President’s Message – September 2022

What an exciting summer we had here in Massapequa. We had not just 1, but 3 of our local teams in the Little League Championships. The Massapequa Coast Little League got so much attention for their run to the Little League World Series and were the Metro-Region 12-Year-Old Champions. The Massapequa International Little League Softball team won the NY State Championship for the 12-year-old Division, and the Massapequa Coast Little League also were the NY State Champions for the 11-year-old Division. It was so exciting to see the community come together at the watch parties, cheering on the teams online, and really enjoying the experience.

Now that summer is coming to an end, we have a great fall line up ahead of us. As I write this, we are putting the finishing touches on our September Lunch meeting honoring Local Police Officers who went above and beyond the call of duty. We do this every September, and it is one of our most highly attended events. Our local first responders are a big reason why the Massapequas are such a great place to raise a family and run a business, so I am honored to recognize them at our luncheon next week.

We also will be honoring our Veterans in November, and our Firefighters in February. These are our three best attended meetings because of the admiration the community has for all of our first responders and veterans. We are also working with TD Bank and adding on a Hometown Hero program to recognize local citizens for doing something to help the community, so please send in any recommendations you may have. We want our community to recommend the nominees for the Chamber of Commerce to choose from.

Many of our local businesses are struggling with the rapid increases in costs, and we appreciate all of those who Shop Local to help support them. Inflation doesn’t appear to be going anywhere anytime soon, and many of our local businesses are just recovering from the COVID lockdowns.

Our Board has put together some programs to help our local businesses, and recently had a seminar on some of the assistance that the government is offering to help. We are working on a marketing program that we are developing with the Town of Oyster Bay Department of Economic Development, Nassau County, and the Nassau Council of Chambers of Commerce. Our goal is to bring the community to the businesses and help our businesses give back to the community. Only together can we succeed and help support programs like our local Little Leagues, Youth Sports, and Not-for-Profits that help make our community so great.

Now is a great time to join the Chamber, and I am looking for anyone who can help us bring many of these programs to the business community. You can email me at robertzabbia@allstate.com, call the Chamber office at 516-541-1443, or go to our website www.massapequachamber.org.

Robert Zabbia, President
Massapequa Chamber of Commerce