Good News: Chefs, Custodians and Billy Crystal Among LI Heroes This Week

As a local news organization, Patch covers stories of all kinds, from heartbreaking tragedies to nitty-gritty breakdowns of government and school district issues. But some stories are simply inspiring, often showing that at the heart of our communities is a desire to do good. Here are some of the touching headlines from the past seven days.

Billy Crystal Helps Long Beach Rebound

More than 100 kids did their best impressions of Carmelo Anthony during a shoot around on the orange-and-blue rubberized basketball courts at Long Beach Recreation Center on Sunday, when Billy Crystal returned to open the two new courts as part of his hometown’s continued efforts to rebuild after Hurricane Sandy.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony included Nancy Lieberman, a former WNBA star and Olympic silver medalist, who teamed up with Crystal and his wife, Janice, to donate the funds to build the new DreamCourts that bear their names. Gov. Andrew Cuomo and several city officials and community members turned out for the afternoon ceremony.

Man Organizes Relief to Typhoon-Ravaged Phillipines

Days after a deadly typhoon devastated the Phillipines, a Cutchogue man is organizing a team to deliver life-saving help.

Typhoon Haiyan, which swept horror across the Phillipines, was storm that officials say may have killed as many as 10,000 people and left others without food, water, transportation or communication in the devastation that followed.

Custodian in Running for Nation's Top Janitor

For 17 years custodian Larry Aupperlee has been the go to guy for the staff and students at Minnesauke Elementary school from changing flat tires to setting up the stage to cleaning off snow from cars and because of those efforts, he has been nominated as Janitor of the Year in a national contest.

Chef Helps Undernourished Children

Award-winning North Fork chef Keith Luce, who has prepared meals at the White House, believes in giving back to help fight childhood hunger in communities across the country.

Luce, who most recently opened Main and other eateries at the Square in Greenport, participated in a charity dinner to benefit No Kid Hungry: Share Our Strength, an organization dedicated to eradicating childhood hunger and providing nutritious food to underprivileged kids.

The dinner was hosted by Gracie's Restaurant in Providence, Rhode Island and sponsored by Share Our Strength and Johnson and Wales University.

Miami Dogs Get New Lease on Life

Heading down a highway near you, 201 lucky dogs left Miami bound for rescues and no-kill shelters throughout the country this week— including the North Shore Animal League in Port Washington.

Eight vans rolled out of Miami Dade Animal Services Nov. 13 marking the two year anniversary and 100th transport of the Dogs On The Move Program.

A group of dogs was scheduled to arrive Thursday morning in Port Washington. A message to the NAL was not immediately returned to Patch regarding the number of dogs and the breeds that arrived.

Ballerina to Star in 'The Nutcracker'

Malverne's Amanda Sommers will be in the spotlight this month as she performs the lead role of the Sugar Plum Fairy in Sacred Heart Academy's fall performance of The Nutcracker.

Sommers is a graduate of Our Lady of Lourdes, a senior at Sacred Heart Academy and president of the SHA Dance Theatre.

Students Launch Free Tutoring Site

Four South Side High School seniors recently launched a website that connects their peers with student tutors.

Michael Spelfogel, who tutors other students, came up with the idea for an interactive peer-to-peer tutoring website. The 17 year old, along with friends Matthew Giovanniello, Thomas Keady and Anthony Lai — all National Honor Society students — created and launched SSHStutoring.com, which provides unlimited free tutoring to any South Side student.

Sanitation Crew Goes 'Above and Beyond'

Three Sanitary District 1 employees are being praised for their care of an elderly woman who last week had fallen and injured herself.

Ayala Ferrara, of North Woodmere, said that she was home when she heard screams, followed by sobbing, coming from her neighbor’s backyard. When she went to see what was going on, she found her regular sanitation crew had sat the woman down, tended to her wounds and called 911.

Littlest Volunteers Make a Big Impact

In early October, St. Joseph School students volunteered an afternoon to participate in a fun community service project at the Garden City Bird Sanctuary.

Students ranging from nursery to eighth grade planted spring bulbs, filled bird feeders and painted a fence. The children were rewarded for their hard work on a warm fall day with a run through the hose and a huge water fight.

Students Awarded for Leadership

Eight Garden City High School students were selected for 2013 Adelphi University Leadership Awards: Daniel McElroy, Jennifer Leary, Danielle Ienna, Patrick Dolan, Caitlin Rieger, Adam Davies, Aidan Logan and Regan Marooney.

