The rock is from the Huntington class of 1966's 40th reunion and it sits at the high school campus outside the back entrance. Photo from Lucille Buergers
Huntington High School’s past is raising money for its future.
On a night in September, the Huntington High School class of 1966 will be coming together for two very good reasons. They will celebrate the 50th anniversary of their graduation, but they will also be raising funds that will go to the class of 1966 reunion scholarship, which will award a current senior $1,966.
Lucille Corcoran Buergers, a member of the class and one of the organizers of the event, said the recipient of the scholarship won’t necessarily be an honor student, but rather a student who has overcome obstacles and has ambitious plans for the future. The scholarship winner will be selected later this year.
The Huntington class of 1966 reunion cap and t-shirt, which will be sent to those that make a $66 donation. Photo from Lucille Buergers
Huntington High School students are in the process of crafting essays, with the winner to be selected by the high school’s general scholarship committee.
In 1966, the world was just being introduced to the Beatles, the United States was still coping with the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy and the Vietnam War was in full swing. Buergers, who attended Woodstock, said in a phone interview that the tumultuous events of the 1960s impacted the lives of people who were growing up at that time forever.
“People I know started to question the establishment,” Buergers said. She said that she went into social work to help people endure with life’s stresses.
The reunion will be at the Huntington Country Club. Buergers said the committee organizing the reunion believes about 150 of the 526 graduates from the class of ’66 will be in attendance so far. They are still working to locate more graduates.
“Our classmates have gone on to become successful businessmen/women, educators, entrepreneurs, other professionals, and overall good citizens,” Buergers said. “Overall the consensus is that Huntington was an ideal place to have grown up and those that have moved away are eager to return and revisit the many places that hold special meaning to them…many fond memories that we have of a time that we will always cherish.”
There will also be a silent auction at the event with works from the class of 1966. Buergers said three painters, a stained glass artist, a photographer, a basket weaver, a jewelry maker, a quilter and an author have all agreed to donate works for auction.
Tickets will be $95 at the door, though they will be less expensive if purchased in advance. Any members of the class of 1966 who have not yet purchased tickets are advised to visit huntingtonhighalumni.org.
Heritage Park’s new geese patrol, from left, Willie, Nova and Lily, along with their owners, will help keep geese from eating grass and leaving behind droppings on the grounds of the Mount Sinai park. Photo by Fred Drewes
By Fred Drewes
Willy, Lily and Nova are new volunteers at Heritage Park. Willie and Nova, both corgis, and Lily, a border collie, have been recruited to form a “geese patrol.” According to a joint document by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, “the use of trained dogs to chase geese is among the most effective techniques available today” to prevent the annoyance of Canada geese.
Janet Smith, Regan and Chris Erhorn and Kerry and Lynn Hogan-Capobianco are the proud owners of these dogs that have volunteered to herd the geese away from the Mount Sinai park.
Willy, a Pembroke Welsh corgi, is 10 years old and was abandoned before being rescued by Smith. Nova, a tri-color Pembroke, is 1 year old and was adopted from a breeder in Pennsylvania. Lily is 12 years old and was adopted at the North Shore Animal League. The dogs are friendly, loyal and have strong herding instincts. As part of the geese patrol, the three will be on call. Staff and volunteers of the Heritage Trust will call on the dogs when geese appear so that they can chase the birds from the park to prevent them from dirtying up the area.
Commissioner Ed Morris of the Brookhaven Department of Parks and Recreation gave the animals permission to “work” at Heritage Park and said he is thankful for the owners’ volunteer efforts. The parks department has also purchased silhouettes of dogs to display in the park. The combination will discourage the grazing of geese and reduce what the geese leave behind.
The population of resident Canada geese has increased and become an annoyance in parks, on golf courses and landscaped areas of condos and co-ops. Lush grass provides gourmet grazing. Unfortunately, these geese eat up to three pounds of grass per day and leave a trail of feces behind. It is estimated that each goose can produce from 1 to 1.5 pounds of droppings per day, according to the Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management. The ball fields, paths and play knoll of Heritage Park have been littered with geese droppings, and research has shown that droppings contain a variety of pathogens capable of infecting humans. Although there is no clear evidence the droppings are transmitting diseases or are a threat to public health, the main concern is the mess left behind.
No one relishes walking on a path or playing on a field full of feces. This aesthetic problem is what the geese patrol will try to solve. If the geese are chased enough, they will learn to avoid swooping into the park, leaving visitors able to enjoy the open space and paths without tip-toeing through goose poop.
