Merrick chamber celebrates the holidays

The Merrick Chamber of Commerce celebrated the holidays in style on Monday with its annual party to honor community volunteers who have contributed to the success of the group’s Fall Festival and Kids’ Fest in the spring.

The holiday party was held at Carlyle on the Green at Bethpage State Park, with roughly 75 chamber members and local leaders attending. Margaret Mueller, the current chamber president, addressed the group, speaking about the friends she has made during her two-year tenure as the chamber’s head. And chamber co-vice presidents Ira Reiter and Randy Shotland honored Al Lage and Ilene Dixel, the Merrick Herald’s former account executive, for their hard work in organizing the festivals.

In attendance were a host of local dignitaries, including Julie Marchesella, the Merrick chamber’s former president, now first vice president of the Nassau County Council of Chambers of Commerce; Tom Riordan and Vince Gabrielle, former commanders of American Legion Post No. 1282; Jay Pitti, a Merrick environmental advocate who developed the plan for Norman J. Levy-Lakeside Park and Preserve in Merrick; and Richard Kessel, president and CEO of the New York Power Authority.

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