General Needs, a leading Long Island-based nonprofit serving homeless veterans with dignity, recently held its second annual fundraising gala. This event, which raised $71,000, will have a significant impact on our veterans, providing them with essential necessities such as underwear, footwear, housewares, bedding, personal care items, and other necessary goods. More than 200 people attended the event; they also paid tribute to Ralph Esposito, director of Nassau County’s Veterans’ Service Agency, and Arnold T. Quaranta, Jr. of the Ronkonkoma Rotary Club for their longstanding support of helping homeless and indigent veterans across Long Island.
The event, which was held on June 20 at Leonard’s Palazzo in Great Neck, also featured a fantastic array of raffle prizes and an evening of good fellowship while raising much-needed funds and awareness of the plight of the men and women who served our nation. Still, many have fallen into tough times now. The festivities began with the presentation of the colors, followed by the Nassau County Police Emerald Society Pipe Band and the singing of our National Anthem by Nassau County Legislator Debra Mule (D-Freeport), who also serves on the county legislature and is a ranking member of the veterans committee.
Esposito, a resident of Elmont, has dedicated his life to serving veterans and his community. His commitment, spanning over three decades, has significantly improved the lives of service members and their families. As Director of Veteran Affairs for the Nassau County Veterans Service Agency since 2014, Ralph has transformed veteran services through innovative leadership and an unwavering dedication to ensuring all veterans are treated equally. His understanding of military service, having served aboard the USS Ticonderoga from 1961 to 1964 during the Vietnam era, has informed his compassionate and practical approach to veteran support.
“Through his collaborative leadership style and dedication to veteran equality, Ralph Esposito continues to make an indelible impact on the lives of Nassau County veterans and their families,” stated Susan Sherman, who, along with her husband Lonnie, founded General Needs in 2008. “General Needs is proud to recognize Ralph for his relentless advocacy, genuine compassion, and lifelong dedication to service.”
For over 40 years, Arnold “Arnie” T. Quaranta Jr. has quietly gone about the business of making life better for everyone around him. Since settling in Ronkonkoma in 1986 with his wife, Arnie has become deeply embedded in the fabric of the community. A Eucharistic Minister at St. Joseph’s Parish, a member of the St. Regis Knights of Columbus, a CYO soccer coach, and a Boy Scout leader, Arnie joined the Ronkonkoma Rotary Club in 2000 and eventually governed all of Rotary District 7260. His humanitarian résumé includes helping local veterans on Long Island, administering polio vaccinations in India, providing clean water in Haiti, bringing solar-powered hope to forgotten villages, and reviving a vocational center in the Dominican Republic. He is a past recipient of Rotary’s top honor: the “Service Above Self Award.”
“Arnie’s legacy is one of deep purpose, real humility, and wildly contagious generosity,” said Lonnie Sherman. “General Needs is proud to honor him, not just for what he’s done, but for the way he does it: with grit, grace, and no-nonsense.”
General Needs is also grateful to its generous sponsors that supported this year’s gala including corporate sponsors: Flushing and Ronkonkoma Rotary Clubs, M&T Bank, Nassau County Veterans Service Agency, National Grid, P.C. Richard & Son, PSEG Long Island, Rothco, Rotary Runway 5K, Suffolk County, TD Bank, and The Townwide Fund of Huntington, Inc.