First Annual West Islip Summit Attracts Several Hundred Residents

In an unprecedented gathering of educational, business and community leaders along with local residents, the First Annual West Islip Summit was held at West Islip High School the evening of October 28. The event included a number of student demonstrations and the West Islip Chamber of Commerce's yearly Business Expo.


The First Annual Summit was the culmination of the year long effort of the West Islip Summit Council, an organization formed in 2008 that features volunteers from all parts of West Islip: education, business, civic and youth groups and local residents. The idea of a Summit in Islip Town's western most hamlet was hatched by Steve Gellar, president of the West Islip Board of Education and Annmarie LaRosa, vice-president of the Board of Education.


"West Islip's first Summit was a great success," said Gellar. "We had a great turnout by local residents and we were also pleased to see a number of elected officials come out and support the Summit. It shows us that our government officials know we are serious about making West Islip an even better place to live."


Among the elected officials in attendance at the Summit was State Senator Owen Johnson, State Assemblymen Andrew Raia and Phil Boyle, County Executive Steve Levy, Country Treasurer Angie Carpenter, County Legislator Thomas Barraga, Islip Town Supervisor Phil Nolan, and Islip Town Councilmen Christopher Bodkin, John Edwards and Steve Flotteron.


Residents in attendance at the Summit received an overview of the many issues the Summit Coalition has tackled during the past year. West Islip High School's orchestra, band and Vocal Motion provided the evening's entertainment and many of the hamlet's local businesses and community groups took part in the annual West Islip Chamber of Commerce Business Expo.


"The turnout and excitement created by the Summit went far beyond our expectations," said LaRosa. "It was great to see so many residents come out to celebrate the many wonderful things about our community. We have many plans in the works and we invite more community members to join the West Islip Summit Coalition."

West Islip Summit Works With Local Churches To Boost Food Donations

With demand for food from local residents struggling to make ends meet during the current tough economic times growing, the cupboards of local churches are near empty as the need is far outweighing the level of donations.


As a result, local houses of worship including Our Lady of Lourdes and the West Islip Church of Christ have reached out to the West Islip Summit Coalition seeking to get the word out that food donations from the community for those living in the hamlet are desperately needed.


"We are very, very low on supplies," said Mary McMahon, head of Outreach Programs at Our Lady of Lourdes. "August is a month when many local families go on vacation, but the needs of the poor never take a vacation. We provide food to anyone in West Islip that can substantiate the need."


Similar to many other communities across Long Island, there has been growing demand for food from local residents who are seeking more help to stretch tight budgets as a result of possible job loss or salary reductions.


Jesse Pettengill, pastor with the Church of Christ, reported seeing what he termed a "definite" increase in demand for food from his church's pantry. "I would say it is something along the lines of a 50% increase over the past two years," he said. "The increase represents seniors, families with children and those homeowners that may be in distress and trying to avoid foreclosure."


McMahon and Pettengill said residents able to help restock near empty church pantries are can donate a variety of canned goods and non-perishable items. These items include boxed pasta, pasta sauces, peanut butter, jelly, canned soups and vegetables, hot or cold cereals, pancake mix, condiments and canned meats and fish.


"One of the outcomes of receiving this food is that [those in need] are able to reclaim dollars that can be used for their other expenses," Pettengill added.


Those interested in donating food can do so at Our Lady of Lourdes, 455 Hunter Avenue; or Church of Christ, 600 Montauk Highway.

 

Article courtesy of WestIslipTribune.com

West Islip Summit Coalition, KIC Team To Spruce Up West Islip Beach

With Islip Town officials in the early stages of developing a plan to improve conditions at the West Islip Beach and Marina, a group of volunteers led by the West Islip Summit Coalition and Keep Islip Clean (KIC) gathered recently to give the beach's bath house a facelift with a fresh coat of paint.


The gathering of local residents, comprised mainly of high school students spent a sunny, warm July afternoon at the beach with paint brushes and rollers, all in an effort to help spruce up West Islip's only public access to the Great South Bay.


"This really embodies what the Summit was created for; positive energy all flowing in the same direction to stand up and help ourselves," said Annmarie LaRosa, vice-president of the West Islip Board of Education and a driving force behind the founding of the West Islip Summit Coalition.


The idea to paint the bath house was formulated from the Summit Coalition's Quality of Life Committee. Bill Johnston, a member of the committee and chairman of KIC, teamed with Nancy Cochran, KIC's executive director, to gather volunteers for the endeavor.


"We were thrilled by the turnout," said Cochrane. "We had a good mix of high school students, community members and Good Samaritan [Hospital Medical Center] also sent some volunteers along with lunch and cookies."


She noted that prior to the two days of painting, Islip Town under the direction of Parks Commission Greg Dawson had the structure sand blasted. All paint for the project was also provided by the Town.
While the bath house now has a fresh coat of paint, this could ultimately be the first step to improving the overall condition of the West Islip Beach & Marina. Last month Islip Town Supervisor Phil Nolan teamed with Suffolk County Legislator Thomas Barraga (R-West Islip) to hold a town-hall style public hearing focused on the future of the beach.


At that meeting, most residents in attendance spoke in support of keeping the beach clean and properly maintained, and called for restoring the beach house. Most were against any significant commercial development such as opening a restaurant. 

 

Article courtesy of WestIslipTribune.com

Community Turns Out At First West Islip Summit Community Forum

With the goal of bringing the West Islip community together to face and overcome challenges across the community, the West Islip Summit Coalition held its first Community Forum to inform local residents about the goals of the organization and seek input on key issues.

 

Since December, a group of some 40 representatives from the school district, local businesses, organizations and residents have been meeting to form committees and lay the groundwork for the first West Islip Summit scheduled for October 28.

 

With more than 100 residents in attendance at the Beach Street Middle School Auditorium, Steve Gellar, co-chair of the Summit Coalition, said the solid turnout showed him that most people understand why a summit is important today for West Islip.

 

"We are dealing with an oppressive homestead tax rate, challenging economic conditions, vacant buildings and litter in certain areas," he said. "We need to start working together and speak with one voice to get our message heard. That is the objective of the Summit Coalition."

 

While details of the October Summit will be ironed out in the coming months, Gellar said the basic framework of the event as it stands now will include a West Islip Chamber of Commerce Business Expo, speeches from local elected officials and participation from student groups. "It is really about putting a bright light on the many great things in West Islip," he added.

 

But the Summit Coalition is not just about working toward developing an annual summit, he explained. Throughout the year, the coalition's subcommittees will meet regularly to discuss important issues being discussed throughout the community. The coalition's subcommittees include business development/enrichment, youth services, beautification/historic preservation, quality of life, public relations and West Islip Summit.

 

"In some of our meetings, we have heard recurring themes such as park and recreation issues," said Annmarie LaRosa, co-chair of the West Islip Summit Coalition. "A big issue is Casamento Park and the Higbie Center. We are talking with town officials to let them know what we need. But we also want to spark some interest from more local residents to have them come to us with new ideas and bring them to the right subcommittees."

 

During the community forum, several residents spoke on a variety of topics ranging from traffic issues on Montauk Highway, street maintenance in the north side of West Islip, issues surrounding Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center and the need to address youth recreation issues.

 

Artticle courtesy of WestIslipTribune.com