Valley Stream Facebook page goes viral

What started as a bit of a joke, has quickly become a popular site for Valley Stream natives to share memories of their time in the community.

In just a month, the Facebook page “I Grew Up in Valley Stream, NY 1970-2000” has more than 4,200 fans with new people joining every day. It was started by Ally Azzarelli, a 1990 Central High School graduate who now lives in New Jersey.

Azzarelli said she had joined the “Valley Stream, NY” Facebook page that was started by Sen. Dean Skelos but there wasn’t much of interest for her generation. All the postings, she said, were of pictures or memories from the 1950s and 60s. “I didn’t recognize Wetsons or the open-air Green Acres Mall everyone spoke about,” she said. “I joked with the other fans that I was going to start my own page for my generation.”

At the suggestion of long-time Valley Stream resident John Urgo, she did just that, and launched “I Grew Up in Valley Stream, NY 1970-2000” on Feb. 23. The page began with some simple poll questions, asking people what street they grew up on, what kind of car they drove in high school, or their favorite pizza place. “ I noticed that the more basic I kept it, the more replies we got,” Azzarelli said. “Questions about the prom and scouts were a flop — very few replies compared to ‘What grammar school did you attend?’” 

Azzarelli, moved to Valley Stream when she was 6 years old, but her mother and other relatives grew up in the community. Her grandfather was a mail carrier in Valley Stream and her grandmother drove the bus for the Creative Country Day School.

Though her family has a long history in Valley Stream, Azzarelli was really interested in sharing memories from her generation. She thought her page would get maybe a few hundred fans — she never envisioned it would have thousands of followers. “It’s unbelievable how far we’ve grown,” she said.

Azzarelli credits the success of her group to the viral aspect of Facebook. One person joins and their friends see it and join, and then their friends see it and join, and so on.

Keeping up with the page has become almost a full-time job, Azzarelli said. However, she has help. Anthony Basile, who now lives in Arizona, is also an administrator of “I Grew Up in Valley Stream, NY 1970-2000.”