If you see Willy, Nova or Lily working in the park, the dogs are not there to play or exercise, but thank them for their efforts. Heritage Trust, the park and the town parks department are working together to make “The Wedge” one of the most popular parks in Brookhaven.
Fred Drewes is a founding member of Mount Sinai’s Heritage Trust and spends much of his time volunteering to help beautify Heritage Park.
Michelle DaSilva stands on stage with members of the Global Justice Club during one of their concert fundraisers. Photo from Michelle DaSilva
For one teacher at Harborfields High School, ensuring her students receive a proper education doesn’t stop at academics.
Michelle DaSilva has been teaching world history at the high school for years, but in 2009 she started a new venture, as advisor to the Global Justice Club.
“This club is meant to let kids know what is going on in other parts of the world,” DaSilva said in a phone interview. She said there are about 70 to 80 kids involved in the club.
The first fundraiser the club organized was to collect baby supplies after Hurricane Sandy devastated the people of Haiti in 2005.
“I had just had a baby and I kept thinking about all the woman in that developing country who didn’t have diapers, or formula,” she said. The club found a local organization that worked with an orphanage in Haiti, where the members were able to donate the $1,500 in items they received.
Since then, DaSilva said the club has gotten bigger and bigger.
In 2010, the club organized the first global justice concert, which has become the main event the group works on during the year. DaSilva described the concert as an event “fully run by the students,” that has helped the club raise more than $10,000 since it started. Members of the club hold auditions, promote the show, organize the raffle and host it, according to the teacher.
Two years into the event, DaSilva said she met Lucy Sumner, a former Harborfields teacher who traveled back to her hometown of Sierra Leone. She runs a non-profit called Magic Penny, which provides financial support for educational, economic and agricultural programs within her country.
“Now all the money goes directly to her,” DaSilva said. “She’s an amazing woman, and what’s nice is that I know exactly where the money is going. When I put it in her hands, it’s being used for the right thing.”
Global Justice has raised enough money for Magic Penny to fund the building of a school, scholarships for students, teacher training programs, and more.
Currently, DaSilva said they are raising money to help create a middle school, since the first school they raised money for only teaches children up to fifth grade.
“These students are now having to go into the city for middle school, where there is a lot of exploitation and unsafe circumstances, and their families cannot afford to travel with them,” DaSilva said.
Aside from the annual concert, the Global Justice club also organizes and participates in many other fundraisers throughout the year, including a 24-hour famine where students are sponsored…; food drives; and education campaigns — one of which was a refugee project, where members of the club turned different hallways into parts of the world where there are large refugee problems.
“We want to be thinking globally,” DaSilva said of the club, “and acting locally.”
A baseball game at Chicken Hill field. Photo from Beverly Tyler
By Beverly C. Tyler
“Seek out the spot where the Setalcott Indians first camped. They called it ‘land at the mouth of the creek.’ You’ll know when you come to it because you’ll be standing on Holy Ground. From there it’s an easy step to Christian Avenue.” — Glenda Dickerson
The first lines of the play about the Christian Avenue community, produced in 1988 at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, took us back to a time before recorded history in Setauket, a time when Indian family groups occupied all of Long Island.
These natives left no monuments to be remembered by, no changes that would permanently alter the landscape. As a result, we know very little about their lives. The archaeological remains discovered at the places where they worked, lived and died provide only scant clues.
When the English settlers first came to the “land at the mouth of the creek,” they brought with them their knowledge of how to change the land to make it conform to their patterns of life. They dammed the stream and built a gristmill. They built permanent homes, erected walls and fences, cleared the trees and planted grains, and they buried their dead with permanent stone markers. The early settlers also dealt in another kind of property; they bought and sold Black slaves.
The first recorded notation of slavery in the three villages is listed in the Town records of 1674. “Richard Floyd, of Setakett, sold the … Negro, named Antony, to John Hurd, of Stratford.” It is also recorded that Floyd had purchased Antony two years earlier from Robert Hudson of Rye.
This story of the arrival of black slaves into the Setauket community was detailed in June of 1988 for theatergoers who took a bus tour to the Christian Avenue Community as part of an evening that culminated with the exhibit and play “Eel Catching in Setauket.”
The bus tour took the “eel catchers” — theatergoers — to the Bethel A.M.E. Church on Christian Avenue, where they were given a short message about the church and the community and led in a song and a word of prayer. A tour of the Laurel Hill Cemetery was followed by a fellowship meal served by members of the Christian Avenue community in the Irving Hart Post American Legion Hall.
