summer 2012 bbbsli.org

A Note from the Board Chair | Jeffrey Schwartzberg

Class of 2012!

big news

I am both humbled and proud to write this first “Chair’s Note” having recently been elected to the position of Board Chair for an organization as terrific as Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island. As a member of the Board of Directors for nearly a decade, I can report to you that we have a very strong and dedicated group of professionals who not

only give of themselves, but truly care about the mentoring, growth and development of young people right here on Long Island.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Treat Rinear, our outgoing Chair, who provided outstanding leadership which has positioned us for success. I am hopeful that I can continue to move the organization forward with his success.

My vision is simple - to help support an increased number of youth who need and can benefit from our mission. And to do

that, I need your help. The help can come through volunteering your time or through your financial support. We have many op-portunities for you to get involved. Believe me, no assistance is too small.

I also want to mention a new event we are initiating this year and are hopeful that it will become an annual tradition. Cruisin’ for Kids, a motorcycle ride, is scheduled for September 8th and will begin at our Levittown office and ends in Hampton Bays. All riders are welcome and it should be a terrific day for all. See more details on page 3.

I look forward to our future meetings and towards working to-gether to help children and young adults right here in our own backyard.

After all, an investment in these youngsters is an investment in all our futures.

summer 2012

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E Out&About Check out our gallery of Bigs and Littles at the Annual Summer Picnic and more! Photo Gallery page 2

Agency EventsA power packed events calendar includes a motor-cycle ride and our prestigious Gala Event Details & Registration info page 3

Presidential Gala 2012 On July 11th, we kicked off the Presidential Gala Event Recap & Photos page 3

A publication of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island

Jeffrey Schwartzberg

Parents and Bigs proudly share pho-tos of the Graduating Class of 2012!Shown from left to right: Big Brother Gbenga proudly stands with his Lit-tle DeVaunte in his cap and gown; Little Sister Nicole and Big Sister Lisanne are all smiles on graduation day; mom Janet beams next to her son Demarcus- who is a Little Brother and a BBBSLI Scholarship Recipient.

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“It’s incredible to see the children come together and enjoy this beautiful day,” remarked Sharlene, a BBBSLI Donation Center employee who volunteered her time to help out on the Satur-day of the Annual Summer Picnic. “They all find such joy in see-ing one another and being with their Bigs.”

Nearly 200 Bigs, Littles and their families joined our staff in June for a day of music, sports and arts and crafts at Heckscher State Park. Games of dodgeball, softball and a water balloon chal-lenge filled the fields and a DJ performed all afternoon. Inside

the pavilion, Bigs and Littles worked together on a 15’ agency mural and played board games while enjoying a catered picnic lunch.

In addition, every child was invited to select two brand new books from the book fair table.

A special thank you to Federated Payments who enabled us to provide this highly anticipated day of excitement for our Littles without worrying about the impact on our budget.

Annual Summer Picnic Brings SmilesOur kickoff to summer, sponsored by Federated Payments.

Words from our LittlesIt’s the words from the children in our program that truly express the power of mentoring. What may seem like small things or actions to us often means the world to a child.

Mentoring works. We know, because we’ve seen the letters from our Littles to their Bigs. In those letters, the Littles write about how much they appreciate and value the kindness and support their Big shares.

Thank you, always, for your belief in our mission to help change the life of a child, one match at a time.

Kickoff Cocktail PartyThis year’s Presidential Gala honors ‘Woman and Men of the Year’ Sandra Capek-O’Grady - Senior Director of BNY Mellon Wealth Management Group, Michael Brown- Vice President of Operations of the Atlantic Auto Group and Steven Goodman- Presi-dent & CEO of SHG Financial Group. Our Kickoff Cocktail party in July received pledges totaling $100,000 for the prestigious Gala to be held this October.

Golf Tournament Raises over $75,000Honoring Evan Leonard, President and Co-Founder of Chips Technology Group, LLC, the 16th Annual Golf Tournament was attended by nearly 90 golfers and included 18 holes of golf at Muttontown Country Club, an on-course BBQ lunch, cocktail reception, gourmet buffet din-ner and awards.

