“You Don’t Rebuild Alone”: Huntington Black History Celebration Unites Community At Walt Whitman HS

SOUTH HUNTINGTON, NY — Walt Whitman High School’s auditorium filled with students, educators, elected officials, and families Thursday evening as the Town of Huntington joined the South Huntington and Huntington Union Free School Districts for its annual Black History Month celebration, an event defined by unity, artistic expression, and deeply personal reflections on perseverance.

The program, titled “From the Ground Up: The Power of Us,” blended student performances, historical tributes, community recognition, and a keynote address from Suffolk County Sheriff Dr. Errol D. Toulon Jr. Walt Whitman High School Assistant Principal Dr. Kendall Richards said the joint celebration itself was born from a decision to combine once-separate district programs into a single unified event.

“We want to make sure that we're bringing our entire community together, our entire Huntington community, together to celebrate and to make sure that we're working together as one, and that's our goal,” he said.

Superintendent Dr. Vito D’Elia described Black History Month as an opportunity for reflection paired with forward-looking commitment, while South Huntington Board of Education President Nicholas Ciappetta highlighted the importance of recognizing lesser-known contributors to history — the “hidden figures” whose impact often goes unrecognized despite shaping everyday progress.

“There are so many people other than the famous ones like Jackie Robinson or Barack Obama,” Ciappetta said. “There are so many hidden figures who have not been covered by history, and those people have contributed so much and so richly.”

Performances throughout the evening showcased students and community groups across grade levels and disciplines, beginning with instrumental selections from the Walt Whitman High School Jazz Band and choral renditions of the National Anthem and Negro National Anthem by the Huntington High School Chamber Choir.

Elementary students from Oakwood Primary Center contributed a musical segment, while Huntington High School senior Jesley Martinez Canales delivered a recitation of Langston Hughes’ “I, Too, Sing America.” Maplewood Intermediate School’s Project Excel students presented the historical dialogue “Following the North Star,” inspired by the Underground Railroad and Harriet Tubman, followed by a youth ballet performance from the Tri-Community Youth Agency and a cultural dance by the Walt Whitman High School Caribbean Heritage Club. The program also featured a closing musical performance from the Huntington Black History Choir, bringing the night to an uplifting conclusion centered on unity and shared heritage.

Barry Lites, chairman of the Huntington African American Museum initiative, addressed the audience about the vision for what he described as New York State’s first full-scale African American history museum.

“When built, it will be New York State’s first full-scale African American History Museum,” Lites said before adding that the project is about more than artifacts. “History is instructive. The way to overcome, to succeed, to devise, to strategize.”

He highlighted African American presence on Long Island dating back to the region’s earliest chapters, adding that the desire for freedom and opportunity has always been a driving force behind progress.

“This is how African Americans have resolved to be free, no matter what — they find a way,” Lites said.

The keynote address from Sheriff Toulon became the emotional centerpiece of the night. Toulon spoke about his multiple cancer diagnoses, heart surgery, the loss of his first wife to suicide, and professional setbacks, using those experiences to redefine the phrase “from the ground up” as rebuilding after being knocked down rather than simply starting fresh.

“You don't rebuild alone,” Toulon said. “Every time I hit the ground, someone was there. Sometimes it was family, sometimes friends, sometimes doctors, nurses, co-workers, neighbors, or even strangers who didn't know my whole story but showed up anyway. That's the power of us. Community isn't just about celebration. It's about presence.”

Toulon is Suffolk County’s 67th sheriff and the first African American elected to a non-judicial countywide office in the county’s history. Now serving his third term as Suffolk’s highest-ranking law-enforcement official, he oversees public safety for approximately 1.5 million residents and has focused his tenure on crime reduction, intelligence-driven investigations, and lowering recidivism.

Toulon also referenced former First Lady Michelle Obama and civil rights activist Malcolm X, linking historical wisdom to contemporary challenges and reinforcing the program’s central theme of unity paired with honesty.

“You're not supposed to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality,” he said, restating the famous quote from Malcolm X. “Wrong is wrong no matter who does it or who says it.”