Summer Together 2023: Another Success Story!

Summer Together is a volunteer-run program that funds scholarships to local day camps for Port Washington families in need of economic assistance. Founded in 2018, Summer Together has enabled hundreds of children to share fun and enriching summer activities with their peers. Summer Together is possible because of tireless volunteers, a host of generous individual donations, and a generous grant from the Peter & Jeri Dejana Foundation. We also are grateful for the support of the Ellen and Richard Fox Charitable Fund, the Kiwanis Club of Manhasset-Port Washington, and the St. Stephen's Church parish community.

The Summer Together team of volunteers worked with our community advisors (Parent Resource Center, Our Lady of Fatima, St. Peter's, and the Port Washington Public Library), as well as with guidance counselors at the elementary schools and Weber Middle School, to identify and fund 90 children to attend two weeks at local day camps. The participating camps were Bach To Rock, Camp Invention, FAST Sports Camp at PAL, Language Anywhere, PYA, Science Museum of Long Island, and Unlimited Sports Action. We are grateful for the participation of these wonderful camps.

The children greatly enjoyed their camp experiences with their peers, with one parent writing: "Thousands and thousands of thanks for the beautiful experience that my daughter had at camp. It was a blessing that her summer was more fun! Thanks to everyone who made her summer better. There are not enough words to express our gratitude." Visit the ST webpage or FB page to see photos or to DONATE.

Summer Together also is happy to report on results from the fee-reduction program for income-eligible families at Manorhaven Pool, which came about because of a proposal we presented to TONH Councilwoman Mariann Dalimonte. The proposal grew out of our work subsidizing pool passes in the first few years of Summer Together. Thanks to Mariann, qualified families now can obtain a seasonal pass at a 60% reduced price. We believe this is the first program of its kind on LI. This summer, 195 families participated (up from 158 last summer).

The Summer Together Team

Ellen Davidson

Ilise Friedman

Dilia Kamensky

Pamela O’Connell

Analia Quispe

Marivic Restivo

Drina Scheiber

For more information on Summer Together email summertogether@longislandtogether.org