The event was attended by Little Brother Mahki and Big Brother Dan Williams who were the evening’s guest speakers. “I am thankful to be a Little Brother and have met Dan,” said Mahki, 13 years old. “Thank you for making this possible, he’s not just cool and nice, he’s my real brother.”

See tournament winners, sponsors and more photos online at www.bbbsli.org.

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Summer Sizzle PokerBBBSLI hosted the annual Summer Sizzle Poker Tournament on July 24th at Social Sports Kitchen in Uniondale. This popular tournament raised $12,000 in support of mentoring.

Just before 1AM, BBBSLI supporter Rich Silvia took 1st place as well as the grand prize-a trip for two to Las Vegas, including airfare and hotel stay- compliments of Pete Manis-calco of the Courtyard Travel Ltd. in Great Neck, NY.

Thank you to our generous supporters and sponsors! Presenting Sponsor: Edward Smith Mineola Lions ClubTable Sponsors: Chips Technology Group, Executive Business Association (EBA), Iron Cove Partners, Merrick Madmen led by Board Member Dan Greenburg, One Source Document Management, Steve Madden Limited, and The Whitmore Group, Ltd.

SEPTEMBER 8THInaugural Cruisin’ for KidsJoin our motorcycle ride from Levittown to Hampton Bays! Register and find details online!bbbsli.kintera.org/cruisinforkids

OCTOBER 4THPresidential GalaMark your calendars for our most prestigious event of the year! Crest Hollow Country Club, Woodbury NY

UPCOMINGEVENTS

AUGUST 10TH-19THHamptons Offshore InvitationalThe East Coast fishing tourna-ment returns! Check out all the details online:hamptonsoffshore.com

Donate Your Tickets!If you or someone you know has tickets they cannot use, please consider donat-ing them to BBBSLI for our Bigs & Littles.Contact: Jamessina Hille, 516.731.7880 x222 or jhille@bbbsli.org

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The Town of Southold col-lected 58 tons of cloth-ing donations for BBBSLI in 2011, via the collection bins on the property of the Southold Transfer Station, the most out of any munici-pality on Long Island. “Not only has this program been a success in terms of reducing waste disposal,” says James Bunchuck, Solid Waste Coordinator for the Town of Southold, “it’s enabled Southold to partner with an organization dedicated to

actually improving the lives of people in our own backyard.”Pictured L-R: James Bunchuck- Solid Waste Coordinator for the Town of Southold and Bill Tymann - BBBSLI CEO

58 Tons of Clothing Collected by Town of Southold

The Town of Hempstead recently passed a law requiring permits for all collection bins placed within the town limits, and BBBSLI was recognized as one of the worthy charitable organizations at the forefront of meeting town requirements. Pictured from L-R: Bill Tymann- BBBSLI CEO, Kate Murray- Hempstead Town Supervisor and Gary Hudes- Hempstead Town Councilman.

Towns Recognizes BBBSLI Donation BinsNew law passed protects worthy charitable bins.

Our TeamBoard ChairJeffrey Schwartzberg

CEO William Tymann

COOSusan Samaroo

CDOMark Cox

Newsletter EditorJamessina Hille

Contact UsNassau 516.731.7880Suffolk 631.273.1469East End 631.287.0086Donation Center 631.234.0000Email volunteers@bbbsli.orgWeb www.bbbsli.org

WE CARE Grants BBBSLI $2,500Joy Watson, Nassau County Deputy Comptroller and member of the WE CARE advisory Board, presented BBBSLI with a grant from the WE CARE Fund, the charitable arm of the Nassau County Bar Association.Joy Watson is pictured center with BBBSLI Staff (L-R: Bob Richardson, Case Man-ager; Josephine Todisco, Assistant Director of Services; Mara Schwartz, Case Manager; and Mary Vissichelli, Case Manager).