The “eel catchers’” bus ride back to the Fine Arts Center of the State University at Stony Brook included a tour of some of the locations in Setauket that are part of the oral history and folklore of the Christian Avenue community. Much of the oral history was preserved in the May 1988 Journal of the Three Village Historical Society, which was given to each “eel catcher.” In one oral-history interview, Violet Rebecca (Sells) Thompson brought the Christian Avenue community full circle to the first settlers on Long Island. “ … I went to school in Setauket Union School up on the hill — Education Hill. There were a lot of nationalities. I think we were the only Indians in there … we were the only Americans in the class. … The rest of the kids were Irish … Polish … Lithuanians, all from Europe.”
The play “Eel Catching in Setauket” was in the Fine Arts Center. The exhibits and photographs of the Christian Avenue community were placed all through the theater room and the “eel catchers” wandered through the exhibit viewing the artifacts of the community residents.
The play was a series of vignettes based on the collected materials, performed by eight actors and actresses under the direction of Glenda Dickerson. It took place in the center of the exhibit-theater and around the various exhibits while the “eel catchers” watched and listened to the drama unfold all around them.
The Three Village Historical Society exhibit, “Eel Catching in Setauket” and “A Living Library-The African-American, Christian Avenue Community,” was displayed in Brookhaven Town Hall during the month of February.
The Mount Sinai MIddle School Community Service and Outreach Club lends a helping hand by becoming actively engaged in the community for local and national charities and organizations. Photo from Lindsey Ferraro
Raising thousands of dollars for North Shore-based and national organizations and bringing smiles to those in need of cheer is no small feat. But fifth- through eighth-graders at Mount Sinai Middle School are making a habit of it.
Lindsey Ferraro, a co-advisor for the school’s Community Outreach and Service clubs for the last three years, said students learn compassion and empathy.
“It amazes me more so every year how dedicated our club members and the school community are to bettering the world,” she said. “Our students have gone above and beyond to help out the community.”
The Mount Sinai Community Service and Outreach Club sings holiday carols at a local nursing home. Photo from Lindsey Ferraro
The club adopted a family this past holiday season, created cards for soldiers, visited the Woodhaven nursing home in Port Jefferson Station to sing holiday carols, held a clothing drive for the homeless and raised over $1,000 for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
“You know you’re helping out someone much less fortunate than you, and it feels really good,” eighth-grader Jake Ritchie said. “It feels really good to know that I make a statement and take a stand in my community to help out.”
Ritchie, who has been a member of the club since he was in fifth grade, said the club is also collecting books for a Stony Brook book drive and helping Girl Scouts receive a bronze award. He said even his classmates lend a hand.
“They have been helping out,” he said, “We make speeches in front of our classes to encourage kids to help out. It’s a lot of fun.”
Mount Sinai Middle School Principal Peter Pramataris said he also sees students outside the club donating to the club’s causes.
“It’s always great to see the school building come together as a whole,” he said. “I reside in the district, too, and whenever there’s a family with some hardship, a loss or a health issue, the community always steps up to help each other. It’s a testament to the families we have in our community and the value system that they have from home and that we reinforce at the school. These students take their own time, and they do it unselfishly. I’m proud to be their principal.”
The club has also raised more than $2,000 in two weeks for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Pennies for Patients fund, with a week of fundraising left to go. Next, the school will be working on its Light It up Blue campaign, where members of the club will sell puzzle pieces in light of Autism Awareness Month for Autism Speaks.
The Mount Sinai Community Service and Outreach Club wraps presents raised for and donated to local families. Photo from Lindsey Ferraro
Nicole Kotarski, who has been a co-adviser for five years, said the club fosters independence and creativity.
“We’ve had several students bring us ideas if they like a particular organization, and we tell them to figure out how to make it happen,” she said, adding that she asks students to organize contact information, ideas for fundraisers and how to make the school aware of them. “The goal of our club is to make a difference in others’ lives. These students are definitely the most driven students. They’re the ones that make the effort to become actively engaged in the community.”
Ferraro and Kotarski agreed that the students are doing an amazing job, and they’re proud of the student’s hard work and effort.
“They really do care and they’re learning — they’re not in it for anything else,” Ferraro said. “They do such a good job raising awareness throughout the school … and really making, especially the people around the holidays, feel loved and cared for.”
