The Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center hosted their summer fundraiser with the theme “It Takes Our Village” on Saturday, June 29th at Mulford Farm in East Hampton. Two hundred guests attended this anticipated summer event that featured the well-known live bluegrass band, Pete & the Stray Dogs, delicious food from The Clam Bar, and beverages from Wölffer Estate, Sunboy, and Montauk RumRunners.
One of the highlights of this spectacular East End night, however, was the first ever awarding of The Eleanor Prize. The award went to local recipient—Joe Gurrera—who conveys Eleanor Whitmore’s commitment and spirit in investing in community and creating opportunities for its members to thrive.
The Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center was founded in 1969 and is the only licensed, non-profit childcare center on Eastern Long Island. Their mission is to address the need for affordable childcare and high-quality education from a young age in a region that could benefit from improved attention in this area. The Center provides affordable early learning programs to working families year-round.
Benefits such as this summer fundraiser are essential to EWECC for them to continue their day-to-day operations and carry out this important mission for affordable, high-quality childcare. This year’s benefit was inspired by the community as a celebration of non-profits on the East End. This is why they leaned into their theme “it takes our village,” because, as all those involved with the Center expressed, everyone that has been part of the community has played a role in enriching the lives of children with more educational offerings at no additional cost to families.
Six non-profit partners were recognized at the event for enhancing the curriculum and possibilities for better learning. Awards and original artwork by the EWECC children were presented to Melanie Woods of Amber Waves, Dennis Fabizsak of East Hampton Library, Ruth Ann McSpadden of the Garden Club of East Hampton, Joyce Tuttle of LVIS, Fred Doss of Paddlers for Humanity, and Holly Wheaton of the Springs Food Pantry.
The first annual Eleanor Prize was awarded to Joe Gurrera, owner of the well-known and highly esteemed Citarella Gourmet Markets. Mayor Jerry Larsen presented the award to Mr. Gurrera, honoring him for significant positive impact on the children of the East End community and for supporting working families of the East End.
The award was introduced by Mariah Whitmore, an EWECC board member and Eleanor Whitmore’s granddaughter. Mariah says, “As a way to honor her legacy, we created this prize in my grandmother’s name, and it will become an annual tradition to honor an individual who has made a mark in our community in a way that has improved the quality of life for children and supports working families.”
Joe Gurrera has done just that, which is why he was the ideal candidate for this first award. Citarella raises substantial funds each summer for the East End Fund for Children. The EEFC encompasses seven non-profits that serve children on the East End. Every summer, all Hamptons Citarella stores, including those in East Hampton, Bridgehampton, and Southampton, raise money to support the EEFC, and the Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center is included as one of the non-profits. Citarella teams even go so far as to visit the non-profits they are supporting so they can directly see the impact and get to know about what the money they raise is doing to support the children of the East End.
Joan Overlock, the EWECC’s Director of Development discussed why Joe was a deserving recipient of the first Eleanor Prize. She says, “Joe understands how important it is to be a good neighbor and give back to the people and neighborhoods that have supported him throughout the years. That’s why we are presenting the inaugural Eleanor Prize to Joe, in recognition of his heartfelt support for the East End Fund for Children, and for his contribution as a business owner who creates genuine opportunities for his employees, their families, and our community.”
When presenting the award, Mayor Jerry Larsen noted that he sees Citarella as a model employer on the East End and mentioned that Joe Gurrera and Citarella made a commitment to this community and followed through. When Citarella first opened more than twenty years ago, Joe was committed to being open year-round, to being part of the community, and creating opportunities for all those who are part of it as well. He didn’t strive to be just another New York City business moving East or one that would be most concerned with business from part-time residents or vacationers. Instead, he went about building careers, creating a sustainable and encouraging environment, and supporting the next generation of East Enders because of his deep care for the community.
When Joe accepted The Eleanor Prize, he expressed that he was accepting it on behalf of Citarella and on behalf of the employees who are dedicated to our community and are as passionate as he is about giving children the best possible start. It truly takes a village to nurture the next generation!
