When the Eastern Long Island Hospital Auxiliary broke records with its 2022 donation to Greenport’s Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital, its president, Helene Fall, immediately set the challenge to shatter that record as well.
“This is now the challenge, this is the new benchmark,” Ms. Fall told The Suffolk Times last year. “Now we have to say, OK, we’re there, we have to go beyond that in 2023.”
The organization of roughly 100 volunteer members who fundraise for the hospital rose to the challenge and surpassed themselves again by raising $572,000 in 2023 — exceeding their previous record by $17,000. The 2023 donation boosts the Auxiliary’s total contribution to more than $2,457,000 over the last five years, according to a press release from the hospital.
“The ELIH Auxiliary is thrilled to continue to support Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital,” Ms. Fall said. “Our volunteers love giving back to the hospital, which is such an important part of the North Fork community.”
Since its inception in 1905, the organization has raised over $20 million, according to the press release. The Auxiliary is known around Greenport for the pink jackets worn by its female volunteers, who are often referred to as Pink Ladies. Male volunteers sport blue jackets.
The ELIH Auxiliary raises funds through events held throughout the year to support the hospital, such as the Dream Green Extravaganza, a Car/Cash Giveaway, Ladies Day on the Links golf outing, fashion shows and an annual Italian Night Dinner.
Auxiliary volunteers also staff the hospital’s Opportunity Shop, a popular thrift store in Greenport Village, and the hospital’s gift shop, which reopened in 2023 after closing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Donations from the Auxiliary have gone toward new equipment for the hospital, such as a new ventilator, and upgraded medical/surgical beds as well as replacement of furniture in the staff and doctors’ lounges. Their donations have also covered operational costs that directly impact the programs and services SBELIH offers patients.
Paul Connor, the hospital’s chief administrative officer, said he is “grateful and proud that the ELIH Auxiliary continues to support Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital.
“All the good they do is all for the hospital and our community,” he said.