Body of Missing Northport Resident Found

The body of Northport resident Freddy Piercey, 68, was discovered in Northport Harbor on Saturday morning alongside Seymore's Boat Yard, according to sources.

Piercey had been missing since Dec. 6 when he was last seen leaving Gunther's Pub on Main Street around 7 p.m. Police have not yet confirmed the details of the incident, nor determined a cause of death.

Easily identifiable by his long gray hair and beard, Piercey lived was a lifelong Northporter who knew local legends Jack Kerouac and Stanley Twardowicz firsthand. 

Piercey served in the Army and was a well-respected employee of Davis Aircraft for 15 years before becoming homeless. He spent the later part of his life dependent on the kindness of friends, who never begrudged him a warm bed or a shot of his favorite Applejack. 

"Freddy was always a survivor," said Richard Toussaint, a fiend of Piercey's for over 50 years. "He got by on the little he had and faced life with a smile on his face. He asked for little. He had many friends, and many more people that cared about him."

He is survived by his sons Frederick III and Richard, his sisters Jackie Piercey Morgan, Edythe, and Barbara, and his brothers Harold and Edward. His sisters, Debra Ann and Dorothy, predeceased him.

Though Piercey was not on speaking terms with his family for many years, they are now trying to obtain Department of Veterans Affairs benefits to bury him with full military honors, but said they do not have an ID to obtain his discharge papers. They ask anyone who may be of assistance to come forward so they may give Piercey this final honor.  

Did you know Freddy? Share your memories below.