Community Corner
Timothy 'Monster' Goettelmann Honored at Make a Difference Awards
Town of Hempstead ceremony recognizes those who contribute to their local communities.
Tuesday evening, Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray and the Town Board celebrated 13 extraordinary people for their contributions to the communities they live in.
For the past 14 years, the Make a Difference Awards have honored those who selflessly contribute to the greater good.
Supervisor Murray gave the opening speech at the ceremony, held at Hempstead Town Hall.
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"This is a very special evening for our town," she said. "We're joining together as a community to recognize individuals who have positively and profoundly made a difference in our lives.
"Volunteerism is alive and well in our town, I'm happy to say," Murray added.
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The recipients of the award come from all walks of life, but all hold something in common: the belief that we can better ourselves and, in doing so, help others.
Timothy "Monster" Goettelmann of Garden City is credited as one of the greatest lacrosse players in Long Island history. He has donated his Sportsman of the Year cash prizes and lacrosse salary to his foundation, "Monster Kids," which he founded two years ago to support the pediatric emergency wing at Cohen Children's Medical Center.
"When I think about this award, being recognized tonight, it makes me feel good inside," he said. "My charity's all about giving back to the hospital, and to be recognized with the others tonight, it really is a great honor."
Other recipients of Make a Difference awards included Gary Crozier of Levittown, Pat Cassetta of Uniondale, Norma Debartolo of Elmont, Gaetano Ferrara of Valley Stream, Dr. Steven Mendelsohn of Rockville Centre, Marianne Driscoll and Mohammed Saleh of Merrick, Kelly Light of East Rockaway, Sue Marcote of Point Lookout, Hester Roberts of Hempstead and Vincent Toma of Franklin Square.
Posthumous awards were presented to Paige and Jaime Malone and Mike Mulhall of Floral Park.
Once the ceremony concluded, Supervisor Murray stood in awe of this year's award recipients.
"Every year I'm amazed at the depth and breadth of goodness that's around us here in the Town of Hempstead," she said. "It's amazing ... every person is different, and yet, they have that common theme of being heroes amongst us. I'm inspired every year by them, they do phenomenal things."
