Vice President Ronald McDonald House
Theresa Brucculeri, Vice President of the Board of Directors at the Ronald McDonald House of Long Island started volunteer work for the charity, located in New Hyde Park, three years before it even opened.
The life-long Queens resident explains, “Back in 1983, some of my Astoria friends told me that McDonald’s was providing accommodations for the parents of seriously ill children, so they could be near their kids during treatment. I was so impressed, that I organized a fund-raiser for Ronald McDonald House.” Brucculeri continues, “We’ve had the fundraiser on the second Sunday of December for the last 24 years.”
According to the charity, the holiday gala, dubbed “Friends and Family” has raised more than $800,000 for the benefit of the House. Brucculeri, a mother of two and grandmother of three, says, “I’ve always loved children, and I’ll do whatever I can to help kids and their families at a terrible time in their lives.”
Toward the end of last month, Brucculeri was honored by Queens Borough President Helen Marshall at a Borough Hall ceremony celebrating Women’s History Month. She was one of 15 women who received awards in recognition for their service to the community.
The Ronald McDonald House of Long Island provides families with a “home away from home” during their child’s treatment at local hospitals. Located on the campus of Schneider Children’s Hospital in New Hyde Park, the House has served more than 10,000 families since 1986, with more than half coming from Queens, Nassau and Suffolk Counties.
“We support families from all over the world through the ‘Gift of Life’ program,” Brucculeri says, adding “we also work with the ‘Greek Children’s Fund’ for families from Greece.”
Brucculeri has been on the Board of Directors for nine years, and served as President for two years, before stepping down in 2006 to be Vice President of the Board. “Tell them to call either Susan Leisen or me at 718-343-5683, extension 132” she says. “Any time you can do something to brighten the life of a desperately ill child, you really ought to do it.”
