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BY ASSOCIATED PRESS

A New York man is laying claim to the record for most consecutive hours playing golf — a 35-hour stint on a course on Long Island that began early Sunday evening and ended early Tuesday morning.

Kelechi Ezihie initially planned to play 24 hours to set a Guinness World Record, only to learn hours into his effort that a British golfer had played for 32 straight hours on a course in Norway at the end of May. His sister had called him after seeing the 32-hour record while searching the internet, he said.

Surprised but determined, he plodded on through rain, fatigue and drenched and aching feet to outlast the Brit, Isaac Rowlands.

“I feel proud to be able to say I am a world champion,” he said. “This is an opportunity that not many people have. It’s definitely something I will definitely be telling my kids and my grandkids moving forward in the future.”

Armed with friends, flashlights and glow-in-the-dark golf balls, the 27-year-old Ezihie teed off at Huntington Crescent Club at about 6:30 p.m. on Sunday and sank his last putt shortly after 5:30 a.m. Tuesday — playing the 18 holes seven times for a total of 126 holes, he said.

Along the way, friends took video of the entire outing and other people served as witnesses so Guinness could verify the record, he said. He was allowed a five-minute break per hour, under Guinness rules, and ended up taking 20-minute breaks at the end of each round while still following the rules.

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Kylie Galloway, a spokesperson for London-based Guinness, said it takes 12 to 15 weeks for specialists with the organization to review evidence and declare whether a record has been set. He said no one currently holds the record for longest golf marathon, and anyone who applies must have played at least 24 hours.

Ezihie, an assistant manager at an organization that serves people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism, said he wanted to set the record to promote diversity in golf.

“People become intimidated when they hear about golf and they think it’s for the wealthy,” he said in a phone interview Wednesday. “I see how much golf has taught me, and I just believe that golf is a game that everybody should be able to get a chance to play and they could definitely learn life lessons from this game.”

Ezihie, who has been playing golf for only two and a half years, also promotes golf locally and is trying to raise funds to build a golf center in Imo State in Nigeria, where he is from, to build interest in the sport among children. He has lived in the U.S. since 2008.

Near the end of his golf marathon in Tuesday’s early hours, Ezihie said his feet were really hurting.

“I was willing to play ’til the wheels fell off, and I did just that. My legs gave up on me and I was limping almost through the whole round,” he said, adding “I enjoyed every round.”

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HUNTINGTON, NY — Friends of Oheka announced this year’s Garden Party fundraiser at Oheka Castle, as well as the winners of the Otto Kahn Award.

The party is scheduled for 5 to 8 p.m. June 11, rain or shine.

Tickets to this year’s Garden Party are available online. The ticket price includes hors d’oeuvres, a buffet dinner, wine, dessert and entertainment. There will also be raffle baskets. Traditional Gatsby-style attire is always welcome. Prizes will be awarded for the best costumes.

Seven talented high school seniors from the Town of Huntington will receive $3K each and will perform or have their work shown at this year’s annual Garden Party on Wednesday, June 11 at Oheka Castle.

The following deserving students are pursuing their love of the arts as they begin their college education this fall:

Find out what's happening in Huntingtonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

"Additionally, we are proud to announce this year’s posthumous honoree, Ellen Schaffer, who was ourbeloved and longtime Friends of OHEKA president," Friends of Oheka wrote. "For the first time ever, we have created the Ellen Schaffer Civic Leadership Memorial Scholarship to honor her memory and the outstanding work she did for many years in her community — The Town of Huntington."

This year’s winners, Kate Adams and Julia Dean from Walt Whitman High School, "exemplify the qualities that Ellen stood for," according to Friends of Oheka.

To date, Friends of Oheka has raised more than $300K for high school seniors in the Town ofHuntington who are pursuing a college education in the arts.

Friends of OHEKA is a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection, preservation and public awareness of OHEKA castle, a monument to a bygone era and a testament to Huntington’s commitment to historic preservation.

Update: We have obtained this video of men being arrested in the parking lot of the CVS on Pulaski Road in Huntington Station. We have added this video because a resident disputed our report that the enforcement was by ICE, targeting immigrants. While we haven’t seen photos of agents in ICE insignia, around the country, agents from a wide variety of organizations are particpating in immigration arrests.

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The Huntington Manor Fire Department said Friday that it had no prior warning that federal agents would use their parking lot to set up for immigration enforcement and that it was not a part of the effort.

The department posted this statement Friday afternoon on its website:

The Board of Fire Commissioners of the Huntington Manor Fire District is aware of recent social media posts concerning the presence of individuals identified as ICE agents at Huntington Manor Fire Department Headquarters.

We wish to clarify that law enforcement vehicles were observed parked at our facility. As a public building, the Huntington Manor Fire District permits public agencies, including law enforcement, to utilize our parking lot when necessary. We were not contacted by the law enforcement agencies that used our parking lot.

The Huntington Manor Fire District was not involved in any law enforcement activity, nor do we have knowledge of the purpose behind their presence. The Huntington Manor Fire District is not a law enforcement agency.

Any inquiries regarding the actions or presence of law enforcement agencies at our location should be directed to the appropriate law enforcement agency for comment.

