Community Chest honors those who help

After Hurricane Sandy devastated the community last October, the Woodmere-based Five Towns Community Chest decided to cancel their Neighbors in Need fundraiser concert, scheduled for Nov. 15, 2012, and give the proceeds directly to storm victims.

On Nov. 21, the organization will host the fourth annual event at The Woodmere Club and honor Hewlett Harbor residents Craig Spatz, and

his wife Elisha, as well as The Woodmere Club Charitable Foundation, headed by Lawrence resident Adam Russell.

Spatz, who has worked in the Five Towns for nearly 20 years, began at the Fleet Bank, formerly on Grove Avenue in Cedarhurst, in 1997

and since 2004 as senior vice president and group director at Signature Bank in Woodmere. “I sought to offer my assistance to the

community as my parents have always instilled the passion of community service,” he said. “I found and was embraced by the

Five Towns Community Chest, where I discovered that volunteering my free time is most rewarding.”

Since becoming involved with Community Chest in 2004, Spatz has held multiple positions including youth board director, chairman

and president. He is currently an active member of the board of directors. “This organization, which has been around since the 1930s, acts as an umbrella organization and actively helps people in

need,” Spatz said. “We don’t just support one need, we support

multiple needs by giving funding to various agencies in the community, such as the Five Towns Community Center, Peninsula Counseling Center and the Five Towns Early Learning Center, so

they are able to support their clients and constituents.”

Russell said The Woodmere Club Charitable Foundation was created in 2007 in an attempt to unify member’s charitable donations, instead

of having them contribute individually. “Rather than have donations be scattered among various organizations, we asked members to make a

donation on behalf of the club to the Charitable Foundation, which in turn would distribute the funds,” he said. “Each year, depending

on how much is raised, a certain percentage is given to the Five Towns Community Chest. The members of our club are very proud of their association with the organization and want to make sure we can contribute the best we can so they can continue to do the great work that they’re doing.”

Lawrence resident Cori Berke has been a part of Community Chest for nearly 20 years and is coordinating the Neighbors in Need event along with Diane Ratner. “We both realize that Chest still has a lot of work to do in these difficult financial times and because the effects of Hurricane Sandy are still being felt by many of our neighbors,” Berke said. “We hope that the Neighbors in Need event reminds our community of how important the Five Towns Community Chest is and provides a fun evening.”

Berke appreciates the work performed by the Spatzes and is delighted that the organization is recognizing the couple. “Craig continues

to work tirelessly for the chest’s success,” she said. “Elisha has been by his side joining out efforts since they met and married. They are truly the backbone of our organization.”

Ratner, a Woodmere resident, joined Community Chest in the 1990s, as her parents were active in the organization in the ’60s and ’70s. “Their involvement in giving back to the community was a wonderful model to follow and the work that chest does is vital in supporting the agencies that support everyone in our community,” she said. “Our primary goal with the event is to raise as much money as we can so that we can provide for our neighbors and raise awareness in the

community; it’s important that everyone knows who we are and what we do.”