That’s what makes being a part of the club so special for fifth-grader Matthew Stancampiano.
“I like doing this because it helps me help the less fortunate people in our community,” he said. “We can accomplish bigger things in a group. It makes me feel happy that I am able to help other people.”
The Smithtown time capsule sits in the hole it will remain inside for 50 years. Photo by Pat Biancanello
Smithtown’s Sesquarcentennial year, which began on March 3, 2015, has come to a close.
Smithtown concluded its yearlong 350th birthday celebration this past March 3 with the burial of a time capsule on the lawn in front of Patrick R. Vecchio Town Hall.
“I think it surpassed anything that any of the members of the committee might have guessed or hoped for,” Maureen Smilow, of Smithtown 350 Foundation, said in a phone interview. She was one of the members of the foundation, which was responsible for organizing the events over the course of the year.
Town Supervisor Patrick Vecchio (R) was also involved with many of the events over the course of the year.
“I think that the public who participated in the events will take a lot out of it because they were living history,” Vecchio said. “For me the last year was a wonderful experience.”
“The gala ball that was held in the midst of basically a blizzard turned out to be a huge success,” Vecchio said when asked which of the events were most memorable for him. The gala dinner-dance was held at Flowerfields in St. James last March.
A time capsule buried in 1965 in front of Town Hall was opened to kick off the celebrations on March 3 a year ago. The Sesquarcentennial year got off to a rocky, yet funny start.
Supervisor Pat Vecchio makes his contribution to the Smithtown time capsule. Photo by Pat Biancanello
“The smell was unbelievable,” Smilow said about the moment the half-century-old milk can was opened. “Everyone on stage had to stand back, it was horrendous,” she said laughing.
The can was not properly sealed when it was buried, so over the course of 50 years moisture got in and reeked havoc on the contents, which were arguably not that exciting had they been in mint condition. The milk can contained two hats, a phone book, a local newspaper, a flyer for pageant tickets and an assortment of coins.
Before members of the town board assembled in colonial costumes at the Smithtown Center for the Performing Arts to open the capsule, they first had to find it.
Members of the parks department searched for the 1965 time capsule in the area they believed it was buried, but after a lengthy search that involved poking a metal rod into the Town Hall lawn, finally it was found. A few days later, it was discovered that the town engineering department, who buried the capsule 50 years ago, had left a map with the precise location.
“That was more humorous than anything else,” town historian and Smithtown 350 Foundation member Brad Harris said in a phone interview. “Had we known there was a map in engineering all that time, we would have saved a great deal of effort and time by the parks department.”
Harris said that he envisions the Smithtown residents who open the 2016 time capsule in 2066 will have a more pleasurable time opening this one, thanks to the efforts of Smilow. They will find a smartphone, baseball cards, menus from town restaurants, letters from community members and Smithtown students, and pieces of memorabilia from the 350th anniversary celebration events, among many other things.
“This time, my good friend Maureen Smilow, really was very careful about how things went in there and how they would be preserved,” Harris said. “We took care so that they would be there for people who open it. We hope they will get a cross section of what the community was like. I think it was a great time capsule.”
Smilow said she ordered a marker for the new stainless-steel, waterproof time capsule. That way it will be both easy to find and preserved in 50 years.
Smilow mentioned the parade that took place on Sept. 26 as one of her favorite events from the year. She said there were more than 2,000 people marching in the parade, which was led by Richard Smith from Nissequogue, who is a direct descendent of the town’s founder Richard Smythe.
Harris said one of his favorite events was the fireworks display that was on the same day as the parade, at Sunken Meadow State Park.
“They were spectacular,” he said.
Some other memorable events included the unveiling of Richard Smythe’s life-size statue in front of the Damianos Realty Group building on Middle Country Road in September and the recognition of Marie Sturm last March, the oldest native-born resident of Smithtown.
Recently appointed Smithtown Highway Superintendent Robert Murphy, who attended High School East and lived in Smithtown for most of his life, said that he was glad to learn more about the town that he grew up in during the year in an interview Tuesday.
Harris reflected on what the Smithtown 350 Foundation accomplished in executing all of the events, both large and small.
“I just think the year and the celebrations we pulled off over the course of the year made it a memorable one for the members of the community,” he said. “I think they’ve got lasting memories of the Town of Smithtown and some of its history. I hope that’s what sticks.”
Smilow was also proud of how successful the year was.