We remain committed to serving our community with transparency and respect for all residents.”

Social media began buzzing early Friday morning with warnings that Immigration and Custom Enforcement agents were planning raids in Huntington Station to detain undocumented immigrants. Soon after, residents posting photos of agents in FBI uniforms in the driveway in front of the HMFD lot on New York Avenue. Some posted photos of agents wearing FBI uniforms at the fire department headquarters on New York Avenue in Huntington Station. One reader suggested to HuntingtonNow that it was interfering in an FBI effort that might include trying to arrest murderers and demanded that we take down the then hours-old photo.

ICE did not respond to a request for information about actions in Huntington. Some residents reported seeing men taken into custody near the CVS store at the Five Corners intersection. Several readers contacted HuntingtonNow and political officials to ask what was going on and to ask why the fire department was involved.

Suffolk Legislator Rebecca Sanin said, “My phone was ringing off the hook today from countless community members and leaders concerned about ICE raids taking place throughout neighborhoods in Huntington and Islip. While I do not have jurisdiction over federal law enforcement, I spent the day working to understand the situation including seeking answers from folks at every level of government. I know from first-hand experience that the best way to protect our community is through open communication, transparency and trust, and I am hopeful that more information will be forthcoming. While I am still working to understand all of the details and facts, I am heartened by the number of engaged community members who care deeply about the safety, dignity, and well-being of our community and who contacted me and others.”

Pastor Danny Rivera of the Huntington Assembly of God church in Huntington Station, wrote in part, “

Dear Huntington Station community, Today has been a difficult day for our community. It’s a day that adds to the burdens that many have already been carrying for the past few months. As some may already know, ICE was active in our community today.. Although I do not want to contribute to the rumors, I can confirm that we have video and images that show his presence and arrests have been made.

People with worn or tattered American flags can drop them off this week for a proper disposal.

SOUTH HUNTINGTON, NY — People who own an American flag that is tattered, torn or worn out can bring it into Stimson Middle School for a respectful sendoff, the South Huntington School District announced as part of its Memorial Day observation.

Now through Friday, Stimson is holding an American Flag Disposal Drive. The project is part of the middle school’s 100th anniversary celebration of the South Huntington School District and aims to continue Stimson’s year of community service and civic involvement.

A special collection box was created for the drive and has been placed in Stimson’s front entrance lobby by the main office. Assistant Principal James Tomeo proposed the idea.

"I bought a new flag for my house. And I have two old flags. I didn't know what to do with them," Tomeo said in a news release.

Teachers Keith Gunsel and Matthew Collins teamed up to construct the box with the help of students in Stimson’s Life Skills Vocational Program (LSVP). It was another skill for the LSVP students to learn as they were able to safely use palm sanders to prepare the wood surface for staining. The Life Skills students, who have a variety of challenges such as cognitive impairments, autism or physical conditions, take classes in academic subjects like math, English, and social studies at Stimson everyday while also learning practical and social skills that will help them live independently.

Find out what's happening in Huntingtonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Collins then had his digital technology students, who have been learning how to create Canva templates, work on creating a design for the front of the collection box. The winning design was the work of 7th grader Brady O'Connor.

Gunsel was proud to get involved with the project. He is a retired Navy Master Chief Operations Specialist and a leader with Scouting America Troop 218. After the old or damaged flags are collected, Gunsel and his troop will properly retire the flags as they have on previous scouting trips, which usually involves burning the flags and then burying the ashes.

Anyone from the community is invited to drop off their worn flag for disposal. Security and/or reception in the front vestibule will be able to collect the flag and drop it in the collection box. Students can also bring flags in with them for drop off.

Stimson Middle School is located at 401 Oakwood Road, Huntington Station.

Photo credit: Bill Kelly

On May 13, Lake Street Dive stepped into the spotlight at Huntington, N.Y.’s The Paramount for the second performance of their 2025 U.S. tour. After a whirlwind 2024 that brought their landmark eighth album Good Together and their longest tour to date, Boston’s premier indie-rock quintet shows no signs of slowing down, and their Tuesday show was a testament to to their sustained energy.

Lake Street Dive opened their electrifying 22-track set with the title track from their last full-length, then tore through eight of the 11 songs on that record. Outside those new entries, they lit up longtime favorites like “Hypothetical,” “Baby, Don’t Leave Me Alone With My Thoughts,” “Bad Self Portraits” and “Good Kisser,” as well as covers of Shania Twain’s “You’re Still the One,” Hall & Oates’ “Rich Girl” and an acoustic treatment of The Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back.” On the whole, the evening was an infectious expression of the “joyful rebellion” that Lake Street Dive have sought to inspire in their current era.

“There’s a lot to be angry about in the world right now, a lot of pain and rage and divisiveness, but it isn’t sustainable to constantly live in that anger – you need something else to keep you going,” drummer Mike Calabrese expressed on the group’s bold new outlook. “Joy is a great way to sustain yourself, and we wanted to encourage everyone to stay aware of that. In a way this album is our way of saying, ‘Take your joy very seriously.’”

Get an inside look at Tuesday’s performance in the gallery below, courtesy of photographer Bill Kelly. For more information on Lake Street Dive’s 2025 live itinerary, visit lakestreetdive.com.

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