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2009 A Midwinter Night's Dream raises $345,000!
Group surpasses the one million dollar mark
Over five years ago, a dream was born and a journey
had begun. The students of A Midwinter Night’s Dream put on yet another
flawless event Thursday, January 8th 2009. After over ten months of
hard work spent gathering corporate sponsorships, soliciting local
restaurants and businesses for raffles, donations and journal ads, the
39 member committee saw their lofty goal accomplished on a magical
wintry evening at Oheka Castle. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house as
senior committee member Tim Rozmus announced to the 550 guests in
attendance that the students, with an unmatched out pouring of
generosity from the community, had reached their million dollar goal.
Not only did they reach their goal, they surpassed it. The fifth annual
A Midwinter Night’s Dream raised a staggering $345,000 making the five
year total over $1,067,000raised for ALS Research and families
afflicted with the disease.
Last June, as the students kicked
off the 2009 campaign at their Launch Party, the idea of raising a
million dollars for ALS seemed like afar away dream, perhaps even an
unrealistic goal. Leave it to the AMND committee to make it a reality.
The evening was themed “A Million Reasons Why” and was kicked off with
a cocktail hour filled with raffles and silent auction items. Over 80
raffles were donated by local businesses as well as 75 silent auction
items, including a five-day cruise to the Bahamas,a Derek Jeter
autographed “Spiderman Throw” picture, and an autographed Sports
Illustrated Cover of 8-time Gold Metal Winner, Michael Phelps. In
addition to being welcomed by the smiling faces of Northport students,
the guests were greeted in the foyer with a Science Research display.
Four posters from students who have conducted ALS Research internships
over the summer through the AMND Science Research Program initiative
were displayed, illustrating the determination of the students to find
a cure, first-hand, for ALS.
After the guests had been served
hors d’ouevres and dinner,donated entirely by over 45 local
restaurants, they made their way into the Terrace Room. Here, they were
met with a vision. Ms. Emily Climo helped to set the tone by generously
donating all of the beautiful floral centerpieces for the evening,
which were accompanied by table cards listing countless reasons the
students have worked so passionately for the past five years to fight
this disease. The most touching reason of course, read simply “for our
teachers whom we love.” The presentation began with a moving
documentary filmed and edited by Christopher Lynch, a current board
director of AMND. The movie touched the hearts and lifted the spirits
of everyone in attendance as it recounted thepast five inspiring years
of our journey. The smiles on the 6 patients in attendance, including
former teachers Mr. Chris Pendergast and Mr. David Deutsch, truly made
every bit of hard work worthwhile. The students yet again brought hope
into the otherwise devastated lives of the ALS patients everywhere.
The
emcees of the night, Seniors Michelle Dondero and Rebecca Duchi began
by introducing the distinguished guests of the evening,including former
NY Ranger Adam Graves, Senator John Flanagan, Meredith and Valerie
Estess from Project A.L.S. and countless other representatives of ALS
organizations throughout the country. They continued on to acknowledge
every past AMND committee that has helped to create the stepping stones
leading to the million dollar mark. Without them, certainly none of
this success would have been possible. The guest speaker of the
evening, Ms. Debbie Wilpon, was introduced by Senior Kim McGeever. Ms.
Wilpon has worked tirelessly next to the Estess sisters in the fight
against ALS, through her connection with the NY Mets. Ms. Valerie and
Meredith Estess were also honored as Kim presented them with a framed
copy of the Time Magazine that highlighted their ALS Research efforts
in re-programming cells. Project ALS and their team were named “Number1
Medical Breakthrough of the Year” by Time, an incredible and promising
distinction. Following the guest speaker, the Hero for Hope award was
presented to former NY Ranger Adam Graves, by Senior committee members
Taylor Fleming and Nicole Albino. Mr. Graves has become an inspiration
to the students, as he has helped countless people in need and has
never stopped dreaming of a better day.Following the Hero for Hope
Award, Senior committee member Kate Macina presented the Linda Knudsen
Courage Award to Alexis Attardi. Lexie, a seventh grader at Northport
Middle school was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins type Lymphoma last year.