“It was a great year,” she said. “Everyone was really happy. It was just amazing how we had all of these people from different walks of life, different ages and backgrounds coming together.”
The brochure kicks off with a video greeting from Supervisor Frank Petrone. Photo from Huntington Town
Huntington is bringing the future to the present with their new parks and recreation brochure.
For the first time, the town’s parks and recreation department seasonal catalog will be available online in a digital version. Aside from including the standard information like information on the town’s athletic programs, camps and other activities the town offers, this digital brochure also included videos of some activities and the ability to sign up directly from the guide with a single click.
A view of the front cover of the 2016 spring parks and recreation brochure, the first digital one released by the town. Photo from Huntington Town
“This interactive brochure brings the Town of Huntington into the 21st century,” Supervisor Frank Petrone (D) said in a video as he welcomes residents to the department’s new online brochure. “This is government of the future, allowing residents to find necessary information and to take care of business without having to come to town hall. We are proud of this brochure and the way residents can access the brochure and its great features from their home computers, tablets or smart phones.”
The guide, which changes pages just like flipping pages in a book, has real-time information on whether an activity is oversubscribed or if there is a waiting list, as well as updates on schedule changes. If someone has questions or concerns with any program, they can fill out a brief message in one click that will be sent to the head of whichever program they are asking about.
“The concept came about because we were sending these out to every household in paper format,” Stephen Carballeira, who works in the information technology department for the town, said in an interview. “Ninety-three percent of people were signing up online anyway, but the biggest complaint we used to get was that they’d get it [the brochure] in the mail but they couldn’t really figure out a way to work our system and sing up. It was just a big frustration.”
A.J. Cater, town spokesperson, said that the possibilities with this brochure are “endless” and that this guide will continue to grow and expand.
The parks department has stopped mass printing and distribution of the brochure, which will save the town $50,000 each year. Not only is this decision cost effective, but it also greatly reduces the amount of paper waste the town produces, making it an environmentally friendly move as well, officials said.
But there’s more.
This new brochure saves money, makes programs and information more accessible to the public and reduces the town’s carbon footprint, while also making the town money, the town said.
While the interactive brochure cost about $3,000 to create, the town has made $7,000 in revenue from ads — and that’s just from this first issue alone. Carballeira said ads have a life of about four weeks, and then are replaced with new ones.
Currently, many town businesses cover the pages of the brochure, and their ads are just as interactive as the rest of the information. The Little Gym of Huntington has an ad that features a video of young children playing in the gym, and Roar Energy Drink has an ad with a coupon anyone can print out.
East Setauket native to look into North Shore development
Robert Reuter speaks at an event at the Setauket Post Office. File photo
The North Shore’s economic well-being relies on the community coming together and having meaningful conversations, and the Three Village Community Trust is helping to do just that.
The group announced it would be hosting its second talk in the “Join the Conversation” series on Thursday, March 24, at 7:30 p.m. at the Setauket Neighborhood House, with Robert Reuter discussing the last century’s commercial development along Route 25A.
Reuter, an East Setauket native, has been involved with Three Village’s various historical and cultural organizations for years and currently is also president of the Frank Melville Memorial Foundation, a founder of the Three Village Community Trust, and a member of Brookhaven’s Historic District Advisory Committee. Reuter earned a bachelor of architecture degree from Virginia Tech and is known for his product design work for Knoll Furniture.
“The Three Village area as we know it today began with communities located for their relationships to the water, both fresh and salt,” Reuter said. “These population centers grew to support their own commercial areas and community centers primarily linked by North Country Road, the major route for east-west travel on Long Island’s North Shore. North Country Road became State Route 25A, and as our population grew and automobiles became ubiquitous, 25A provided the spine for commercial growth of our linear downtown.”
This presentation will concentrate on the Setauket and East Setauket area, illustrating the changes in commercial activity along the North Country Road, Route 25A corridor over the last century. It will also include a segment with photographs and maps from the Three Village Historical Society archive.
The Three Village Community Trust’s “Join the Conversation” series focuses on the quality of life and sustainability in the Three Village community.
“What makes a great community also contributes to its sustainability: people who care and are engaged, great open spaces for nature and for people to enjoy, a vibrant local economy with good jobs, walkability, and a diversity of housing and transportation choices,” the group said in a statement. “Because the Town of Brookhaven is embarking on a land use study and plan for the NYS Route 25A corridor — our own Main Street — most of the series will address issues that relate to community planning and to the corridor. We urge everyone to be a part of these conversations.”
