(Long Island, NY) On Thursday, May 28, 2015, the Long Island Chapter of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society celebrated the conclusion of its Man & Woman of the Year campaign at Carlyle on the Green in Bethpage State Park. The Grand Finale Gala was complete with inspirational videos, candidate speeches and an announcement at the end of the night revealing the grand total raised during the campaign. Eleven candidates and more than 150 team members raised $594,889 in just 10 short weeks.
The Man & Woman of the Year competition brought eleven different candidates from all over the Island together for a great cause. Records were anticipated to be broken, however no one knew the final results until the evening of the 28th, as all totals were kept confidential throughout the 10-week campaign. Even more exciting, both of Long Island’s winners, Kyle Mostransky and Fran D’Alessandro, set new fundraising records for Man & Woman of the Year, respectively.
The 2015 Boy & Girl of the Year Douglas Grimmett, age 8, and Mary DeLorenzo, age 10 attended the Gala with their families. These two heartwarming children served as inspiration for the candidates and their teams during the 10-week campaign. At the Gala, both Adam Grimmett, Douglas’s father, and Jennine DeLorenzo, Mary’s mother, had kind words for the candidates before and after the winner announcements. Jennine brought the room to tears when she told the entire group of eleven how thankful she and her family was to them and reiterated that all participants in the campaign were winners.
The night was full of enthusiasm and could not have been a bigger success without the efforts of each and every candidate. In their speeches, both the winners and runners-up brought home the goals of the campaign, mentioning that it wasn’t about winning, but about what was collectively done to improve the lives of blood cancer patients and their families.
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is proud to announce the winners and runners-up:
- 2015 Long Island Man & Woman of the Year:
- Fran D’Alessandro, Port Washington Parent Resource Center
- Kyle Mostransky, Mostransky Financial & Insurance Solutions
Runners-Up:
- Eva L. Casale, Suffolk Federal Credit Union
- Dominick Oliviero, Coastal Public Adjusting
“LLS congratulates all of the candidates in the 2015 Man & Woman of the Year campaign. Each of them are using their passion and determination to raise funds that give thousands of people battling blood cancers the chance to live better, longer lives and they are all champions,” said Sara Lipsky, Executive Director of the Long Island Chapter. “This is a campaign that celebrates not only the individual accomplishments, but the collective success of all these amazing candidates.”
All involved in the campaign have done a tremendous job and have inspired others to do the same next year. If you are interested in nominating a candidate for the 2016 campaign, would like to be a candidate yourself, or if you would simply like learn more about Man & Woman of the Year and LLS, please contact Jennifer Taggart, 631.370.7557 or JenniferAnne.Taggart@lls.org.
The mission of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) is: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. LLS is the world’s largest voluntary health agency dedicated to blood cancer. LLS funds lifesaving blood cancer research around the world and provides free information and support services. Our key priorities will ensure that The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society helps blood cancer patients live better, longer lives.
