Oyster Bay Town Supervisor Joseph Saladino joined with local pizzeria owners to present a check for more than $180,000 to the widow of fallen New York Police Department (NYPD) Detective Jonathan Diller and various police charities, including Beyond the Badge NY, Project Thank a Cop, and the Silver Shield Foundation. As part of a LI Pizza Strong fundraiser in April, more than 250 participating pizzerias across Long Island donated $5 from every pizza pie they sold on April 17.
“The only thing Long Islanders love more than our pizza is our police, and we’re thrilled to be part of that encouraging message,” said Saladino. “Local pizzerias raised more than $180,000 through the sale of over 31,000 pizzas! We thank these small businessowners for their commitment to our communities, especially to the families of fallen police officers.”
LI Pizza Strong was created in the wake of the Farmingdale High School Bus Tragedy, raising $102,200 to support the families of those affected by the accident. Laurino, whose family was personally impacted by the bus crash, teamed up with Alyssa Guidice of Dine-LI and Jim Serpico of Side Hustle Bread to create LI Pizza Strong. Upon the tragic death of Detective Jonathan Diller, the organization wanted to step in once again to help the Diller family, as well as other organizations that help our police force.
For more information on LI Pizza Strong, visit www.LIPizzaStrong.com