Thomas Cavanagh, Huntington's ex-director of general services, dies at 81

Thomas R. Cavanagh lived a life of service. First to his country as a Navy veteran, then to his community as a Suffolk County cop and later to his local school district as a board of education president.   

But his favorite role and legacy will be that of a man who instilled the value of family first and who remained actively involved in the lives of his three sons even when they became adults.

“He was a fantastic father,” said his youngest son Ryan Cavanagh of Sandy Hook, Connecticut. “He’s one of those guys who did it all and lived an amazing life and he did it the right way.”

Cavanagh, a lifelong Northport resident and former director of general services and deputy highway superintendent for the Town of Huntington, died Feb. 5 at Huntington Hospital of pneumonia, his family said. He was 81.

A leader who loved Huntington, politics, Van Morrison and was full of wit, humor and kindness; that's how he will be remembered, friends and family said.

Cavanagh served as deputy when Kevin Orelli was the town’s highway superintendent. Orelli remembered his friend of 50 years as someone who was full of energy, even more than him.

“He was always in the office before me and always there after I left,” Orelli said. “He was one of the most honest, hardworking people I’ve ever known.” 

Former town board member Mark Cuthbertson who now serves as the chair of the Huntington Democratic committee where Cavanagh served as a committee person for years and at one point served as vice chairman, said Cavanagh “was both a loyal Democrat and a dedicated public servant” in his various roles.

“He was all about the nuts and bolts of government and making sure our facilities and ballfields were in the best possible shape for our residents.”

Cavanagh was born Nov. 26, in 1941, a fifth-generation Northport resident. After attending Northport High School, he joined the Navy in 1959. He earned the rank of petty officer third class, serving as a diesel engine mechanic, spending most of his time on the USS Rival, a wooden mine sweeper ship.

Cavanagh joined the Suffolk County Police department in 1968. He became a homicide detective in 1978 and retired in 1985. Cavanagh served on the Kings Park school board between 1987 and 1995 as a trustee and eventually board president. From 1992 to 2021 he worked for the Town of Huntington, serving in several positions.

In addition to his son Ryan, Cavanagh is survived by sons Sean of Kings Park and Erik of Smithtown; stepson Richard Rosenberg of Scarsdale; four siblings, Patricia Kowalski, Irene Katz, and Joseph and Raymond Cavanagh, all of West Palm Beach, and nine grandchildren.

Friends and family may visit Thursday, Feb. 9, 2-5 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. at Nolan Funeral Home, 5 Laurel Ave, Northport. Funeral Mass Friday 10 a.m. at St. Phillip Neri Church in Northport. Interment at St. Philip Neri Cemetery, East Northport.