By Nick Buglione
That's because if Kimler lived about two houses further away from McVey Elementary School, her daughter would have been eligible for bussing and she might have never been compelled to volunteer. "I had to drive my daughter to school every day, and I figured I'd get involved," she said.
Eighteen years later, Kimler is now regarded as one of East Meadow's most dedicated PTA members, and she was among the 32 parents and teachers honored at the 32nd annual Founder's Day Scholarship Dinner at Jericho Terrace Monday, March 14.
Some 450 people attended the gala event, the proceeds of which will go toward scholarships for deserving students at both of the local high schools.
"In Founder's Day observances, PTA members commemorate the founders and leaders in the organization of PTA," said Judy Shiechel, president of the East Meadow PTA Council.
Every year, the PTA Council and each of the other 10 PTAs in the East Meadow School District select up to three parents, teachers or students who've made extraordinary contributions to the local schools.
The East Meadow PTA Council picked Kimler and Marian Wawryk as its honorees, though the two are no strangers to receiving recognition on Founder's Day.
Both were honored twice before, when they served on their respective elementary and middle school PTAs.
This time around, however, the honor was a little sweeter, said Wawryk, a 21-year resident of Salisbury. "This is the crème de la crème," she said. "To be a PTA Council honoree is such an honor."
Wawryk, mother of Kristin, 21, Kaitlyn, 19, and Stephen, 17, began her many years of service first as a member of the Meadowbrook Elementary School PTA in 1988. She climbed the leadership ladder, taking on a number of offices, including recording secretary, corresponding secretary and vice president. "I wanted to be involved in my kids' lives," she said.
While with the Meadowbrook PTA, which she became president of in 1996, Wawryk played a key role in organizing the school's now annual fall festival and boat trip.
When her kids moved on to W.T. Clarke Middle School and W.T. Clarke High School, so did Wawryk, serving as recording secretary, vice president and co-president. There, she helped start the senior graduate breakfast, an idea she admittedly borrowed from East Meadow High School.
A microbiologist at New York Hospital Queens, Wawryk also served as the recording secretary and corresponding secretary on the PTA Council, an organization that collectively represents all PTAs in the East Meadow School District.
Kimler, meanwhile, boasts an equally long resume. "She has walked the halls of many of our schools for 31 years," Shiechel said. "Thirteen of her own and 18 with her children.
Kimler, mother of Stephani, 23, Andrew, 21, and David, 18, was co-president at both the McVey Elementary School and Woodland Middle School PTAs. She is currently the second vice president of the East Meadow High School PTA and PTA Council.
Aside from the numerous positions she's held in PTA, Kimler has volunteerd with the Boy Scouts for over 15 years and is a personal assistant to a well-known social psychologist.
Trying to raise a family, hold down a job, and volunteer has often proved a daunting task, Kimler and Wawryk said. "My kids have sacrificed many a home-cooked meal because of a PTA event or function," Kimler said.
Comments about this story? NBuglione@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 236.
