By JUDY RATTNER
The first annual Enchanted Winterland drew residents of all ages to a luncheon with a Victorian/Edwardian flair. Guest speaker Leighton H. Coleman III, editor of "Polar, the Titanic Bear," a true story of a toy bear that survived the sinking of the Titanic, enthralled listeners with excerpts from the book and led a discussion on preserving family history.
Dancers who will perform in the upcoming Rockville Centre Guild for the Arts/Leggz Ltd. production of "The Nutcracker Suite" gave the audience a preview of the ballet. Other attractions included the 100-item Bevilacqua collection of toy bears, a display of fashions and toys from Rockville Centre's past from the Phillips House Museum, and raffles and shopping.
"It went very well," said Mayor Mary Bossart. "We had about 160 guests. I think people found it a very unique kind of Rockville Centre afternoon because it was educational, entertaining and restful. Everyone could enjoy themselves in a calm atmosphere and have a nice time with the friends and family that they came with. We had people of all ages, from little children of 4 and 5 up to seniors. Everyone enjoyed the food and the vendors that we had, and they particularly enjoyed meeting the editor of ?Polar, the Titanic Bear.?
?It was definitely financially successful," Bossart added, "and will assist us in helping residents over the next few months. We?re seeing what I?d estimate to be a 20 percent increase in requests for financial assistance from the Community Fund. People are also asking for direction and advice. We?re planning to send out our usual request during the holiday period for financial support for the Rockville Centre Community Fund, and we hope as many residents as possible will contribute.?
Trustee Jeanne Mulry, who worked with the mayor and Joan MacNaughton of Leggz Ltd. Dance to organize the event, said, "It was a great experience. I hope this is the first of many. I'd like to thank the many Rockville Centre residents, adults and children, who came together on a Sunday to support their neighbors in need by supporting the RVC Community Fund. I hope everyone had fun.
"I would also like to thank our community supporters," Mulry added. "From the Art Studio, Meryl Cittadino conceived and produced a beautiful art quilt of scenes from nursery rhymes, painted by her young students. Also, [she] and teacher Monica Scheiner, an up-and-coming book illustrator, contributed beautiful, hand-drawn artwork as coloring pages for the journal and raffle prizes. Joan MacNaughton and Sam Carrell and everyone at Leggz Ltd. Dance helped conceive the theme, working the details, pitching in with the set-up and providing ?enchanting? dance excerpts from the Guild for the Arts/Leggz Nutcracker. Frank Seipp and Mary Jane Regan and everyone at the Phillips House generously lent their exquisite Victorian/Edwardian memorabilia, and the RVC Library, Maureen Chiofalo and Anita LaSpina, [lent] their support, ideas, planning and assistance with marketing the event."
Mulry added, "Patricia Quinn, a member of the steering committee (along with Joan and me), not only worked the entire event at the snow-globe table with Marina Kotzavekiaris, but also applied her extensive fundraising and marketing expertise months in advance to ensure the success of the event. Finally, I'd like to thank Mayor Bossart, the honorary chair, for her leadership and vision, and former Mayor Eugene Murray for his legacy. Every time I walked into a store to drop off a flier, poster or request a raffle prize, or talked to a resident about the event, those who knew of the Community Fund knew of it because they personally knew someone who had been assisted by Mayor Murray through the fund. The Rockville Centre Community Fund, and any good work we can do today, would not exist without the vision of [our] former mayor."
MacNaughton, Leggz Ltd. Dance's artistic director, said, ?Mayor Bossart and I got together many months ago. We wanted to come up with an event that would raise funds for the neighbors who are having financial problems and need some help. Along with Trustee Jeanne Mulry, Mayor Bossart and I created the Enchanted Winterland, and we enlisted the help of Patricia Quinn, a village resident. So basically we ... wanted an event that would be reasonable and affordable in bad times, that would be a family event. We also wanted to include aspects of the community working together, such as the library and the Phillips House Museum.
"We created something we thought would look magical and would bring us some good luck in raising money for the Community Fund," MacNaughton added. "We succeeded, and actually did better than our expectations. We got rave reviews from everyone who attended the event ? they just loved it. The community went above and beyond in helping support this event. We?re looking forward to next year?s Enchanted Winterland.?
Established in 1986, the not-for-profit Community Fund has raised over $2 million to help village residents who have emergency financial needs quietly and confidentially. Fund recipients include senior citizens, single parents, unemployed residents and victims of manmade or natural disasters. The fund is overseen by the five village trustees and five other residents appointed by the mayor. Additional information is available at P.O. Box 614, Rockville Centre, N.Y. 11571 or through the mayor's office, at (516) 678-9260.
Comments about this story? RVCeditor@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 208.
