These are the times…
The day took on a life of its own and mirrored our vision of what ComeInUnity was intended to be. Before it was officially scheduled to kick off, it unofficially kicked off! We were still in the process of finishing the final touches when to our amazement, at about 1pm guests began to arrive. As the day progressed there were children running free, playing and laughing and parents lounging on the lawn listening to a nice mix of old school and new school tunes while the scent of smoke from the grill manned by Shaun & Debbie from S&D Catering filled the air. Off in the distance a game of touch football was underway shadowed by three bounce houses filled with children having a good ‘ol time while others jumped rope nearby. LaLa’s Loveables Childcare had a blast organizing field day games while the Hempstead Home Depot Kids Workshop tested the children’s carpentry skills. Fluffy The Clown entertained young and old alike while face painters, well, painted faces. And in the cut…Nette from Sharp Edges blessed the children with free haircuts to get their summer started off right. The Uniondale Fire Department who has been instrumental with our past events and are pillars in our community had their truck parked in the lot ready for show and tell. The popcorn and cotton candy machines were in overdrive. We even ran into a few friends from our high school days. The energy was captivating and it was certainly a sight to see!
These are the times…
Our volunteer turnout was extraordinary and so much appreciation goes out to the true Shoeper Stars of the day, NCPD Explorers, UHS JROTC & UFD Jr. Firefighters. These young men and women volunteered their Saturday afternoon for the benefit of their community and exhibited an unmatched amount of professionalism and did an outstanding job helping maintain order throughout the day which afforded us brief moments to sit back, observe and soak in the love that saturated the atmosphere.
It’s amazing that a strong sense of togetherness sprinkled with some vital information from our vendors, local businesses and organizations makes for a brilliant recipe for progress.
These are the times…
These are the times that unify and instill a sense of pride in our community. These are the times where neighbors are once again neighbors. These are the times where our children feel comfortable playing in the streets. These are the times that makes us nostalgic, reflecting on “back in the day” and these are the times we want our children to remember throughout their lives.
As a constant theme throughout the day we would like to reiterate that this amazing event didn’t happen on its own. Months of planning, coordination and sacrifice behind the scenes between countless individuals, groups and organizations all made ComeInUnity 2016 come to life. We would like to extend our utmost gratitude to
Legislator Kevan Abrahams, Sharon, Robin, Terenna & Glory House Recovery Inc., Fidelis Care, Judge Tricia Ferrell, Uniondale School District, Uniondale Fire Department, Roosevelt Fire Department, Town Of Hempstead, Nassau County PBA, NCPD, NCPD Explorers, UHS JROTC, UFD Jr. Firefighters, State Farm Uniondale, Applebee’s, Home Depot Kids Workshop, Spotless Car Wash, NY Inflatables, Niala, LaLa’s Loveables Childcare, Street Weird Clothing, thewordonthefeet.com, Desi, Valerie, Steve, Aria, Annabelle, Nancy, Holly, Uncle Nick, Auntie Jan, Carrlean, Sue, Chris, Mundy, Donna, Nikki, Kev, Shaun, Debbie, DeShaun, Dejah, Jalynn – S&D Catering, Margarett, Claudy’s Beauty Supply, all participating vendors, Antonio and the entire staff at Uniondale Park and the last but certainly not least, the wonderful residents of Uniondale and the surrounding communities!
Special thanks to the Town of Hempstead Senior Councilwoman Dorothy Goosby for taking the time out to attend and for recognizing and presenting us with a citation for the sacrifice, dedication and hard work exhibited by the entire Heeling Soles team.
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