Thursday, October 1, 2026
Debbi Gyulay never planned on being president of the Valley Stream Chamber of Commerce, but after she got involved via her brother, who she worked with at his auto transmissions shop, the president got a job elsewhere and she was asked to take the position.
Four terms, or eight years, later, Gyulay said the experience enriched her life with friendships she never would have had and skills she never would have thought she would use.
“I learned a lot about myself, actually,” she said. “I thought I couldn’t speak in public, but I can speak in public. I knew I had the qualities to be a leader, but I didn’t know if I’d be able to put them into play, so it showed me that I could.”
Gyulay’s tenure was an education in the ins and outs of Valley Stream’s business community and local government, which she had not had despite living in the village her whole life. She had the opportunity to meet politicians, district attorneys and other local movers and shakers whom she wouldn’t have come into contact with otherwise, which she said she found worthwhile, “just to have a conversation with them.”
Among the most valuable aspects were the relationships she gained, she said.
“It’s more than just the chamber,” she said.
She didn’t expect the position would be as time-consuming as it turned out to be, she said, but meeting the local business owners who invest their livelihoods in the community was another aspect that made the work worthwhile. It also taught her the value to the larger community of support for local businesses.
“The public has more pride in the community when there’s a healthy business community,” Gyulay said. “Local business is the backbone of the community.”
She expressed gratitude to her board and praised her successor, attorney Dominick Minerva, as a levelheaded person with solid leadership abilities, who could bring in younger members.
Gyulay won’t be far, though — she will be a vice president and still very active, although she said she hopes to have a little more time to herself.
