Sunday, November 9, 2025
As part of a coordinated effort by several community organizations, Elmont Memorial High School hosted a winter clothing drive for local residents in need on Feb. 8. Many volunteers at the event stressed the importance of community participation in addressing the growing need for resources and financial support across Long Island, encouraging people to get involved locally.
The Elmont PTSA, ICNA Relief, the Young Muslims, the Elmont Key Club and the office of Nassau County Legislator Carrie Solages worked together to collect supplies, including clothing in children’s and adult sizes, which were arrayed on tables in the school’s senior cafeteria. They included hats, gloves, sweaters, jeans and coats, along with some toys and gifts.
According to 2023 U.S. Census Bureau statistical estimates, over 6 percent of Long Island residents live below the poverty line, meaning they earn less than $30,000 per year.
Institutions like Molloy College, however, claim that those numbers are low, and the real figure should be based on a $55,500-per-year income. That would classify close to 20 percent of Long Island residents as “structurally poor.” People’s World, a publication dedicated to labor rights, estimates that the number is closer to 30 percent based on rising cost of goods and services.
Camillea Peterkin, the Elmont High’s PTSA president, said the organization is always trying to help as much as it can in the community, whether by fundraising, organizing community events or creating activities for students.
When Solages’s office contacted the PTSA about organizing the event, Peterkin said, it was a perfect opportunity to help local residents in need. “What I really want people to know,” she said, “is that the PTSA tries to be a driving force for the benefit of our scholars, our teachers and the community in general.”
Solages said his office has partnered with ICNA many times, and the clothing drive is hosted annually with its help. His office coordinated the event in Elmont for the first time this year, and facilitated the relationship between the school and ICNA to help promote it.
It’s important, Solages explained, for any form of help to come from organizations and institutions that people in the community trust. That’s why, he said, it’s also important for groups like ICNA and the Young Muslims to connect with community members at events like the clothing drive.
‘We just want to help people and make it as easy as possible,” he said.
Solages pointed out that an increasing number of Long Island residents fall below the poverty line each year. But, he said, coordinating with faith-based organizations, which are better connected with the community, is a great start in addressing the growing need for food, clothing and other supplies.
According to Abdul Rehman, a volunteer for the ICNA Council for Social Justice, the national humanitarian organization is dedicated to organizing food pantries, back-to-school supply giveaways, fundraisers for victims of natural disasters and any other resources communities need to improve their quality of life.
For the clothing drive, Rehman said, people across the Island donated items at mosques, which ICNA collected and turned over to the school.
In addition to donations, he said, ICNA also applies for grants to fund its humanitarian efforts. Rehman said that Solages recently allocated $50,000 to the nonprofit to launch a food pantry in his district.
As first-, second- and third-generation Muslim Americans, he explained, it is important for the organization to be embedded in society. “Yes, we have different faiths,” he said. “But that’s the beauty of America — people come from different backgrounds. And when something happens, it’s all about serving the community.”
Hamza Khan, the financial lead for the Young Muslims, a national youth organization, said they often collaborate with ICNA and other Nassau County nonprofits. The organization has been around since 1995 and has chapters across the country, more than 10 of them on Long Island.
Its purpose, he said, is to unite kids in the community and create events in which they can interact in a constructive environment. He believes it helps keep them off the street and focused on creating positive connections.
As the fundraising lead for the region, Khan said he works hard to raise money for the nonprofit because it is a crucial part of building a close-knit community that supports those in need. Many of its funds go to ICNA, he said, but they donate to other organizations as well.
The organization is open to children and adults between ages 13 and 25, he said, which means that sustaining its membership is a challenge. It is always trying to get new kids to join.
Finding a community that shares the same values, ideas and customs is a positive experience for new members, Khan added. “They understand where you’re coming from. This is like a brotherhood.”
Two volunteers from the Elmont High Key Club, junior Harsimran Kaur and senior Aafia Ahmed, said that helping at events like these gives them a feeling of being united with their neighbors. Ahmed explained that some communities feel disconnected from one another because they don’t host events that bring them together.
“It kind of, like, binds the community together,” she said. “It allows us to meet more people in our community.”
Kaur agreed, and added, “I always think you should try your best to help the people around you. You never know when you’re going to need the help from others.”
