Alper’s True Value Hardware, a staple on Port Washington’s Main Street, was recognized for its contributions to the community and the state as the recipient of the 2019 state Senate Empire Award.
“Alper’s has been a fixture in our community since 1911, and while the business has taken many shapes over the generations, the common thread has been a spirit of giving back to the community they serve,” said state Sen. Anna Kaplan (D-Great Neck) who selected the family-run hardware store for the award.
The state Senate Empire Award is presented to businesses that prosper while remaining active in the community.
The Novick family has run the hardware store for over four generations and over those years has greatly contributed to the Port Washington community.
Adam Novick, fourth-generation co-owner of the store, is the drive behind the annual “Karmacue” barbecue event that is held each year on the Sunday before Memorial Day weekend, a day reserved by the Port Washington community for eating good barbecue for a good cause.
Some $7,500 was raised at this year’s Karmacue while more than 230 racks of ribs were cooked between 10 barbecue teams.
Each year, proceeds from the annual barbecue event are donated to the Community Chest of Port Washington, one of Port’s oldest nonprofits, which raises and distributes funds to 26 nonprofits that improve the life of Port residents.
“I am truly grateful for their contributions to our community, and I thank Mark Novick, Doris Novick, Adam Novick and Brian Fogel for all they do to give back to Port Washington,” Kaplan said.
Alper’s donations to Port Washington aren’t just visible through the vibrancy of Port-based charities, but are now physically woven into the community with the store’s recent donation of mini-libraries that offer free books to residents and providing paint for the reopening of the PAL’s sports stadiums.
The two mini-library locations are in front of Alper’s paint store and at the Port Washington train station.
“We are honored to get the award,” Novick said. “It was a moment to reflect on the good of the Port Washington community as a whole.”
He spoke of the supportive web of the Port community and how other businesses in the area have always lent a helping hand. “Karmacue couldn’t happen without them,” he said.
Alper’s True Value Hardware, founded as a jewelry store in 1911, is now selling Carhartt clothing and is one of the only retailers of the industrial clothing line on Nassau County’s North Shore.
