The Kiwanis Club of East Meadow’s November festivities ended with its annual Frank Saracino Memorial Senior and Military Dinner.
The dinner featured live entertainment, stuffed turkey, and opportunities for attendees to hear the fascinating stories of East Meadow’s seniors at East Meadow High School on Nov. 23.
“This is one of our biggest weekends of giving in support of our community,” Kiwanis Club President Donna Goldstein said. “We touch everyone from senior citizens to the military, to our families in our schools.”
Mike Leake co-chaired the dinner project with his wife, Julie, who oversaw reservations for the event. Leake moved to East Meadow five years ago and soon thereafter, assumed responsibility for this annual Kiwanis event, carrying on the tradition of giving back to local veterans and seniors.
“I’m a retired restaurant owner, and that really aligns with my values, and I have a soft spot for seniors and military families,” Leake said. “It’s a great opportunity especially for us senior residents who don’t necessarily get out. It’s an opportunity for them to all come together, you know, and possibly see old friends that they haven’t seen in years.”
“Kiwanis is about (being) a part of your community and serving your community,” he continued.
Steve LaSala, a 10-year member of the Kiwanis Club, helped make the dinner happen with days of work leading towards Sunday: “This year I was one of the cooks,” he explained. The team fed about 350 people.
For the past several years, LaSala became more involved with the functions of the annual dinner, planning and shopping for ingredients. On the day of the dinner, cooking began at 7 a.m. and continued until doors opened four hours later.
In addition to dinner, the high school’s orchestra played music for attendees, several dignitaries gave speeches, and local elected officials even participated in cooking the meals.
The Kiwanis Club came in full force to support the effort.
“A majority of our Kiwanis was either carving turkeys or making plates for everybody,” LaSala said. “I walked around talking with everybody. It seemed like everybody had a very good time and was very happy.”
The five-course meal came complete with appetizers, soup, salad, an entree and even a handmade dessert: rice pudding.
A large portion of the event’s staff was the Key Club, a Kiwanis Club division for high school students. Leading the Key Club was their advisor, Catherine Razzano, a member of the Kiwanis Club.
“It was phenomenal,” she said, “we had a really phenomenal turnout.”
The dinner is the last of several November events that the Kiwanis Club conducts. The club organizes two seasonal food drives each year: one in the spring and one in the fall. Earlier this month, volunteers accepted sealed food items, ingredients as well as gift cards for those in need. Kiwanis-affiliated Students from all grades sorted the food into packages prepared for distribution on Nov. 21, and the next day, they delivered the packages to families.
The festivities are far from over: the next major Kiwanis event is an annual toy drive in December, chaired by Goldstein.
To learn more about upcoming events, visit k03823.Site.Kiwanis.org.