She has overcome numerous struggles in the past year, including various
painful chemotherapy treatments and long stays in the hospital. She is,
however, on her way to a full recovery.She is a true inspiration and a
role-model to us all. Senior Jenna Theofield presented Mr. Fritz
Garrecht and Mr. David Tice, two of AMND’s greatest supporters in the
past five years, with the Presenting Sponsor Award. Together, these two
men have donated over $130,000 to AMND and the million dollar goal
certainly couldn’t have been met without them. Next, Senior Jennifer
Kornblatt presented Kim Gazzoand Salone Domane with the Ron Couture
Spirit Award. This award was started last year after the untimely
passing of Northport High School Guidance Counselor Ron Couture. Kim
Gazzo and Salon Domane have become an unstoppable force in the fight
against ALS. They have generously donated their services to styling all
of the girls’ hair every year for the event, but went above and beyond
this past year. They began a fundraiser at Cow Harbor Day to benefit A
Midwinter Night’s Dream and ALS. They cut hair and did blue hair
extensions for community members to raise awareness and funds for this
disease.
Alumni Sean Flanagan then came to the microphone to
conduct the Live Auction for the evening, which included a two-week
vacation to Hawaii and an autographed painting of Yankee Legends,
Mickey Mantle, Billy Martin and Whitey Ford. The live auction brought
in over $3,500 dollars. To close off the evening, a very special and
unexpected award was presented. Jonathan Foster and the Advisory Board
honored Mr. Don Strasser with the Fifth Anniversary Hero for Hope
Award. Without Mr. Strasser, these past five years would not have been
possible. He puts in countless hours of work every day and inspires all
of his students to worker harder and dream bigger. As Jonathan said,
“He may have never pitched a perfect game, won an Emmy, or brought the
Stanley Cup back tothe Garden after 54 years, but if he isn’t the
definition of a hero, I don’t know what is.” Mr. Don Strasser is truly
deserving of every ounce ofrecognition he received at the event.
On
January 8th, 2009, a dream that was started more than five years ago
was realized. Over one million dollars was raised for ALS and Oheka
Castle was filled, once again, with passion, determination, hope and
love. We are one step closer to a cure. Thank you for all of your
generosity and support through the years!
Pictures from the 2009 Event
About nine months ago, the fourth
“dream team” was born. Twenty-six Northport
High School students came
together under one common goal as the 2008 A Midwinter Night’s Dream Committee.
After tireless months spent gaining corporate sponsors, raffle items, silent
auction items and restaurant donations, their work culminated in a magical gala
fundraiser at Oheka
Castle, raising an
incredible $250,000 for ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease. In only four short years,
the students, under advisor Mr. Don Strasser, have raised $722,000!
The committee members chose a
well-known quote by Mahatma Ghandi as their theme of the evening; “Be the
change you wish to see in the world.” A familiar quote was brought to life on
January 10th, 2008 as the students restored hope in the eyes of ALS
patients and every guest in attendance. The castle was filled, yet again, with the
overwhelming support and generosity of over 450 guests from the Northport
community and beyond. As the guests walked in the door of the Castle at 6:30
pm, they were greeted by the smiling faces of students, many of whom had been
setting up all day long, and a collage of pictures from past events and of
students helping in the fight against ALS. Above all else, they were greeted by
a dream. Started when Mr. David Deutsch was diagnosed with ALS, their dream was
not yet complete, and it was clear on this evening that the students will not
stop fighting until a cure is found. Their dedication was illustrated on the
center of each table as a quote from Valerie Estess, co-Founder of Project
A.L.S. read “We won’t go over it, we won’t go around it. We have to go through
it…together.”
The beautiful floral centerpieces,
so generously donated by Ms. Emily Climo from Garden Room Flowers, helped to
set the wintry tone of the evening. In addition, the Raffle Room was assembled
by students after receiving hundreds of donations from local merchants and businesses.
The grand raffle was a ten-day, all inclusive vacation to Tahiti.
Tickets were sold for $50 each and the magnificent prize was raffled off at the
end of the night to one very lucky winner. There were over 75 Silent Auction
items present at the event, ranging from vacations, sporting events and
memorabilia, to artwork and jewelry, which alone helped to raise $20,000.
At 7:15pm,
delicious specialties from 45 local restaurants were served by the students.
