Unity Bands, an all-volunteer, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supporting healthcare heroes, hosted a charity event entitled Benefit on the Beach in Amagansett on Saturday, June 22. Unity Bands proudly supports low-income healthcare heroes and provides credible public health information to at-risk communities in an effort to encourage informed decision-making. The organization hosts a monthly speaker series with healthcare professionals featuring topics the community is interested in including self-care literacy among the healthcare workforce during the pandemic. “These are people with families of four making roughly $29,000 a year. They struggle to pay their bills and have a quality of life,” said President and Founder, John Schirrippa, who is also an East Hampton native.
Since inception, Unity Bands donated over $16,000 in comfort care items and medical equipment. They also support programs such as Feeding the Frontlines and healthcare worker resiliency efforts. Unity Bands is based out of Annapolis, Maryland and supports communities in Maryland and New York. “We are thrilled with the support we have gotten. We currently have volunteers in nine different states” Schirrippa said.
It was a beautiful day for the benefit, which took place at a private residence overlooking the ocean. Local musician, Nora Conlon, provided an inspirational soundtrack for the event. Raffle prizes were graciously donated by local businesses including Beach Hut on Main, Springs Tavern, Springs Pizza, Sausages and Pastabilities, Bradford Portraits, Special Effects Salon, Fierro’s Pizza, Domaine Franey, One Stop Market, Silver Spoon Specialties, Luigi’s Italian Specialties, and Regal Cinema.
Through tickets sales and donations, Unity Bands raised $9,000, putting them in a position to execute additional programs including a Healthcare Appreciation Event to feed those on the front lines and provide comfortable footwear to healthcare workers.
Volunteers for the Benefit were provided by Andrew Rodriguez and the East Hampton High School Interact club who contributed to the events success.
“My wife and I were very pleased to host this worthy event for Unity Bands,” Vincent Vigorita M.D.
You can learn more about Unity Bands via their website: unitybands.org
