Wednesday, December 11, 2024
Earlier this year, the Valley Stream Chamber of Commerce pledged a renewed commitment to community outreach. Few have worked harder or represented that ideal better than Lauri LoQuercio, who was recently honored as the Chamber’s 2024 Business Person of the Year.
When it comes to serving her community, both within and beyond the Chamber, LoQuercio relentlessly walks the walk and is constantly on the clock. A tight schedule of volunteer programs, activities, and events makes persistent demands on her time. Just last weekend, the 59-year-old led the Chamber’s second annual food drive, collecting 60 bins of food from three village grocery stores in two days to feed local families in need.
Days before that, she was up at 4 a.m. planning a brunch for the Association of Benefit Administrators, in San Diego, for the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans. Despite her early mornings and late-hour nights, she frets that “there are not enough hours in a day.” And yet for LoQuercio, any time serving others is time well spent.
“I love what I do,” she said. “I love being able to help people in so many ways, and now the Chamber is an extension of that.”
Outside the Chamber, she is a volunteer assistant for Community Outreach and Food Drives at Island Harvest, a regional food bank. Closer to home, she hands out donated food door to door to needy families as a volunteer for the Saint Vincent de Paul food pantry program at Holy Name of Mary Church.
When she is not volunteering or enlisting the help of her fellow Chamber members in one of her latest service projects, LoQuercio is coaching clients through the particulars of life insurance as an agent at New York Life.
“My mission is to help educate people so that they can make the best financial decisions for themselves and their families,” she said.
Authentic face-to-face connection is what has compelled her to stay in the position she’s had for nearly a decade, with no intention of climbing up the company ladder — even if opportunities arise.
“There are next steps that could be taken in my career,” LoQuercio said, “but I would never take them, because I love the personal connection of meeting with families and planning and making a difference in their lives.”
Her strong desire to give back is accompanied by a deep sense of gratitude.
“I feel like I’ve been blessed, and there are so many people in need,” she said. “If you can help, why wouldn’t you?”
As dedicated as LoQuercio has been to living out her “do-good” mantra, she is often moved by others’ displays of generosity. She recalls being at a food drive for Long Island Harvest that collected over 500 pounds of food from the community.
“That was one day, and I thought, it’s crazy to me that all it took was us standing here and asking for it,” LoQuercio said. “If we stayed at home that day, we would have nothing. So, sometimes all it takes is being present.”
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