Leadership Huntington Foundation 2012 Gala and Class of 2012 Graduation

Leadership Huntington Celebrates 16 Years of

Developing, Connecting,
Engaging

Long Island’s first and only
community leadership organization

commemorates its 16th year
and graduates its 275th alum at April 12 gala

Huntington, NY – For the last sixteen
years, the Leadership Huntington Foundation has empowered current and emerging
leaders with the tools necessary to face the complex issues of the Huntington
area.  Whether it’s finding the balance between open space and
development, addressing crime and blight, promoting multiculturalism and civic
activism, developing one’s vision, values and leadership skills or supporting
local businesses and not-for-profit organizations, Leadership Huntington’s
influence has touched every corner of our Town.  On April 12, 2012,
Long Island’s premier community leadership program will celebrate an important
milestone as it graduates its latest class of servant leaders, including its
275th alum, and honors three outstanding members of the community.

Leadership Huntington is dedicated to
developing, connecting and engaging individuals to identify and advance
the best solutions to these complex issues.  The core of this
process is the organization’s unique Flagship Program, a nine-month series of
workshops held for a class of current and emerging leaders recruited by the
Foundation.  These workshops are specifically tailored to address
pressing issues of the community as well as enhancing key leadership
skills.  The Flagship Program provides the knowledge and tools
necessary to for class members to comprehend these complex issues, their
communities, and their own vision and values.  And most
importantly, provide the tools to understand how to communicate their vision and
values in a constructive dialogue. 

Graduates of this exclusive program
have gone on to become significant contributors and leaders in every facet of
our community, including government, business, the arts, the not-for-profit
sector and others. “It is a privilege to be at the center of trusteeship;
coordinating, giving mentorship, and watching so many good people grow and
develop, and then seeing what they all DO going forward,” said Trudy
Fitzsimmons, Class of 1998 and Leadership Huntington Program Director. 
“It is truly a gift to be able to work and love every minute of it. I’m
thankful to all involved”.

In addition to the Flagship Program,
the Foundation sponsors a variety of community forums on “hot topics”, designed
to give everyday citizens the opportunity to actively embrace community
trusteeship. 

The thirteen members of the Class of
2012, the latest class of the Flagship Program, will be graduated
at the April 12 gala.  Vita Scaturro, Vice-President at Community
National Bank and member of the Class of 2012 said “The experiences and the new relationships that I have
gained through the program will help me continue to deepen my involvement in our
community.”

In addition to the graduation
ceremony, the Foundation will honor three individuals for their significant and
substantial contributions to the Town of Huntington.  Elizabeth
(Libby) Hubbard, a long-time supporter of the work of the Foundation since its
inception, and a civic leader as a member of the Huntington chapter of the
League of Women Voters, will receive the organization’s Founders Award. 
Terence Smith, a passionate advocate for affordable community health care
and administrator of the Dolan Family Health Center, will receive the
Outstanding Community Trustee Award.  And Lawrence Kushnick, Esq.,
a local attorney,active business leader in the Huntington Township Chamber of
Commerce and a graduate of the Class of 1997, will be honored with the Graduate
of Distinction Award.

The Leadership Huntington
Foundation’s Leadership Gala and Graduation of the Class of 2012 will be held on
Thursday, April 12, 2012 at the Harbor Club, 95 New York Avenue in Huntington
from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.  To purchase a ticket for the event or
for more information, please visit our website at www.leadershiphuntington.org or call 631-470-3990.  Proceeds from the Gala will directly
support the work of the Foundation.  The Leadership Huntington
Foundation is a non-partisan, independent, member-and-sponsor supported
not-for-profit organization dedicated to community leadership.