Meet 5 Distinguished Women Honored by the Town of Huntington

Five distinguished women were recently honored for making Huntington a better place to life at the 14th Annual Women’s Networking Day on Oct. 20.

More than 400 people attended the event at The Larkfield, which was highlighted by presentations by the honorees who were each chosen by a member of the Town Board.

The “La Vie est Belle” themed event was run under the Town’s Division of Women’s Services and was sponsored by The Bristal Assisted Living and Island Better Hearing.

Congratulations to:

Gail C. Lamberta

About: Lamberta is the associate dean of community development and professor and chair, coordinator of experiential learning, recreation and leisure studies at St. Joseph’s College.

Involvement in Huntington community: She has been involved with the Huntington YMCA, the YMCA of Long Island. She has been a member of Long Island Leisure Services Association’s board of directors since 1998 and currently serves as president, and is on the board of the Long Island Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce and the youth standing committee of the Suffolk County Workforce Development Board. She is a co-founder of the Blue Stars and Yellow Ribbons Veterans Initiative at SJC. She also volunteers with ALS Ride for Life, LaunchPad and the Huntington Business Incubator. She was recognized by Supervisor Petrone.

Bridget Widmaier

About: Widmaier is a substitute teacher at Northport Middle School.

Involvement in Huntington community: She is a coach for several youth league teams. As a breast cancer survivor, she will run the New York City Marathon with the goal of raising $100,000 for breast cancer research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She was recognized by Councilman Mark Cuthbertson.

Charlotte Koons

About: Koons is a retired school teacher.

Involvement in Huntington community: She has spent 17 years on the board of the Northport Arts Coalition coordinating programs at the Northport Public Library. She also volunteers at Hospice House in East Northport and is a founding member of Huntington N.O.W., CODEPINK L.I., Women for Peace and is the only woman on the board of the Suffolk Chapter of the New York Civil Liberties Union. She was recognized by Councilwoman Susan A. Berland.

Marilyn McDermott

About: McDermott is a community activist.

Involvement in Huntington community: She has volunteered with Long Island Youth Mentoring, Save the Children, the Salvation Army Angel Tree and World Vision. She feeds and donates clothes to homeless and needy people in the community through the Helping Hands Rescue Mission, the Central Presbyterian Church and the Bowery Mission. She was recognized by Councilman Eugene Cook.

Janet Kushnick

About: Kushnick is a longtime Huntington resident and registered nurse.

Involvement in Huntington community: She is on the advisory board for the Dolan Family Health Center, volunteers at Huntington Hospital’s emergency department, Meals on Wheels and the Huntington Historical Society. She is also active at the Huntington Jewish Center, where she co-chairs the social action committee, runs the library and has coordinated food drives and rummage sales benefitting the Family Service League. She was recognized by Councilwoman Tracey A. Edwards.

Image via Town of Huntington: front row, (l-r): Janet Kushnick, Marilyn McDermott, Bridget Widmaier, Gail Lamberta and Charlotte Koons. Rear (l-r): Councilwoman Tracey A. Edwards, Councilman Eugene Cook, Councilman Mark Cuthbertson, Councilwoman Susan A. Berland and Rhonda Shepardson, Town of Huntington director of women’s services.