Jack & Jill Come to Smith Landing

William Floyd Community Summit has again secured funds for their Beautification Committee. Pat Matthews, Chairwoman of the committee, was able to commission another bronze statue for our community thanks to a grant through Brookhaven Town Councilman Keith Romaine. The Smith Point Peninsula Homeowners Association, members of the Summit, are proud to be part of the effort working with the Beautification Committee to improve our community with projects such as this. The statue, called JACK & JILL, depicts a young boy and girl with a pail of water, and will be placed in the park at Shirley Beach at Smith Landing. In addition to the statue, the Beautification Committee has also supplied bulbs which will be planted in and around the beach area. Smith Point Peninsula Homeowners Assoc. will be planting on November 15th for those who wish to join in to beautify the neighborhood. Just another example of SPPHOA's efforts to keep our neighborhood and our beach beautiful.

Smith Point Homeowners - Back To Work

After a summer meeting hiatus, Smith Point Peninsula Homeowners Association had their fall meeting on Tuesday, September 16th at the Mastic Beach Firehouse. President Vinny Albino brought everyone up to speed on the status of the numerous property complaints that our association has brought to the Town of Brookhaven. If you are having a problem with a neighborhood "eyesore", please send us an email with the address and description of the complaint. (Email: smptpha@aol.com) Each complaint is investigated and addressed and we will succeed at cleaning up our community one property at a time.

Everyone commented on the tremendous success of the Shirley Beach this season. The beach was utilized more than it has been in many years. With vandalism down and picnicking up, its safe to say that we are indeed "Taking care of our own backyard!" So many residents have thanked our association for bringing this park back to the gem it was meant to be. These efforts will be continued throughout the winter months for locals to enjoy.

Mosquitoes were once again a "biting" topic. Suffolk County will be spraying our area over the next few days. If you are having problems with mosquitoes, please contact Vector Control at (631) 852-4270.

Stay tuned to our website for our upcoming events and for happenings in the Smith Point area.

Hurricane Season

As we enter this second weekend in September, our news channels are flooded (no pun intended) with warnings and images of Hurricane Ike bearing down on Texas. With an expected flood wall exceeding 20 feet, residents there were strongly advised to evacuate or face "certain death". Amazingly, some people chose not to evacuate. We should keep them in our prayers. Approximately 100 years ago, this same Texas area was destroyed by a hurricane with tens of thousands of people killed. Seventy years ago, the Mastic-Shirley community faced that same devastation. So as we watch Hurricane Ike this weekend, we should remember - "There but for the grace of God, go I." Our community is as vulnerable as New Orleans or Galveston. Your family should have their own evacuation plan in place. Keep your valuables, including insurance policies, in an easily accessible place. Have a first aid kit, batteries, working flashlights, portable radio, canned goods and bottled water stored somewhere safe and easy to get to. Don't wait for the devastation to hit - take a page out of the Boy Scout manual - BE PREPARED!

Labor Day Weekend - Summer's Swan Song

And what a beautiful summer it was at Smith Point. Nearly every weekend was picture perfect. The beaches were clean and vibrant with activity. The waterways were busy with boaters, fishermen and jetskiers. So much summer fun and all of it right in our backyard. I hope everyone was able to spend a little time outdoors over the past few weeks. But remember. Its not over folks. There are beautiful days yet to come. Indian summer is truly a fabulous time of year at Smith Point. The beaches are not quite deserted, and still available for us to enjoy. Take advantage of those lovely warm days that pop up, even as late as November. Visit Smith Point Beach, or Shirley Beach at Smith Landing. It's a little slice of paradise.

National Night Out

On Tuesday, August 5th, the William Floyd Community Summit will be hosting National Night Out on the grounds of the Wm Floyd High School sports fields. National Night Out is celebrated all across the country on the same evening. Its purpose is to promote safe neighborhoods and better community-police relations. It was started 25 years ago to fight back against crime in communities and is still going strong.

This is a FREE event, with food, beverages, fun and games for kids, and a chance to meet with your friends and neighbors and various community organizations, and Town and County officials. Representatives from the Suffolk County Police Department and the Sheriff's Department will be there. So come on out to celebrate a National Night Out Against Crime. You will have the opportunity to obtain information as well as take the family out for some food and fun. And best of all............IT'S FREE!

Smith Point: A Charitable Community

The Smith Point community has been the home of charitable events for many years now. There is the Bay Area Bridge 5K Run supporting the Community Library's Family Literacy Project and the LI2Day Walk Against Breast Cancer. These events have been generously hosted and supported by our neighborhoods. Recently members of the community were invited to a meeting to discuss having another fireworks show and festival here. In spite of the traffic and other problems that go along with these events, the Smith Point community was in favor of holding this event here. Unfortunately, we've recently learned that this event will not be held at Smith Point County Park.

This past weekend, however, the LI2Day Walk Against Breast Cancer did take place. The event started early Saturday morning at Smith Point County Park with more than 400 walkers making the trek through our community, walking all the way to Southaven Park, where they stopped for lunch, and then continuing on to Cathedral Pines County Park. On Sunday morning, the walkers hit the trail back to Smith Point Marina, for a celebratory lunch and a Survivor's March over the bridge to Smith Point County Park. Along the way, the walkers were cheered on by residents from their homes, from their cars and at rest stops along the trail. The Mastic, Shirley and Mastic Beach Fire Depts. and Ambulance Companies patrolled the route to assist the walkers. Despite the terrible heat, these walkers did not give up and our own Mastic Beach Fire Dept. was on hand to greet them at the Marina with a cool firehose shower celebrating their return.

On September 13th, our community will host the Bay Area Bridge 5K Run. More than 300 runners will participate in support of the Family Literacy Project at the Mastics-Shirley-Moriches Community Library. And once again, our community will be there to support another wonderful cause.

Who Needs Key West, Fla......We Have Shirley Beach at Smith Landing!

If you've ever been to Key West, you may know about the nightly ritual of gathering in the square to watch their most fabulous sunset. There are food vendors and various performers for the crowds to enjoy while waiting for the golden orb to turn amber, then orange until it finally drops below the horizon. When the weather cooperates, it is a magnificent site to behold.

The same holds true for Shirley Beach at Smith Landing, the only west-facing, south shore beach in Suffolk County. On any given night, local residents arrive at the beach after dinner, sometimes bringing a cup of tea or coffee, and watch as the warmth of day leaves us for a star filled night sky. During the day the park is frequented by people all year long. From picnicing to windsurfing, young and old alike find enjoyment from this little tract of land left to us by Walter T. Shirley. On Saturday morning, while walking around the park, I spotted a mother duck with five little ducklings following her from the grass to the sand, then walking along the waters edge. I stood and watched as one by one they following their mom as she stepped into the water and swam out into the bay. Shirley Beach truly is a gem in our community.

Last weekend, Smith Point Peninsula Homeowners Association hosted a "Key West Night" at Shirley Beach at Smith Landing. There were families, barbeque, salads, desserts, music and the setting sun. The windy conditions didn't stop the children from gathering around the pinata or playing by the shoreline. Members conversed, and especially enjoyed hearing tales from residents who have lived in the community for more than 30 years. We looked at photos from a time before any homes were built along the shore, when a ferry carried you from the dock at Smith Landing across the bay to Smith Point Beach, when moms spent their entire summers sitting in the sand watching their children play in the water. A simpler time when our community really was a sleepy little town. This lovely little neighborhood beach shows us that we can still enjoy a little bit of that simplicity and it reminds us why we moved here in the first place.