Levittown Community Council helps the town and residents prosper
Every town needs someone to watch over the goings on of the community and residential quality of life. For Levittowners, they can thank the Levittown Community Council (LCC). Founded in 1998, the LCC strives to build spirit and pride in the community. Louise Cassano is currently the second vice president of the LCC and has previously served as charter president for five years. Cassano, along with a board of five or six people run the organization and meet monthly, with the constant goal of building a tremendous sense of community among residents.
“Several of us helped to organize the town’s 50th anniversary celebration. After that, we missed each other’s company and we wanted to do good and continue the feeling of community spirit, so we started the council and a charter almost 20 years ago,” said Cassano. “I chair the Lazy Days of Summer event in July and Winter Fest event in February. The events are very large so it takes a lot of work and volunteers and everyone is truly more than happy to lend a hand.”
To clarify, the Levittown Community Council is different than the Levittown Chamber of Commerce. Even longtime residents tend to get confused, but both exist to serve the community.
“The chamber is an organization that benefits business in the community and their mission is to help businesses be prosperous. The community council is an organization whose membership is comprised of other organizations and residents,” said Cassano, adding that it is the council’s goal to bring together the community organizations with the people of the community. “We put out a calendar from day one of our initiatives and events. There are 13 different community organizations that are a part of the council.”
Levittown itself is coming up on a big birthday and there are big plans in place for the 70th anniversary. While the LCC is separate from the special events crew handling anniversary, Cassano believes that overall, the event will be a “great feeling camaraderie and community.”
“We update the calendar on our Facebook page frequently, but the first event the council used as a starting point to the anniversary celebration was the Earth Day cleanup,” said Cassano. “We’ve asked all of the organizations involved to take one of their signature events and give it a 70th anniversary theme, which will actually serve as an introduction to the 75th anniversary, which will take place in 2022.”
Cassano’s goal along with the rest of the council is to make the community aware of Levittown’s history.
“There are so many new people who don’t understand the history of the community and why it’s so important to celebrate,” she said, noting that when Levittown was first formed, it was doomed to not last very long and many feared it would become a slum. “There were terrible prognostications made in the ‘40s when Levitt and Sons were building the community. We had a major celebration for the 50th anniversary to prove that we have survived and have become a better community.”
This upcoming October, there will be a dinner and dance inviting residents to come together to kick off the celebrations. Cassano said that the council chose October because October 1947 was the time when the first residents of Levittown moved into their homes.
“You can expect a lot of old-fashioned games for the Lazy Days event this summer; things people did years ago for entertainment like three-legged races and sack races,” she said. “We’re focusing on the theme of celebrating our history.”
Whether you are a longtime resident of Levittown or have just recently moved to the neighborhood, Cassano said the council will always welcome volunteers.
“Every year we give a junior volunteer award to a middle school student who has done exceptional community work outside of school. These are our ways of reaching out to the community and making people aware of who we are,” she said. “People can get involved by personal invitation, but when we have an event and people are interested, everyone is welcome to come down and volunteer. It’s a community effort and we want the community to be represented.”
For more information on the Levittown Community Council, visit www.facebook.com/pg/LevittownCommunityCouncilInc.
