________ Franklin square/elmont _______
HERALD Flag football team wins big
local charity hosts craft fair
Students go tech-free
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Vol. 26 No. 50
DECEMBER 5 - 11, 2024
$1.00
Media Origin Inc./Herald
long Island champions! Carey capped a perfect season last Friday afternoon with a thrilling 37-36 victory over Half Hollow Hills East in the Long Island Class II football championship game at Hofstra University. Story, additional photos, page 6.
The Islanders collaborate with community to distribute meals By RENEE DEloRENZo rdelorenzo@liherald.com
The New York Islanders collaborated with local charities and the office of Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages to hand out 200 Thanksgiving meals to Long Island families in need at UBS Arena on the evening of Nov. 26. The event was supported by the Islanders’ Children’s Foundation and UBS. Solages, who represents the 22nd Assembly District, said her role is to refer people in need to such services. Her office, she said, does case work to help constituents who face financial hardship.
“We interact with many families and communities that are, unfortunately, in a bad situation,” Solages said. Ann Rina, the Islanders’ executive director of community relations, said her role is to partner with agencies such as Island Harvest and Long Island Cares to help her find families in need. Long Island is an expensive place to live, she said, and when food prices go up, people in all kinds of circumstances can become food insecure. “We’re just looking to help as many families as we can,” Rina said. Elba Obregon, the associate director of brand activation,
sponsorship and events at UBS Arena, said her team is involved in the Elmont community through events and partnerships with schools and charities. That’s how they identify the need for events like this one, Obregon said. “Obviously, this is their community,” she said. “We want them to feel like they belong here, and that they’re welcomed.” Katrina Hill, Long Island Cares’ vice president of network relations, helps organize the charity’s participation in the event. The Islanders reach out to the organization every year, Hill said, about the Thanksgiving effort.
L o n g I s l a n d C a re s, s h e explained, has a network of member agencies, such as soup kitchens and food pant r i e s, t h at wo rk w i t h t h e Islanders to get their clients and members involved. “We are out in the community,” Hill said. “We partner with as many organizations as we can to make sure our families are getting the food that they
need.” Hill also said that Long Island Cares works closely w i t h t h e N ew Yo rk S t at e Department of Health and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to secure additional funding. “Any community resources we can get, we’re out advocating for,” she said. Continued on page 5