Thursday, October 1, 2026
What began in 1997 with 11 nets and 200 shirts has grown into Long Beach’s largest beach volleyball tournament, and a local tradition rooted in community, resilience and giving back.
The Michele O’Neill Foundation hosted its 29th annual volleyball tournament last Saturday, with 510 competitive and recreational teams crowding 81 nets along the sand — the largest competition to date for the foundation. The daylong event also included music, raffles and prizes including an autographed Mark Messier hockey stick and Jimmy Hayes Steakhouse gift cards.
The foundation is a nonprofit benefiting children with cancer and special needs. It supports families dealing with the financial hardships of caring for children with catastrophic illnesses.
“We would have never known in 29 years it would grow this much,” Carol O’Neill, who founded the foundation in memory of her daughter, said as she took in the view of more than 500 volleyball teams stretched across Edwards Boulevard Beach.
Michelle O’Neill, a Long Beach resident, was diagnosed with cancer as a high school senior in 1989. Known for her talent as a watercolorist and having a “sunny outlook” on life, her mother said, she died in 1996. Her family created the foundation a year later.
“The biggest challenge was we had just lost Michelle,” CarylAnn Niven, O’Neill’s eldest daughter, recalled.
Even after Michelle was diagnosed, she attended Nassau Community College as well as SUNY Oneonta, graduating with a degree in interdisciplinary studies — all while receiving treatment. She had a “very powerful impact on anyone who knew her,” her mother said.
Organizations like Ronald McDonald House, the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Big Sky Kids had supported the O’Neills during Michelle’s treatment, and this year’s tournament sponsors included the Frances Pope Memorial Foundation, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and Ronald McDonald House Charities New York Metro. Their logos were emblazoned on more than 4,500 shirts; banners lined the entrance to the beach, the boardwalk and the volleyball courts; and raffle donors were recognized both on site and across social media.
“We are so grateful that they include us,” said Matt Campo, CEO of Ronald McDonald House.
“We want to give back to families the way we were helped,” O’Neill said.
Ronald McDonald House and the O’Neill Foundation have worked together for over three decades. Since its beginnings, the foundation has made annual contributions to the charity, ranging from preparing meals to funding a dedicated bedroom in 2014. In return, Ronald McDonald House named a rooftop retreat in honor of Michelle.
Competition last Saturday was fierce, with the team Electric Volleyball taking first prize in the four-person bracket and Two Generations winning the six-person crown.
Carol O’Neill, who has lived in Long Beach for 53 years, remembers the first tournament fondly — it took place on the Kentucky Street Beach in the West End 28 years ago. She had ordered 200 shirts, and set up 11 nets along the beach. The shirts — known today as “Smiley Wear” — sported a yellow smiley face, a design O’Neill drew as a tribute to her daughter’s attitude toward life.
The tournament brings the city of Long Beach together, she said, and is “an incredible display of community spirit and generosity. We would not be successful anywhere else.”
For more information on the Michelle O’Neill Foundation, go to Mon.Foundation.org. More on Ronald McDonald House NY Metro can be found at RMHcnym.org.
