Newsletter Vol. 8
Letter from our President
The Board and Advisory Members of the Anchor Program Fund Inc. met for our annual meeting via Zoom on June 23rd. At that meeting, elections were held and some of the Board positions were changed. Ellen Papalia has held the President’s position for the past three years. The President’s role always requires a great deal of time and responsibility. At this time, Ellen has decided to step down from that position but will remain a board member, as she has for almost 30 years. I want to thank Ellen, from all of us, for all she has done for the APF.
Moving forward, I have accepted the President’s position, Rob McGinn remains the VIce President, Caroline Pisaniello remained the Secretary and John Mckenna will replace me as Treasurer. Dawn Tortora-Morici moved up onto the Board and we want to welcome TJ Rice on the board as well.
I want to take this opportunity to remind all of the A.N.C.H.O.R families that ALL OF YOU make up The Anchor Program Fund. If you haven’t already joined and would like to stay informed, please go to our website www.campanchor.org and click on the APF sign up tab. Please remember signing up with the APF is seperate from giving your email to the Town of Hempstead.
This summer it has become necessary to adapt to our “virtual” camp in many ways. The Snack Shack will NOT be open this year and there will be NO NEED for Camp Cash. The APF will be providing bottled water and individually wrapped snacks for group leaders to take for campers who might have forgotten their own. The APF has also joined forces with the Town of Hempstead in filling the Virtual Camp Boxes with some of the supplies campers might need to participate in Virtual Camp Activities.
The APF wanted to show our appreciation to staff and volunteers by providing them with a visit from the KONA Ice Truck to sweeten their Orientation Day. We also have purchased anchor face masks for our volunteers as a small token of thanks.
Our fundraising efforts have also become virtual. Please help us this season by going to our website to donate or go check out the NEW online store under the shop the Annex tab. Our second week of online orders just closed! Thank you to everyone who ordered one of our 2020 shirts! We are hoping to offer a few more virtual fundraisers as it might be awhile before we can all gather together like we used to.
Please know that you can contact us at the APF In.c by email at anchor630@gmail.com.
Marianne Pizza, the APF Office Manager will be holding us all together…even though we are apart this summer.
Wishing everyone a healthy, safe, and peaceful summer.
Summer Cuccio
President
Camp Anchor Fund
Letter from our Fundraising Chair
This year marked 10 years ago that we lost our beloved Anchor staff, Michael Mullhall, Jamie and Paige Malone in a tragic car accident. The Malone-Mulhall Recreation Center is named for these dedicated and caring staff members. They will always hold a special place in our hearts! In special commemoration, the Michael Mulhall Foundation donated to both the Michael Mulhall 10 Memorial Scholarship and Camp A.N.C.H.O.R.
We have been fortunate that the Town of Hempstead enabled our kids and adults to still have the magic of summer camp this year. It will be a week of regular camp as well as a four week virtual camp. My son Tommy attended the first week and it could not have run smoother!
As you know, our Annual Ball which would have taken place on Saturday, July 24th was cancelled. Our honorees will be celebrated at next year’s Beach Ball which will be held on July 16, 2021.
Some exciting fundraisers coming up:
Our gold outing which was postponed from May will not be held on Monday, September 28th. Details to follow!
The Tommy Brull Foundation will be hosting a virtual Bingo Night along with prizes on Wednesday, August 5th. There will be two sessions - 7:00 and 8:30pm. Our very own Brian Morris will be the MC!! All monies raised and any donations will go to the Anchor Program Fund. Look out for the flyer with more information!
As you have previously read in this issue of our newsletter, the Anchor Program Fund has been busy building and restoring the YA Shack, Senior kitchen and Nurse’s station. New furniture and appliances were also purchased. In addition, we want to make updates to the A.N.C.H.O.R playground.
Please consider donating to the Anchor Program Fund which in turn supports Camp A.N.C.H.O.R and enhances programs for all participants! We need your continued support now more than ever. All monies raised and donated are used for projects like these.
Thank you and enjoy the rest of your summer!
Anna Dragone
Fundraising Chair
Anchor Program Fund
Middle Campus Expansion at Camp A.N.C.H.O.R
Since March we have all been sheltering in place, but the APF has been using this down time to check off many of the items on our wishlist. Last summer we accepted donations to help the TOH Camp A.N.C.H.O.R program accommodate the addition of the new Middle Camp expansion. We are so excited and pleased to report that with your generous donations, foundation grants and in-kind donations from many companies, the APF was able to make improvements to the Camp A.N.C.H.O.R campus.
The spaces we renovated at camp were:
The Summer Nurses Office
The YA Schack with Additional Deck
A Double Home Ec Summer Kitchen
Although we had a generous budget, it would have been impossible to complete all of these projects without the amazing volunteers who donated their time. They worked through challenges of COVID-19, wearing masks and social distancing for hours on end, almost daily from March to June. Their enthusiasm never faltered even without any certainty that camp would occur.
Please join us in thanking them on behalf of ALL of our campers, their families, our volunteers, and our staff members. Camp A.N.C.H.O.R and The Town of Hempstead are fortunate to have such dedicated parents, staff and friends!
