6th Annual Long Island Imagine Awards Winners Selected
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – May 8, 2018 – Bohemia, NY – The 6th Annual Long Island Imagine Awards was held Tuesday, May 1, 2018, 6-9:30pm at the Crest Hollow Country Club, Woodbury, NY. This gala event was created to offer formal acknowledgement to some of Long Island’s most effective, innovative, and impactful nonprofit organizations.
Nearly 180 nonprofit applications were submitted for a chance to win $5,000 grants in five different categories: Innovation, Leadership Excellence, Rising Star, Social Impact, Arts and Culture, and an additional $2,500 Fan Favorite award. Of this pool of worthy applicants, 20 were selected as finalists and one in each category was awarded the grant LIVE at the awards ceremony on May 1, 2018. News 12 Anchor Doug Geed served as MC. The winners are:
Cerini & Associates Social Impact Award
• The Interfaith Nutrition Network (INN)
The Claire Friedlander Family Foundation Arts and Culture Award
• Cinema Arts Centre
The Certilman Balin Leadership Excellence Award
• Sister Patricia Griffith, Mercy Haven
Empire National Bank Innovation Award
• Long Island Alzheimer’s Foundation (LIAF)
Flushing Bank Rising Star Award
• Girls Inc. of Long Island
Nerds That Care Fan Favorite Award
• Patient AirLift Services (PALS)
In its sixth year, the Imagine Awards are the premiere awards program on Long Island for the nonprofit sector. “Tonight, was all about the nonprofit sector, honoring those that truly make a difference on Long Island,” said Kenneth Cerini, Managing Partner of Cerini & Associates, LLP, the Awards’ founders. “This year’s finalists and winners were all amazing … they truly exemplify some of the best the nonprofit sector has to offer.”
The Long Island Imagine Awards recognizes the following major sponsors: Cerini & Associates, LLP, Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman LLP, Empire National Bank, Flushing Bank, and The Claire Friedlander Family Foundation. For more information about the Long Island Imagine Awards visit www.imagineawardsli.com
(L-R) Imagine Awards MC Doug Geed, News 12 congratulating the winners. Renee Flagler, Girls Inc. of Long Island (Rising Star,) Tori Cohen, Long Island Alzheimer’s Foundation (Innovation,) Sister Patricia Griffith, Mercy Haven (Leadership,) Jean Kelly, The INN (Social Impact,) Eileen Minogue, Patient AirLift Services (Fan Favorite,) Imagine Awards founder and presenting sponsor Kenneth Cerini, Cerini & Associates.
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About The Long Island Imagine Awards:
The Long Island Imagine Awards, hailed as the “Academy Awards for Nonprofits” is the leading awards program recognizing innovation and leadership in the nonprofit sector on Long Island. This grant competition was established in 2012 by Ken Cerini, CPA, Managing Partner of Cerini and Associates, LLP. The Long Island Imagine Awards receives hundreds of applications each year from Long Island-based nonprofits who want to spotlight their innovation in programming, social impact and overall excellence. Winners are announced LIVE at the event after their video is premiered in front of an audience filled with over 400 supporters of the sector. Each finalist receives a complimentary video, and the winners receive a $5,000 grant to fund their missions further. Nearly $130,000 has been distributed since inception.