BY DR. CYNTHIA PAULIS
editorial@antonmediagroup.com
The Gold Coast mansion of Dr. Stephen and Sharon Cuchel was
the setting of the kickoff party for
the 2015 Nassau County Museum Ball, set for Saturday, June 13.
The party also honored both the current Nassau County Executive, Ed Mangano and one of his predecessors, Thomas Gulotta, who served from 1987 to 2001.
Newly elected president of the museum board, Angela Susan Anton, publisher of Anton Media Group, greeted the honored guests. Anton is looking forward to the event which helps raise money for the museum.
“I have always felt there was a need for community newspapers to be involved with charities and this is one way we can reach out to the communities that we serve,” Anton said.
“On June 13 we have the museum’s largest fundraiser of the year, the ball, which we are looking forward to and the theme this year is Midnight in Paris,” added Karl Willers, the museum’s executive director. “We have just hung the entire museum with the permanent collection and this is the first time we are doing this. Each gallery is devoted to a specific theme and one of them is the French collection.”
Dr. Stephen Cuchel and his wife Sharon, have been hosting the event for several years. Involved with the museum for over 25 years, he explained why they continue to play host to this event.
“Parties are fun no matter what they are for, but this is such a great cause that it is even more fun,” Cuchel said. “The museum is special for me because my wife is on the board and I think it is a great thing for our community: it makes it a richer community and is worthwhile for the families that live here. I think it is an excellent venue for art and our children’s education. The children’s part of the museum is wonderful. They have courses and classes and I especially love all the volunteer docents and everyone who puts their heart and soul into this museum.”
As the guests indulged in champagne and hors d’oeuvres, the guest of honor, County Executive Ed Mangano, arrived with his wife, Linda.
“It is great to be here and to support this wonderful organization,” said Mangano. “I am thrilled to be honored by such a wonderful organization filled with people who really care about the arts and are really preserving our rich history here as well. I am proud to be an honoree and I am more proud to support those people who support this museum.”
“I am so excited, the arts are very near and dear to my heart,” added Linda Mangano. “My dad was an artist and it is so important to support the arts in Nassau County and all over Long Island.”
“I am gratified to be honored but in reality there are so many people who participated in making the Nassau County Museum of Art what it is today,” said Gulotta. “In 1989 it was converted from a public facility to a not-for-profit organization and there were many benefactors who helped to create today what is the prestigious cultural organization within our region. It opens its arms to a hundred thousand visitors a year, adults, minors, those who are challenged both mentally and physically, those who are professional artists and those who are trying to be professional artists. In addition to being a facility where art is shown, it also is an educational tool which is so vital in the area. Young people who come there have an opportunity to have lessons and to experience what it can be if they realize their hopes and their dreams.”
The June 13 gala will be marking the museum’s silver anniversary and will be a fun-filled evening of music, dining and dancing under the stars. To purchase tickets for the event or sponsorship opportunities, call 516-484-9338, ext. 16.
