Kerpen to hold 2nd annual charity tennis tournament Tuesday at Village Club

The Island Now
The Midnight Entrepreneurs League from left to right: Dave Kerpen, Scott Bloom, Ben Rosner, and Vincent Cannariato. (Photo courtesy of Dave Kerpen)

Vincent J. Cannariato Jr. was one of Port Washington entrepreneur and Board of Education trustee Dave Kerpen’s best friends. They were in Entrepreneurs Organization together, meeting monthly, and went on annual retreats together, such as Dublin, Havana, and, appropriately, St. Vincent’s Island.

They also played doubles tennis together, every Tuesday night for five years, from 10 p.m. to midnight in the aptly named “Midnight Entrepreneurs League.”

So when Cannariato passed away two years ago, quite suddenly, just after his 50th birthday party, from heart illness complications, Kerpen knew he just had to do something.

“I wanted to create an event where we could remember Vinnie for the amazing human being and friend he was, while introducing his memory to new people, playing his beloved game of tennis, and raising money for a great cause,” said Kerpen. The 2nd annual Vincent J. Cannariato Jr. Tennis Open and Dinner, coming up this Tuesday, May 21st at the Village Club of Sands Point, will do just that.

From 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., guests will enjoy and compete in a tennis tournament, complete with trophies for the winners. But they’ll be more focused on having fun. “Vinnie wasn’t very competitive,” said Kerpen. “So I know he’d appreciate most a lot of people getting together to play tennis and have a great time.”

At 6 p.m., guests will enjoy an all-you-can-eat buffet dinner at the Village Club.

“This is not your run-of-the-mill, stuffy fundraiser,” said Kerpen. “This will be a super fun and special evening.”

Cannariato’s widow Anya wanted to raise money for Men’s Heart Health Awareness – but Kerpen couldn’t find any such charity – so he started one. In conjunction with St. Francis Hospital, The Heart Center in Port Washington, all money raised from Vinnie’s Day will go towards this important cause.

For more information, and to RSVP for Tuesday’s event, please visit https://VinniesDay.com

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