Mary Jane Dinizio reflects on nearly a century of life in Greenport
Sitting in her living room surrounded by family photos and memories, 98-year-old Mary Jane Dinizio smiles as she looks back on nearly a century of life in her beloved Greenport. Her son, Paul Dinizio, sits beside her — both lifelong residents of the village they’ve always called home.
Born at Eastern Long Island Hospital in 1926, long before its affiliation with Stony Brook, she was the youngest of four children.
She lived in a few houses in those early years until she finished kindergarten and her family moved into her grandfather’s house on Sixth Street.
“It was the best place in the world to grow up, as far as I’m concerned,” said Ms. Dinizio, who will celebrate her 99th birthday on Nov. 29. “We didn’t move there until I was about 6 or 7, and then my grandfather died. That was his home, and he left it to my mother, and we moved there, where I grew up.”
She has vivid memories of her childhood in that house, including battening down during a hurricane in 1938, which left Greenport without power for over two weeks.
Ms. Dinizio lived in that house for 16 years, before marrying her high school sweetheart, Anthony Dinizio, in 1948. The couple met at Greenport High School. Tony, as he was known to his friends and family, lived on Center Street and often visited Mary Jane and their mutual friends.
Much of there courtship was spent riding their bikes through the village, she recalled.
Shortly after tying the knot, Tony began building their forever home on Brown Street. The house took about two years to complete, and the couple moved in on Nov. 23, 1950.
“He went to the library and got a book on how to build a house,” Paul, now 71, said. “He gave it to me when he helped me build mine.”
Tony went on to build four other houses on the block for other family members. He worked as a bus driver and served more than 65 years with the Greenport Fire Department. He died on Feb. 13, 2025, after 77 years of marriage.
Together, the Dinizios raised two sons, Paul and John. John died in 2001 at 51after a battle with cancer.
The family now spans multiple generations, with Ms. Dinizio cooing over three grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.
Their Brown Street home still features furniture and shades purchased decades ago from department stores that once lined the village
“You didn’t have to leave Greenport for anything at all,” Ms. Dinizio said. “Then all of a sudden, you did. We bought our first TV from Arcade Department Store, all our jeans and everything came from Arcade, and my curtains came from Arcade.
“That’s what we missed first. You can’t even buy a pair of socks in Greenport,” she added.
Arcade Department Store closed in 2017.
Mary Jane and Tony Dinizio back in the day. (Credit: Courtesy Dinizio family) 
This sign hangs in the Dinizio household, which Tony built by hand. (Credit: Brendan Carpenter) 
Ms. Dinizio has tons of old photos and papers from throughout the years hanging in her home. (Credit: Brendan Carpenter) 
Ms. Dinizio is going on 99 years in Greenport. (Credit: Brendan Carpenter) 
A proclamation Tony got after his retirement from the Greenport Fire Department. (Credit: Brendan Carpenter)
Ms. Dinizio worked several jobs through the years, including at the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Greenport Basin and Construction Company, and for 20 years with the village. She started as a clerk typist 1966 and retired as deputy clerk in 1986.
The two lovebirds traveled widely in their golden years, visiting Hawaii, Alaska, Italy, Ireland, Holland, Quebec and many other bucket-list destinations.
The most memorable was a 10-week trek in the late 1980s, about 50 years after getting hitched.
“Our one dream when we got married — which, it’s very unusual for you to live your dreams — is we wanted to go cross-country,” she said. “We got a custom van, we bought a porta-potty and a little refrigerator that worked off the battery, and we took off and went cross-country.”
They slept in the van most nights, aside from a week spent visiting Tony’s sister in San Diego. When the road trip was over, they were happy to return home to Greenport.
Looking back, Ms. Dinizio has fond memories of biking, going to the beach and ice skating, but not Greenport’s evolution from a sleepy village to a weekend hotspot.
“It’s nothing but a tourist trap now,” she said. “It’s not homey.”
Still, her home remains filled with nearly a century of photos, books and memories, all within the walls that Tony built.
Even at 98, Ms. Dinizio remains active. While bike-riding may not be part of her routine anymore, she enjoys going for walks up and down the block when weather permits. She also attends church, getting behind the wheel to drive herself there at times.
Greenport is where her life is and always has been and, as her centennial approaches, she wouldn’t have it any other way.
