Ethical Humanist Society celebrates International Women’s Day



Leader Richard Koral with Karen Chavez; cake donated by Sweet Karma Bakery in Plainview Photo by Lyn Dobrin

Leader Richard Koral with Karen Chavez; cake donated by Sweet Karma Bakery in Plainview
Photo by Lyn Dobrin

It was a packed house at the Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island this past Monday night as the non-profit organization held an event in honor of National Women’s Day. The event, which took place from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., was billed as a celebration by women for women. It featured several guest speakers, workshops, multiple vendors and a full-course dinner for the attendees.

“This event materialized in conjunction with our Ethical Friends of Children program,” said Jim LoPresti, president of the  Ethical Humanist Society and director of the Ethical Friends of Children program. “We had been noticing a drop in the number people coming to events, so we reached out to several other non-profit organizations in Nassau and Queens to remind them that we are here.”

One of the non-profits he reached out to was the Belmont Racetrack Chaplaincy NY Division.

“We used to have a long-term relationship with them and have worked together on several different programs together,” said LoPresti. “We ended getting together last summer and floated some ideas around and ended up coming up with this event to celebrate International Women’s Day.”

International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8 every year around the world. The day is considered to be a focal point in the movement for women’s rights.

Patricia Spencer, who is a EHSLI board member, said that after speaking with people from the Chaplaincy NY Division,  they decided to focus the event on thousands of women and their families who live in the surrounding area of the racetrack.

“These are people who live and work in the shadows of the Belmont Racetrack and they rarely if ever leave that area,” said Spencer. “Basically the purpose of the event was to integrate an isolated group of people into the larger community.”

Pat Spencer (left), event coordinator and EHSLI member with State Senator Anna Kaplan Photo by Lyn Dobrin

Pat Spencer (left), event coordinator and EHSLI member with State Senator Anna Kaplan
Photo by Lyn Dobrin

Over a hundred women and their children, mostly of Latino descent, attended the event and were treated to wokshops and multiple vendors, including Voces Latinas, which provides services to immigrants from Latin countries, and North Shore Holiday House, which provides summer camps for children. There was also a pop-up shop sponsored through Garden City’s chapter of the National Charity League that provided free clothing and sneakers to people of all ages and sexes.

Spencer added that the event was financed by the Joseph Rhoda Weill Social Action Fund, which has supported numerous social welfare activities at the EHS over the years.

Karen Chavez, general manager of the NY Racetrack Chaplaincy, said that in the last few years, her organization has began creating new opportunities for the women who live in the backstretch of the racetrack, and one of those included celebrating International Women’s Day.

“International Women’s Day is a huge day in Latin America and I believe it’s starting to gain notoriety in the United States,” said Chavez. “The whole idea is to empower women and to equip them with the necessary tools to allow them to see the opportunities available to them in the community as a whole.”

She said that State Senator Anna Kaplan spoke at the event,  as well as four other panelists who spoke about how they overcame hardships in their lives to make a better life for themselves in America.

“The senator talked about her experiences coming to this country as a refugee, and through a combination of hard work and dreaming big, she was able to accomplish her goals and become a member of the New York state senate,” said Chavez.

The four other panelists at the event included the executive director of Voces Latinas, a member of State Assemblywoman Michaelle Solage’s political team, a financial consultant who provided financial advice to the women and a stay-at-home mom who talked about the challenges of starting a business and raising kids.

Chavez said that the New York Women’s Foundation was one of the main sponsors of the event.

 

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