Port Jeff Students Send Off Rescued Seal

Third-grade students from Port Jefferson Elementary School gave a rescued seal a warm send-off on June 20 at Cedar Beach in Mt. Sinai. 

The students lined the beach to watch as PJ Liberty, a male gray seal, was released back into the water after the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research rescued him on April 25.

As part of their studies on Port Jefferson history and its waterways, the students adopted, named and kept track of PJ Liberty’s progress.

When PJ Liberty was first rescued, it was found that he suffered a laceration on his shoulder and ulcers in his mouth, but after being given antibiotics and tube-fed a liquid diet, he began to heal. He now eats eight pounds of herring a day.

As PJ Liberty made his way down the beach to the water, students cheered and waved goodbye. The seal reciprocated by popping his head up after diving into the water as if to say thank you.

“I think the seal was very happy to see all the people that cared about him and to finally go home,” said student Amy Whitman.

Students Daniel Brosman, Grace Chambers and Olivia Ross agreed that they were very lucky to witness PJ Liberty’s release. “Some kids don’t get to do things like this,” said Ross. “We were very lucky.”

After watching PJ Liberty head home, the students worked to clean up the beachfront before heading back to school.