Northport Journal

09/17/2026

Stunning photography of the East Northport Fire Department’s 9/11 candlelight vigil by Sofia Ossa, a student in Northport High School’s Academy of Media Arts (AOMA) program.

AOMA is a Career and Technical Education (CTE) program designed to prepare students for careers in the creative and media industries. Students can pursue pathways in photography, graphic/digital design, video production and animation while developing both technical skills and professional experience

09/16/2026

There are shows you enjoy. There are shows you appreciate. And then there are shows that leave you sitting in your seat for a few extra minutes after the lights come up, allowing yourself time to come back to reality.

The John W. Engeman Theater’s production of Dear Evan Hansen is one of those shows.

It’s stunning, emotional, uplifting, grounding and, at times, gut-wrenching. It’s also exhausting, in the best possible way. From the opening notes of “Anybody Have a Map?” through the final moments of the show when the stage goes dark on Evan and the cast, there is very little room to look away. The story keeps moving and the music keeps building; the emotions rarely let up. Click through to the article for a full review.

There are shows you enjoy.

09/15/2026

The Great Cow Harbor 10K is Long Island’s largest road race, drawing elite runners from across the country to Northport each year. Serving as a major national championship race, the 10K has a longstanding history of attracting international Olympians and other global competitors.

One family has seen it all.

The Pitfick family has been part of the Cow Harbor Race since its inception in 1977, with many members running it themselves over the years. This year, cousins Chris and Mike Pitfick estimate between 15 and 20 relatives are participating in some capacity, with even the youngest of Pitficks playing a role.

Involving this latest Pitfick generation in the family tradition will hopefully foster a love for running, Chris said, while “cultivating them to take over” one day.

Chris’ father John Pitfick helped found the Northport Running Club in 1977. The group sought to organize a local large-scale race after running other 10Ks, Chris said.

The Great Cow Harbor 10 Kilometer was born that very same year.

As the race rapidly expanded to thousands of participants in the early 1980s, the mass start caused heavy congestion and safety issues on Northport's hilly streets. Inspired by Colorado’s annual BOLDERBoulder 10K, John and company crafted the blueprint for Cow Harbor’s staggered starting line, a system to release runners in timed waves, ensuring better safety and providing runners with a more accurate time.

Based on a runner’s predicted finish time, staggered starts prevent crowding and injury on narrower, residential race courses. “They wanted to keep (the race) growing, so they needed some way to meter people through” safely, Chris said.

Each wave still begins with a shotgun start, giving every runner a chance to “put their foot on the starting line,” he said. “When you have 5,000 people running … That helps people feel like they (have) their own moment.” Click through for the rest of the story.

The Great Cow Harbor 10K is Long Island’s largest road race, drawing elite runners from across the country to Northport each year.

09/12/2026

Communities across Huntington and Northport came together on August 31 to mark the start of National Recovery Month through local events focused on substance use disorder, recovery and overdose awareness.

The Town of Huntington hosted its annual “Huntington Goes Purple” flag-raising event at Town Hall in partnership with the Huntington Opioid and Addiction Task Force. In Northport, AWARE Drug & Alcohol Community Coalition held an International Overdose Awareness Day flag raising and press conference at Northport Village Hall, followed by a candlelight vigil.

National Recovery Month, observed each September, recognizes the millions of people in recovery from substance use disorder and celebrates the importance of prevention, treatment and community support. Throughout the month, purple flags displayed along Larkfield Road, throughout Northport Village Park and in other locations, along with purple lights from Main Street businesses, serve as visible reminders of overdose awareness and recovery.

AWARE Drug & Alcohol Community Coalition

09/11/2026

There is no place that means more to me when it comes to honoring my dad than Northport.

When most people hear the name Daniel Trant, they think of Cantor Fitzgerald. The 104th floor of the North Tower. And September 11th. But Northport knew him before the worst thing that ever happened to him became the first thing people knew about him.

Here, he was Danny.

This is where my parents bought their first home. It’s where they raised three kids, made lifelong friends, and built a life together. Back then, it felt ordinary. We never imagined how extraordinary it would one day feel to us.

My dad played pickup basketball on the court at Bellerose. He got his hair cut at Rockabilly’s. He seemed to know everyone. And somehow, everyone knew him. He was funny. He was loyal. And when something went wrong, he was the person we looked to. Because when Dad was there, life felt less complicated. We felt safe.

Northport knew my dad alive. That is what makes standing here tonight so personal for me.

(Jessica Trant, daughter of Daniel Patrick Trant, was the guest speaker at yesterday’s 9/11 memorial in Northport Village. Click through to read the rest of Jessica's speech.)

Jessica Trant, daughter of Daniel Patrick Trant, was the guest speaker at yesterday’s 9/11 memorial in Northport Village.

09/11/2026

Northport Village Park, September 16, 2001.
Northport Village Park, September 10, 2026.
Never forget.

2001 image copyright Northport Historical Society and Museum.

09/10/2026

New business alert: Northport resident Karen Anzalone is fulfilling a lifelong dream and opening a record store in the former Northport Copy space on Main Street in Northport Village. She is hopeful for a late October opening (think Halloween) and is beyond excited to share her passion for music and the connection it evokes between individuals of all ages with the community. What to expect? Records from the 50s to present day, a couch for hanging and a turnable with an automatic arm for stress-free spinning. Full story to come.

09/10/2026

Services and vigils honoring the lives lost, the heroes who responded and the families who were forever changed on September 11, 2001 will be held in Northport Village (this evening), East Northport (tomorrow) and Huntington (also this evening)

09/09/2026

Northport High School sophomore Parker Reed is honing in on skills he learned as a lifeguard – and the desire to share those skills with his community – for his journey toward Eagle Scout.

As part of the service project required to attain the coveted rank, Reed facilitated an event at the Northport Cow Harbor United (NCHU) Soccer Club last month, at which the club’s young athletes learned about CPR, automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and how that knowledge can save a life.

“Becoming a lifeguard is actually what inspired me to do this project,” Reed said at the August 27 event. “During my lifeguard training, I learned CPR and how to use an AED, and I realized how important these skills are in an emergency.”

A Life Scout in East Northport’s Troop 52, Reed’s ultimate goal is to install an AED and SaveStation at Fifth Avenue Elementary School, where he was once a student.

Click through for the full story and for ways to donate to Reed's project.

Northport High School sophomore Parker Reed is honing in on skills he learned as a lifeguard – and the desire to share those skills with his community – for ...

09/08/2026

Author John Terry, born and raised in Northport, shares a very personal reflection from his youth in our latest Voices column:

My grandmother’s murder was only the second murder to have taken place in the Village of Northport since the town changed its name from Cow Harbor to Northport in 1837. News of her death went through Northport like oats through a cow – it was all anyone could talk about. People were in shock.

Articles were splashed on the front page of the Northport Journal and Newsday. Several radio stations also reported on the horrific family murder in our sleepy seaside village. There was no escaping the staring eyes and the small-town gossip that followed.

Percy Ingerman and his partner Bernie Smith arranged for Pop to be taken back to Kings Park State Hospital instead of going to jail. Bernie would later go before a judge to have my grandfather committed permanently.

Kings Park, as locals often referred to it, opened in 1885 and was one of New York State’s largest psychiatric hospitals.