News Nearby: Commack Eateries Take ‘Tremendous’ Hit from Sandy

Miller Place-Rocky Point

Rocky Point Marching Band's Performance to be Featured on MSG Varsity

The Rocky Point marching band recently took part in the 50th Annual Newsday Marching Band Festival and their performance will be featured in MSG Varsity's special The Marching Bands, which is set to air on Thanksgiving day.
Held each October at Hofstra University, the three-day Newsday Marching Band Festival is an annual exhibition presenting some of Long Island’s most talented high school marching bands.

Port Jefferson

Federal agency denies village's complaint against National Grid over business practices that keep energy prices on Long Island artificially high.

Commack

Commack Eateries Take ‘Tremendous’ Hit from Sandy

More than three weeks after Hurricane Sandy, power has been restored to most of Commack's residents and businesses. While residents are attempted to resume life as usual, many local restaurants and eateries are trying to overcome what some described as 'tremendous' blow.

"We lost all the food we had in refrigeration, we lost all of our business for four days" said Peter Georgatos, owner of Premier Diner.

Hauppauge

Wall Catches Fire in Hidden Ponds Home

Firefighters from the Smithtown, Hauppauge and Nesconset fire departments rushed to extinguish a house fire in the Hidden Ponds gated community Wednesday morning.

Kings Park

National Grid Workers Set Up Camp at State Park

A mini-city of tents, showers, bathroom and dining facilities has been erected for work weary out-of-state crews at Sunken Meadow State Park.

The camp is one of nine around Long Island set up to feed and house restoration workers. According to Wendy Ladd, spokeswoman for National Grid, there are 350 restoration workers housed at the camp, which is run by National Grid.

Three Village

Christiane Amanpour Helps Stony Brook Students Achieve Fundraising Goal

Veteran foreign correspondent Christiane Amanpour has been a supporter of Stony Brook's Marie Colvin Center for International Journalism since its inception, according to professor Ilana Ozernoy.

"She lent her name to a couple of things that we did," Ozernoy said. "She’s been pretty much involved from the beginning."

Now, Amanpour has donated more than $9,500 to help students in the center's Journalism Without Walls program travel to Kenya in January. The program aims to give students hands-on experience as foreign correspondents as well as make them more well-rounded as domestic journalists.

Patch first reported on the students' Kickstarter campaign in October, when just over $2,000 had been raised towards the goal of $16,800. Now, the students have surpassed their goal, which will allow more students to travel for the program.