All programs will be held at Setauket Neighborhood House. They are open to all and free — a donation of $5 would be welcome to cover expenses. Refreshments will be served.
A new model will invite kids to Rocketship Park. Photo from Port Jefferson Village
By Elana Glowatz
The new Rocketship Park’s entrance will be a blastoff to the past.
A new model will invite kids to Rocketship Park. Photo from Port Jefferson Village
Port Jefferson Village announced on Tuesday that TRITEC Real Estate Company has built and donated a rocket ship model to go in the playground once it’s reconstructed, paying tribute to its past.
While it’s formally known as Clifton H. Lee Memorial Park or Kip Lee Park, the spot off Barnum Avenue at Roessner Lane got the Rocketship nickname from a popular piece of playground equipment that has since aged out of use. Some residents have lamented the loss of the rocket and the fact that the design plans for the new park, which began forming a few years ago, didn’t include one.
The plans call for more natural-looking playground equipment witha high level of handicap-accessibility, including what looks like a giant tree house and a pirate ship that harkens back to the village’s shipbuilding days. There are also plans for swings with different types of seating, walkways, picnic tables, plantings and other play equipment.
Adrienne Kessel, the chair of the Treasure Your Parks Committee that has fundraised for the park reconstruction and operates under the Port Jefferson Harbor Education and Arts Conservancy, previously said play equipment that looks like a rocket is hard to find.
Kessel launched the effort to revamp the downtown children’s park when she was a village trustee. After looking at security features in the wake of vandalism at the site, Kessel saw the need for a full makeover.
“It began with a conversation about adding better lighting but that wasn’t the answer,” she said in a previous interview. “When we went to fix the damaged pieces, we weren’t able to find them. The equipment was obsolete.”
She focused on increased accessibility for kids with special needs because, “Every child should have the chance to play. I couldn’t imagine a park a child couldn’t utilize.”
The reconstruction is expected to cost roughly $550,000 and as of this week, village spokeswoman Jill Russell said, the committee had brought in more than $200,000 toward that goal, between donations of both money and services.
According to the village’s rocket announcement, the first work phase is scheduled to start in October.
TRITEC, which is also working on an apartment complex on the other side of Barnum Avenue at West Broadway, built the rocket ship so that when the park is redone, it “will serve as a lasting reminder of the original rocket ship that first graced the park in 1972,” the village said in a statement.
The company worked on the project for the nonprofit Long Island Home Builders Care, with the help of Huntington-based Kleet Lumber Co., Long Island-based Pro-Coat Painting, and sprinkler system contractor Central Outdoor Services in Port Jefferson Station.
“The model will be placed alongside the entranceway to the new playground and will incorporate ornamental plaques into the design that will highlight the park’s history as well as the generous contributions from the playground’s in-kind donors,” the village said.
Russell explained that the historical information will make mention of the previous rocket: “So that when you come to Rocketship Park, you actually know why it’s called that.”
Dana Urbinati and her team of students took a break from rehearsals Monday night to pose for a photo. Photo by Heidi Sutton
For the past 29 years, studentsat Comsewogue High School have showcased their eclectic talents with the community at “A Night for Jason,” a student-run variety show produced in honor of Jason Mariano, a child in the school district who succumbed to leukemia in 1987. This year’s event will take place on Friday, March 18, at 7 p.m. in the school’s auditorium.
The money raised from the event benefits Friends of Karen, a tristate children’s charity with an office in Port Jefferson, that offers emotional, financial and advocacy support for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families in order to keep them stable, functioning and able to cope.
“This is always such a great way to keep our students involved in caring for our community,” said Dana Urbinati, a teacher at the high school and coordinator of the event. “Along with the talents and energy of everyone involved, we want people to know that the funds raised are going to help some very special families in our communities.”
A diversemix of talents have graced the stage in the past and this year is no exception. Emceed by Jason Kellar, Eli Smith, Aleyna Kaya, Nicholas Keller and Ethan Wright, the evening will feature 22 acts including musical performances by the high school’s Jazz Band and female choir, Tapestry, along with singing, dancing, comedy and student bands. “This is an extremely talented, hardworking group and I’m just so grateful that we are able to help such an amazing charity,” said Urbinati.
Comsewogue High School is located at 565 N. Bicycle Path, Port Jefferson Station. Tickets for this one-night event are priced at $12 in advance by calling 631-474-8179 or $15 at the door. For more information about Friends of Karen, call 631-473-1768.
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