Thursday, October 1, 2026
The Kiwanis Club of Long Beach hosted its fourth annual Women’s History Month Brunch on March 15, recognizing three local women. Norah Finn Kelleher, Ilene Fox and Sammi Metzger were this year’s honorees, and nearly 100 people gathered at the Long Beach Hotel for the event. The Kiwanians were joined by members of the City Council, City Manager Dan Creighton and Nassau County Legislator Pat Mullaney.
Kiwanis has held the celebration each year since 2023 to recognize outstanding women in the community. It also serves as a fundraiser, to help the club send children from disadvantaged homes to summer programs.
Kiwanis President Marianne Raisig explained that the honorees are chosen by club members based on their impact on the local community. This year’s featured women share a common theme of empowering students and fostering the creative arts.
Fox acknowledges a driving force behind her work at Realize Harmony, an organization that supports local school art programs and offers scholarships to music and art students: Her late husband, Allan, a musician, artist and board member of the Long Beach Arts Council who founded the company in 2020. “[He] passed away suddenly in 2021, and I needed to continue his legacy of compassion and kindness,” Fox said. “Through his book, ‘Doodles,’ I’ve been able to inspire people worldwide.”
Finn Kelleher made the transition from two decades of service in the New York City Police Department to more than 15 years as president of the Dorothy Finn Foundation, named for her mother, a lifelong dancer and animal rights activist. Finn Kelleher has organized the annual Finn Fest comedy and music festival in Island Park each summer since 2009, raising funds for the foundation while supporting local musicians and comedians.
When Metzger isn’t teaching math at Long Beach Middle School, she can be found coordinating events as the director of Arts in the Plaza, which she has overseen for the past 15 years. An advocate for handcrafted artistry, Metzger believes in the powerful message of supporting artists on an individual basis.
“For me, that’s what life is all about,” she said. “It’s about humans connecting with other humans. It’s about creating beautiful things and sharing [them] with the world. It’s about gathering together to celebrate what makes all of us amazing and unique and incredible. It’s about spreading love and scattering joy.”
The Kiwanis Club of Long Beach, which was founded in 1957, focuses on helping area children by sending them to summer camps and education programs, organizing food drives and more. The club regularly hosts fundraisers and charitable outreach efforts, from its annual Playing in the Pubs Day, in support of musical programs for local children, to back-to-school supply drives.
On March 31, the club will present a road safety program in collaboration with the city Police Department and Mothers Against Drunk Driving at Long Beach High School. The club has arranged for juniors and seniors with learner’s permits or driver’s licenses to use two driving simulators as well as “impairment goggles,” which replicate the disorienting effects of impaired driving. The program is designed to illustrate the risks of underage substance use and highlight safe strategies for beginner drivers.
For more information on Kiwanis programs, go to kiwanisclublb.org.
