Huntington To Host Tree Lighting For Child Cancer Victims

Update: The tree lighting, originally planned for 7 p.m. Wednesday, has been postponed to 5 p.m. Thursday, the Town of Huntington announced.

HUNTINGTON, NY — Children who have died of cancer will be honored with a September-long tree-lighting ceremony in Huntington, the town announced.

The lighting, which will recognize the start of Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month, is set to begin at 5 p.m. Thursday outside of Huntington Town Hall. Supervisor Chad Lupinacci and town officials are set to be joined by Katia and Anthony Conte, of the Daniela Conte Foundation, and several families devastated by the loss of a child to cancer.

The tree, adorned in gold lights and gold ribbons donated by the Daniela Conte Foundation, will be lit every evening in September. The ribbons bear the names of children who died of cancer.

The Daniela Conte Foundation is a not-for-profit organization founded by Anthony and Katia Conte of Dix Hills to honor the life of their daughter, Daniela Marie Conte. The foundation's mission is dedicated to funding research, finding a cure, and new, promising and less toxic treatments for childhood cancer. The organization has a particular interest in Rhabdomyosarcoma.