Teacher Wins Award

Shannon Kelly, a science teacher at Malverne High School and new member of the Science Teachers Association of New York State, was awarded the organization’s Fellows New Teacher Conference Award.

'Plainview's Closet' Hopes its Heart to Community

What started as a simple idea has grown into an astounding grass-roots effort to offer free clothing to those in need in the Plainview community.

"Plainview's Closet" is a new program where gently used children's clothing, ranging from infant to teen, is gathered for free distribution to anyone who may need it, said Lisa Baldel Fogelsonwho, with co-founder Ali Isaacs Kusinitz organized a team of volunteers to bring the project to fruition.

The organizers and volunteers are working with the Manetto Hill Jewish Center, which has donated the space for the event.

Local Honored by Cancer Organization

Howard Kaden, a former Bellmore resident, will be given the Courage Award during the Voices Against Brain Cancer's Third Annual Join the Voices Run/Walk in Central Park on Saturday.

Kaden, 51, was diagnosed with brain cancer in September and said that he has received a great amount of support from the organization and the Bellmore-Merrick community.

Scout Beats Blood Drive Goal

Eagle Scout candidate John Simpson recently held a Blood Drive Eagle Scout Project at the Sayville American Legion Post 651. His project exceeded his goal of forty-five pints of blood, forty-five being the number of years that the troop has been active.

Scout Helps Out

West Islip High School Senior and Girl Scout Brooke DiPalma is aiming to earn her Gold Award by renovating and refurbishing the Weeks-Muncy Cemetery by writing letters to soldiers abroad, and highlighting West Islip History surrounding the historic cemetery.

Library Scores American Star

Patchogue-Medford Library is one of 14 in Suffolk County to have received the American Star designation from Library Journal, which is one of the oldest publications that cover the library field.

Scout Honored for Angela's House Project

Eagle Scout candidate Dennis Collins of Troop 343 in Hauppauge recently completed his Eagle Scout project at Angela's House in Smithtown. His project consisted of the construction of a pondless water fall and a four-foot backless bench.

Dancers Begin Sugar Bowl Prep

Babylon's Positions Dance Studio is going somewhere they have never been before – New Orleans... or the Sugar Bowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, to be more precise.

Village Honors Vets

Hundreds lined Deer Park Avenue on Monday to salute our area's veterans for their service to our country in Babylon Village's annual Veterans Day Parade.

Russo Chosen As Guest Of Honor

Long Island activist and managing partner of Russo, Karl, Widmair & Cordano, Charles Russo, has been chosen as a guest of honor or the annual Life's WORC gala on Dec 5. at the Oheka Castle in Huntington.

Pallini Promoted to Sergeant

Major General Patrick A. Murphy, The Adjutant General for the State of New York, announced promotions of members of the New York Army National Guard in recognition of their capability for additional responsibility and leadership.

School Honors Board of Education Trustees

During it's Oct. 28 Board of Education meeting, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Michael Ring presented each board member with a plaque thanking them for their service.

At the meeting, Ring said that he wanted to honor the members due to the countless hours of service they have provided the district. Ring honored board president Michael Nofi, vice president Diane Burke and trustees John Lessler, Scott Reh and Susan Sullivan.

Local Property Owners Tout Home

Rocky Point resident and president of the North Shore Beach Property Owners Association (NSBPOA), Michael Armando, said the organization has been working for over 80 years to make sure the Rocky Point community began more than just a temporary destination for tourists.

Kids Score 700 Pounds of Candy for Troops

Southold mom Dina Reilly had so much leftover Halloween candy in her car on Tuesday, it was hard to drive — over 700 lbs., to be exact.

Reilly spent the day dropping by various schools on the East End, collecting the candy that had been gathered at 19 schools.

Although this marks the fourth time that Reilly's employer, East End Orthodontics, has sponsored the Candy Buyback under Dr. Victor Grazina and Dr. Richard Bach, it's her first time involved with the project.

Registration Open for Kerry Rose Foundation 5K

The Kerry Rose Foundation, which was created to honor a Commack graduate who was killed in a fire, will hold a 5K-trail run in November to raise awareness of safety and sprinkler systems in college-operated housing.

The run will take place Nov. 30 at Hoyt Farm Nature Preserve in Commack.

Wall of Wars to Connect All Veterans

A dozen monuments will be added to the Northport VA to honor all American troops, past and present.