The guests brought their food into the Terrace Room, where the presentation
began at 8:00pm. The night began with a moving video, filmed and edited by past
committee member and current board director, Christopher Lynch. The hosts of the
night, seniors Ali Irving and Sean Flanagan, began by introducing honored
guests of the evening. The guests included actress Edie Falco, Senator John
Flanagan, Valerie and Meredith Estess from Project A.L.S., as well as many
other representatives from ALS clinics and foundations all over the country. The
guest speaker of the evening, introduced by senior Charlotte Miller, was Mr. Warren Schiffer, co-Founder of Wings over Wallstreet and a constant
source of support and inspiration for the students. The Hero for Hope award,
introduced by senior Lacey Vigmostad, was presented by Valerie Estess to
Soprano’s actress Edie Falco. Ms. Falco has been a strong supporter of ALS
research for many years and even went to bat for ALS on the hit show, “Who
Wants to Be a Millionaire?” Furthermore, she is a proud Northport graduate and
was an irreplaceable addition to the event. The Linda Knudsen Courage Award,
after its inception in 2007 in the cherished memory of Linda Knudsen, was
presented by Senior Madison Wade. The award holds a special place in every
committee member’s heart, as both of Linda’s daughters continue to fight ALS
every day. The award was given to the beautiful Erica Josephson, a twelve-year
old girl living in the Northport community with CHARGE syndrome, an extremely
complex and rare syndrome that includes extensive medical and physical
difficulties. Seniors Lauren Lucas and Joelle Parent then introduced a new
award, created after the untimely passing of Northport Guidance Counselor, Mr.
Ron Couture. The Ron Couture Spirit Award was presented to Carson City High School
students and their advisor, Ms. Angila Golik, who were flown to the event from Nevada. These incredible
students heard the AMND committee present at a National Honor Society
Convention and quickly got to work. They accepted and won Northport’s
“Challenge for a Cure” and raised $2,000 for ALS.
To
conclude the evening’s presentation, Senior Sean Flanagan conducted a Live
Auction. The first item was a Goose Gossage Jersey which sold for a remarkable
$1,000 dollars. In addition, the main live auction item was a seven day trip to
St. Maarten in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The willingness of the guests to
participate in the Live Auction is a testament to the wonderful support demonstrated
by the Northport community on a daily basis.
On
January 10th, 2008, the fourth annual A Midwinter Night’s Dream
proved to be another awe-inspiring event, raising an incredible sum of money
for ALS. Most importantly, the Northport students filled the castle with
passion, hope and dedication, and once again, gave everyone a reason to dream.
We can beat ALS, once and for all. Thank you for all of your support!!!
Mr. Deutsch with members of the 2005 A Midwinter Night's Dream Committee: Al Lucia, Meaghan Ogara, Shaun Hager, Jon Foster and Chris Lynch.
2008 Committee Members Kristy Newton, Rebecca Rose and Theresa Nobs with Chris Pendergast
2005 Committee members spending time with Andrew and Ethan Deutsch, the true party animals.
Councilman Stuart Besen and Councilman Mark Cuthbertson with actress Edie Falco at the 2008 event. Edie Falco was the recipient of the 2008 Hero for Hope Award.
2008 Committee Members Joelle Parent and Taylor Gubitosi with guest speaker Warren Schiffer
2007 Committee Member Alyssa Knudsen with Tom Newton, ALS patient who lives in Northport and loved by the students.
2008 Committee Member Charlotte Miller with ALS patient Casey Bank. Casey is very close to all the students at Northport HS and has attended all four of our events.
The Josephson Family and The Knudsen family.
Erica Josephson was the recipient of the 2008 Linda Knudsen Courage Award.
2008 Committee Members Lacey Vigmostad, Joelle Parent and Charlotte Miller with the students from Carson City H.S. in Nevada, the recipients of the 2008 Ron Couture Spirit Award.
2008 Committee members Kim McGeever, Nicole Albino and Jenna Theofield all set-up at the event selling Tahiti tickets. The winner was Jennifer Carroll, a teacher at 5th Avenue Elementary school in the Northport School District.
Junior Members of the 2008 Student Committee. Next year, they will be planning the 5th year anniversary gala where the students will aim to hit the Million Dollar Mark.
Table Cards signed by the
2008 Committee
"We won't go over it"
"We won't go around it"
"We'll go through it...together."
“Believe
in the dream,” was heard whispering throughout the crowd, citing the students’
theme of the year. The speeches echoed this theme with inspiring
quotes, encouraging everyone to do their part and to never give up
hope.
Northport High School students exceeded expectations yet again, raising a grand total of $208,000 at the third annual A Midwinter Night’s Dream.
The ALS fundraiser, which took place at Oheka Castle,
inspired many members of the school and community. “Without “U”, there
is no C-RE,” read the centerpieces on each of the forty tables in the grand ballroom.
As
the 550 guests, many from the Northport and Huntington area, and some
from across the country, entered, they were greeted by a vision. The
vision was one created by the 25 high school students and their advisor
Mr. Don Strasser. For ten months, the students tirelessly worked
towards a common goal- that of doing everything in their power to
contribute to the fight against ALS.
