Kids & Family

Good News: Sports Heroes Across the Region

Some stories put a smile on your face. Here's our wrap-up from around northern Suffolk and the East End.

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.

Slugger Signs Contract with Washington Nationals

A Hauppauge all-star baseball player will get his shot to play in the national leagues.

Matt Reistetter signed a free-agent contract with the Washington Nationals on July 17. Under the contract, the Nationals will pay for his last year of college at Hofstra University and give him a $10,000 signing bonus.

Swimmer Heads to Olympic Trials

A Smithtown East varsity swimmer recently broke two metropolitan swim records and qualified for the Olympic trials.

Benjamin Cono, 16, broke the records swimming for Team Suffolk at the Speedo Super Sectionals held last week in Buffalo, NY. Cono took first-place in the 100-meter breaststroke clocking a 1:04:39 and second in the 200-meter breaststroke with a time of 2:20:18.

Cono, one of the captains for the school team has represented Smithtown East at the state championships and placed fourth this past March in the 100-yard breaststroke.

Football Team's 'Good Luck Charm' is Young Cancer Survivor

For the past four years, Joe Feminella has acted as a team captain of the Stony Brook University football team. According to the YouTube video above, Feminella, 14, is a nine-year survivor of brain cancer, a disease he was diagnosed with at the age of 5. He's at every game, has jerseys and other Seawolves gear, rushes the field before each game and has even has traveled with the team.

Dunk a Cop Makes a Splash in Commack

Kids, and kids at heart, took their best shot Tuesday night to dunk a Suffolk County Police Officer in a tank of water during Commack's National Night Out Against Crime at the Target parking lot on Veteran's Memorial Highway.

Families, police officers, firefighters and community organizations came out to join in the fun and foster relationships between the public and law enforcement.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here