Wednesday, March 26, 2025
The New York Islanders partnered with UBS Arena and Belmont Park Village to host their fifth annual Cultural Inspiration Patch Program Design Contest in November. Fifth-graders from the Elmont, Hempstead and Uniondale school districts submitted their artwork, inspired by their cultural heritage, competing in a pool of over 400 students.
The 14 winners of the contest, and their families, were given tickets to the Feb. 4 Islanders game against the Vegas Golden Knights, as well as T-shirts with their respective patch designs, which were handed out during a 5 p.m. pre-game celebration at the village.
A professional airbrush artist, Zoie Lam, also created T-shirts for each contest winner with a special design for their name. The group of more than 60 guests was treated to free coffee and hot chocolates at the village restaurant, Pret A Manger.
After the celebration, the group walked from the village to the arena to watch the game. In between the second and third periods, the students gathered, and appeared on the jumbotron above the ice rink as a public-address announcer listed their winning designs.
For the patch contest, intended to be a creative intersection of art and sports, students created a design that incorporated their culture with aspects of the Islanders’ history, such as their logo.
For example, Josias Saba, a student at California Avenue School in Uniondale, combined the team’s logo with the flag of his parent’s home country, Honduras. As someone who loves art and sports, Josias said, he enjoyed being able to include details from his cultural heritage in the design of his patch.
The winning designs were produced as patches and stickers, which the Islanders funded, and given to schools so students could sell their artwork. The funds raised through the sales will be donated to charities of the students’ choosing.
Children of a variety of cultural backgrounds — Greek, Honduran, Pakistani, Haitian, Salvadoran, Asian — took part in the contest, which generated a wide-ranging collection of designs that represented the community’s diversity.
Alexander Seretis, who attends Stewart Manor School in Elmont, is of Chinese and Greek heritage. His patch design merged elements from the Islanders’ logo and a trophy with the Greek flag and two olive branches. He said he was very proud of his cultural background, and was happy to share it as part of the contest.
The acknowledgement and celebration of local diversity is part of the Islander’s commitment to giving back to the community, as well as an initiative laid out in the village’s DO GOOD program. The program exists at all 12 villages owned by their developer, The Bicester Collection, in Europe, China and the U.S., and partners with local charities aimed to empower women and children.
Tania Lawes, a community director for Belmont Park Village and the director of external affairs and community engagement for the Islanders, has been directing the patch contest since 2020. She said the village was proud to celebrate the creativity of young artists and their special contributions to the community.
“It was a privilege to welcome the winning fifth-grade students and their families to the village,” Lawes said. “We look forward to continuing to support initiatives that empower and uplift the next generation.”
Lily Seretis, Alexander’s mother, said that empowerment is precisely what winning the contest offered her son. She said he is always busy with school and his hobbies, which include playing the cello, cooking for the family and being a member of his school’s robotics team. But, Lily continued, it was great to see Alexander, who puts so much hard work into everything he does, be recognized for his talents.
“I’m very proud of him,” she said. “He just follows his heart. He can build more confidence and do more in the future. He can believe in himself.”
As for Josiah Saba, who said he is a big fan of the Islanders, combining his interest in artwork with his love for the team was a fun experience, and it was exciting to be recognized at last week’s game.
Jason Katz, the chief commercial officer of The Bicester Collection, said it is important to stay connected with local residents in order to keep the village a unique, community-driven destination for guests.
“Just as we invite our guests to be part of village life,” Katz said in a statement, “we are equally committed to building meaningful connections, supporting local initiatives, and contributing to the community we now call home.”
According to a news release about the collection, the Elmont village is still in the process of identifying key local charities to work with. As of now, it has begun work with the Islanders Children’s Foundation, but it plans to expand community initiatives in an effort to further connect with locals.
