Good News: Students Score Awards; New Flag Unfurled

As a local news organization, Patch covers stories of all kinds, from heartbreaking tragedies to nitty-gritty breakdowns of government and school district issues. But some stories are simply inspiring, often showing that at the heart of our communities is a desire to do good. Here are some of the touching headlines from the past seven days.

As part of the AMP-1 basketball fundraiser held earlier this year, Rocky Point High School raised $3,000 to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy. To make sure their donation benefited residents who were affected by the storm, the school elected to make the donation to Habitat for Humanity, a nonprofit that has restored and built homes for local victims of the hurricane.

Winning Essays Earn Students Scholarships

Rocky Point High School junior Joseph Russo and senior Serafina Tiranno-Cimisi entered the FealGood organization’s essay competition and were announced as winners this June. The students, who penned essays about the significance of Sept. 11 and the important reasons why it should be remembered were each given a $1,000 scholarship from the foundation.

Legis. John M. Kennedy, Jr., Minority Leader of the Suffolk County Legislature joined with Forest Brook Elementary School in Hauppauge, in honoring United States Marine Corps Corporal Greg Caron, in a ceremony held June 9.

Caron was injured in the line of duty while serving in Afghanistan searching known Taliban compounds. Caron lost both of his legs and the use of his right arm when an IED exploded while he was patrolling compounds in Afghanistan.

The Stars and Stripes will proudly hang again just in time for graduation and Flag Day after a flag dedication was given at Kings Park High School on Wednesday.

This flag replaces the one that was stolen back in September by two thieves who were captured on video, but never caught by police.

The theft was too much for the scouts of Kings Park Pack 75 to bear. The group held a car wash a few months later to raise funds to buy a new flag and even had some left over to donate to a local food pantry.