Auction Raises Over $300,000 in Support of South Nassau's SIBSPlace

Oceanside, NY, July 11, 2012 --(PR.com)-- The 2012 SIBSPlace (Survivorship in Brothers and Sisters) Annual Auction held recently at The Seawane Club in Hewlett Harbor (NY) raised $309,771 in support of the program. An essential community service of South Nassau Communities Hospital, SIBSPlace is celebrating its 12th year of free service to families throughout Nassau County.

Donna and Mark Baron of Hewlett (NY) were the auction’s guests of honor in recognition of their support, commitment and loyalty to the mission and vision of SIBSPlace and South Nassau. Mr. Baron is president & CEO of Parking Systems, which is the largest valet and management parking company in the tri-state area. The Annual Auction committee is spearheaded by a group of concerned community members headed by Mr. Michael Schamroth, vice chairman of South Nassau’s board of directors. The co-chairs of the event were Susan and Joel Schneider.

A record number of winning bids were placed during silent and live auctions for exclusive memorabilia, sports and entertainment packages, and precious jewelry including:

· four field-level tickets to the New York Mets vs. Cincinnati Reds Father’s Day game complemented by the honor of throwing the first pitch of the game, four field passes prior to the game, lunch for four in one of the exclusive clubs at Citifield as well as 20 extra tickets for extended family and friends;

· six guest passes to the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during trading as well as a private tour of the NYSE;

· Leroy Nieman’s Joe Namath-autographed lithograph of the legendary football great walking from the gridiron to the locker room, head down, feeling exhausted, following the New York Jets’ magical 1969 Super Bowl victory.

“On behalf of the children and families who need SIBSPlace as well as the entire South Nassau family, I thank the businesses that helped us with obtaining luxury goods, rare memorabilia and entertainment packages; each person who bid generously throughout the evening, and the auction’s volunteer committee for making the evening an overwhelming success,” said Elizabeth Nardone, vice president of development at South Nassau.

The goal of SIBSPlace is to help children understand and cope with feelings they are experiencing due to a sibling or parent suffering with cancer or other type of devastating illness. The only program of its kind in the United States, it is available to all children ages 5-17. SIBSPlace provides a comprehensive program of support and guided recreation in which personal needs, unexpressed feelings and confusing experiences can be addressed by the well siblings. A typical visit includes homework support, dinner, therapeutic art and verbal activities, psycho-educational group interaction, mentoring and tutoring. Other special activities include animal therapy and field trips to local attractions.

South Nassau Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 435 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees. Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services. In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® Perfexion radiosurgery technologies. South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is recognized as a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.