Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone and Legis. Bill Lindsay along with Gardiner Foundation Board member, Supreme Court Justice (ret) Peter Fox Cohalan and Executive Director Kathryn Curran, Friday announced a $300,000 grant from the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation as part of the groundbreaking ceremony for the LT Michael P. Murphy Navy SEAL Museum and Sea Cadet Training Facility, the first U.S. Navy SEAL Museum in the Northeast.
The ceremony featured a presentation by the Gardiner Foundation, who announced that the museum has been awarded a $300,000 grant and presented the museum trustees with a check. This funding comes on the heels of a Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY) grant from Gov. Andrew Cuomo originally secured by former State Sen. Tom Croci for $400,000.
Maureen Murphy, Gold Star mother of the Navy Seal Museum’s namesake Michael P. Murphy, boarded an excavator to dig the ceremonial first bucket of dirt for the foundation of the museum.

Pictured Left to Right: Museum Board Trustees: Gold Star Brother, John Murphy, Gold Star Father, Mr. Daniel J. Murphy, Gardiner Foundation Board of Trustee, Honorable Peter Fox Cohalan, Gold Star Mother, Maureen Murphy and Kathryn Curran, Foundation Executive Director
Download a copy of the press release here.