HEARTS celebrated individuals who have made an important contribution to Port Washington arts at The Red Party on Thursday, Feb. 7 at the Port Washington Yacht Club.
Honorees were The Peter & Jeri Dejana Family Foundation, Jim Avena, and Michele Posner Goldman, as well as Nissa Fine who received the HEARTS Founders Award.
HEARTS is a grassroots non-profit organization with a passion for the arts and a mission to add meaningful value to children’s lives and our community by supporting promoting and enriching the arts in Port Washington and its’ public schools.
Goldman was honored for her commitment to HEARTS, which dates back to the organization’s creation. She is a founding board member of HEARTS, and continues to serve on the board of directors as grants chair; she is also the immediate past president, having served in this role for five years.
Since 2012, Honoree Avena has been the grant administrator for The Peter & Jeri Dejana Family Foundation. He was honored for his work and continued support of HEARTS. Avena also volunteers for multiple charitable organizations, including serving on the Board of Directors of the Port Washington Adult Activity Center, Our Lady of Fatima’s outreach program, and as a Deputy Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus of Port Washington.
Nassau County Legislator Delia DeRiggi-Whitton presented citations to the honorees, including Peter Dejana, who was in attendance and spoke about his commitment to the arts and the Port Washington community through the Peter & Jeri Dejana Family Foundation.
HEARTS founders Damon Gersh and Sheri Suzzan presented the 2019 Founders Award, which recognizes outstanding individuals who go above and beyond in their volunteer efforts yet don’t sit on our board of directors. Fine was honored for her tireless volunteer efforts for HEARTS, including coordinating school activities for PortFest.
The 2019 Red Party was filled to capacity with more than 200 partygoers. Bach 2 Rock provided live music and there was a special performance of students who participated in Dancing Classrooms, a grant co-funded by HEARTS, The Ed Foundation, The Creative Arts Department, and the elementary schools’ PTAs and HSAs.
Guests enjoyed a dinner buffet and bar featuring a special “HEART-ini” drink created just for The Red Party. There was a lavish display of raffle items that ranged from tickets and experiences to jewelry. In addition, there was an online silent auction for VIP tickets to public school concerts and performances.
For further information about HEARTS, to volunteer or if you are interested in applying for a HEARTS grant, please go to HEARTS’ website is heartspw.org.
Save the date for HEARTS’ PortFest, which is on Sunday, May 19, 2019.
