Garden City Historical Society Celebrates The Givers

For this year’s annual benefit, the Garden City Historical Society decided to not only commemorate its namesake community’s 150th anniversary, but honor a trio of local nonprofits that define the term selflessness. Held at the Garden City Hotel, this event shone the spotlight on The Mollie Biggane Melanoma Foundation and Maggie and Jack Biggane; The Andy Foundation and Jill Palmeri; and the Garden City Athletic Association Challenger Sports Program and Al Vanasco.

The Bigganes, Palmeri and Vanasco have all given back. Vanasco, through his work with the Garden City Athletic Association (GCAA) and its Challengers Program, which has been a program that’s allowed special needs children to compete in myriad sports programs; Palmeri, whose Andy Foundation has provided roughly more than $1 million to more than 30 organizations over the past 15 years; and the Biggane family, who have brought both an awareness of and a better level of skin cancer health to all residents of Garden City, the region and all across the United States via their Mollie Fund.

The evening’s event brought out numerous Historical Society boosters, local celebrities and dignitaries including former Mayor John Watras, Town of Hempstead Supervisor Laura Gillen, novelist Nelson DeMille, Legislator Laura Schaefer, Assemblyman Ed Ra and Town of Hempstead Clerk Sylvia Cabana.