced by his wife, Kelly, while hospital workers cheer on. Photo by Julianne Mosher

Feb. 12 was always a special day for the couple, Kelly said outside St. Charles Hospital the day of his release. Twenty-one years ago, on the same date, he proposed to her. 

And to celebrate his release, nearly 100 people gathered outside with balloons, signs and streamers to cheer the pastor on as he got in his car, ready to go home.  

“I’m thankful that we’re here and so grateful,” Doug said before he addressed the crowd outside. “I know that God has set it up to be just a miracle and something that we can’t express that we know we don’t deserve. But he’s giving, so we’re really thankful.”

When asked how this whole experience made him feel, his voice broke. 

“I would say two words keep coming to mind when people ask me that,” he said. “One is painful. It’s been very difficult, fighting through this and being away from my family. But the other word is, in a weird way beautiful, because I’ve gotten to see doctors and nurses and health care people in a different light and really get to know them.”

He said the essential workers have been there for him and his family. 

“I also feel like God’s put me through this to try to be there for them, to encourage him, pray for and bless them,” he added. “I know that, for whatever reason, this story has impacted people and, you know, that makes going through it worth it because I know people are being drawn to Jesus.”

The family pet, Chewy, was happy to see his dad again. Photo from Kelly Jansson

Nearly a week home, one of his first requests, he said, was to get a slice of pizza from Ciro’s in Smithtown. And on his way home, the pizzeria donated two large pies to the family to celebrate his homecoming. 

The family was finally able to celebrate Christmas, and their dog, Chewy, was so happy to see his dad again.

“He’s doing really well,” Kelly said on Feb. 15 in a phone interview. “He’s working so hard on getting stronger. There’s still a way to go, but we will help him get there.”

And Doug said his couldn’t have done it without the support from his family, church, faith and the prayers from strangers. 

“I am so grateful to God to be home with my family after all this time,” he said. “We are enjoying every second of it.”

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Stu Vincent was named by the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce as Member of the Year. Photo from Stu Vincent

Someone who’s usually behind the scenes within the community finally has his chance to be spotlighted. 

Stuart Vincent, who is the director of public affairs and public relations at Mather Hospital, was recently recognized by the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce as the chamber’s Member of the Year. 

Vincent, who has been at Mather for 10 years, worked in public affairs at Hofstra University and Newsday, where he started as a reporter. 

As part of his responsibilities of working at the hospital, he was asked to sit on the chamber’s board about eight years ago. While sitting as vice president, he began helping out with different events the chamber, village and BID hosted, including chairing the Health & Wellness Fest over the last four years. 

Photo from Stu Vincent

“Just like the other members of the chamber, I help out at different events,” he said. “So, I was very surprised when Barbara told me I was being recognized.”

Barbara Ransome, director of operations at the chamber, said the award was well-deserved.

“It is always nice to honor one of our own,” she said. “Stu’s loyalty to our chamber has been self-evident, as actions always speak louder than words.”

Vincent said the award goes to someone who has been with the chamber every year, who contributes to the chamber and promotes the Village of Port Jefferson. 

And one of his favorite events is the Health & Wellness Fest, which was unfortunately canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

A former resident of Sound Beach, Vincent now resides in Brentwood. Although the commute to the North Shore may be a little long, he said it’s worth it.

“The Port Jefferson Chamber is by far the most active chamber around here,” he said. “Every year we come up with something new … We do a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff, and basically help the promote the business districts.”

“The chamber is lucky to have such a dedicated director who has answered the call of selfless volunteerism,” Ransome added. “We pay tribute and gratitude for his steadfast support.”

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