After ten months, and an entire day at Oheka Castle setting up, the students finally saw their hard work pay off. As
the doors opened slightly after 6pm, hundreds flooded through,
their eyes aglow at the beauty of the castle. As the string quartet and piano played on, the Silent Auction, featuring 62 items, ranging from vacations, sporting tickets, sports memorabilia, Broadway tickets and jewelry,
went on in the library. The 78 raffle items set up in the Ballroom were
very popular as well.
At
7:15pm, the food from 45 local restaurants was served by the
students. The guests then brought their food into the Terrace Room,
where the presentation began at 8:00pm. The hosts of the night, seniors
Alyssa Knudsen and Amanda Schram, began by introducing honored guests
of the night. The guests were actor Billy Baldwin, Former New York
Giants Tight End Howard Cross, Former NY Yankee Joe Pepitone and Performing artist Mario Vazquez among many others. Senior Erin Stabile then introduced the
guest speakers of the evening, Ms. Meredith and Valerie Estess. The
Estess sisters founded Project ALS after their sister Jenifer’s
diagnosis. Some of the funds from A Midwinter Night’s Dream are donated
to Project ALS every year, and Project ALS also showed its support for
the students by donating 500 copies of Tales From the Bed, their sister
Jenifer’s memoir.
The
Hero for Hope Awards, presented by Amanda Filiberto and Nicole
Johnston, were awarded to current professional baseball player Curt
Shilling and Howard Cross. Both have taken an active role in ALS awareness and have been extremely dedicated in finding a cure. After
those two awards, the Linda Knudsen Courage Award was introduced by
senior Sarah Pattison. The award was in honor of Linda Knudsen, a
cherished mother and wife. Linda Knudsen passed away of breast cancer
in the fall and her daughters have continued showing
their compassion and sensitivity in her memory. The award was given to Kiley Jayden,
a Northport baby living with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, a disease that
occurs in children and affects them similarly to the way ALS affects
adults.
Seniors
Michelle Gee and Brittany Attardi then thanked the presenting sponsors
of A Midwinter Night’s Dream, who were Fritz Garrecht of East Shore
Partners and Gary Melius, owner of Oheka Castle. The two men are some of the students’ greatest inspirations and have supported them each and every year.
Mario
Vazquez, former American Idol contestant, now well-known for his single
“Gallery,” then performed, to the delight of every guest in the room. His performance changed the mood of the night and gave
everyone some time to relax and enjoy everything that was going on. The
winners of the Silent Auction items, raffles, and the 2 week Hawaiian Vacation
were announced later in the evening.
The
A Midwinter Night’s Dream Committee continues to work towards a cure
for ALS, and looks forward to attending many more ALS fundraisers this
spring, and to begin the planning for A Midwinter Night’s Dream 2008. Thanks for all your support !
Mr and Mrs Deutsch with members of the 2005 A Midwinter Night's Dream Committee: Chris Lynch, Jon Foster, Al Lucia, Shaun Hager and Meaghan O'gara.
2007 Committee members with recording artist Mario Vazquez. Committee members are Ali Irving, Lauren Lucas, Dana Cooper, Amalia Sirica, Brittany Attardi, Lacey Vigmostad, Amanda Schram and Michelle Gee.
Recording artist Mario Vazquez donated his time and performed a small concert for the crowd.
2007 Committee member Amanda Schram with actor Billy Baldwin
2007 Committee member Sarah Pattison presenting Kiley Jayden McDonnell with the 2007 Linda Knudsen Courage Award. Kiley Jayden is suffering from SMA, Spinal Muscular Atrophy, a rare genetic disease that closely resembles ALS.
2007 Committee Member Amanda Schram with Tom Newton. Tom Newton, an ALS patient who lives in Northport, has spoken to the Northport students on numerous occasions. He always gives them hope and inspires them to dream big.
2007 Committe member Sarah Pattison with elementary school teacher Chris Pendergast. Mr. Pendergast has always been a teacher to these students and they look up to him as their hero.
2007 Committee members Lauren Lucas, Ali Irving and Catherine Macaluso with former NY Giant Tight end Howard Cross. Howard Cross was the 2007 recipient of the Hero for Hope Award.
2007 Committee member Charlotte Miller with Casey Bank and Billy Baldwin.
2007 Committee members Erin Stabile, Amalia Sirica and Brittany Attardi with our guest speakers of the night Meredith and Valerie Estess
2007 Committee member Amanda Schram with former NY Yankee first baseman Joe Pepitone.
Save the Date, Fourth Annual A Midwinter Night's Dream: January 10th 2008
