Giving Back to the Two Forks with Dan’s Taste of Summer

Dan’s Taste of Summer is all about celebrating the best of the East End, and among the best aspects of life on the North and South Forks are the myriad charitable groups that dedicate themselves to improving life for countless local residents. And once again, Dan’s Taste of Summer events will help support a number of these nonprofits—AFTEE (All for the East End), The Retreat, The Montauk Playhouse, the Long Island Farm Bureau and HRH Care, all of which will be profiled in the coming weeks.

Our longest-running charity partner, AFTEE, will once again be a beneficiary of both Dan’s GrillHampton on July 22 and Dan’s Taste of Two Forks on July 23. A portion of proceeds from both events will go to support this 501(c)(3) charitable organization that aids the efforts of other not-for-profit organizations (NPOs) in the five East End towns.

AFTEE unites and supports NPOs of Riverhead, Southampton, Southold, Shelter Island and East Hampton, raising awareness of their role on the East End. It was created by Myron Levine in 2012 with the vision of showcasing and supporting the charity, culture and service that NPOs provide, inspiring fellowship among those organizations around a common purpose. Through an annual grant process overseen by the Long Island Community Foundation with input from the AFTEE Advisory Committee, which includes representation from each of the five East End towns, proposals are reviewed and approved to support projects and programs in the fields of health and welfare, the environment, arts and culture, education, youth development and animal welfare. In 2015, grants were awarded to the following for a range of projects:

East Hampton: Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons (for a program that provides a safe haven for pets whose owners are in a period of crisis or difficulty); Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center (to integrate science, technology, engineering, and math—STEM—into a summer program for children between the ages of 3 and 5); Food Pantry Farm (to hire interns to assist with childrens’ programming and field visits to the farm); Inspirational Triathlon Racing International (for a series of hands-on family nutrition workshops) and The Retreat (to provide career guidance and financial education to survivors of domestic violence).

Riverhead: East End Arts & Humanities Council (for the creation of promotional materials to engage the Spanish-speaking Riverside community in the JumpstART program); East End Disability Associates (for acting classes for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities); Hallockville Museum Farm (to provide summer camp scholarships to children from families in Riverhead’s Latino community); Open Arms Care Center (to replenish the emergency food pantry stock); and the Peconic Community Council (to provide overnight supervision at a homeless shelter).

Shelter Island: The Shelter Island Historical Society (to expand an Oral History program for students) and Sylvester Manor Educational Farm (for costs associated with designing and installing interpretative and informational signs throughout the farm).

Southampton: Children’s Museum of the East End (to host a series of family-centered art programs at four East End community organizations); East End Hospice (to add a music therapy component to a one-week bereavement summer program for children and teens); Lucia’s Angels (to provide non-medical supportive services for women diagnosed with late stage women’s cancers); Sag Harbor Community Food Pantry (to purchase fresh fruit and vegetables to supplement the pantry’s food stock); and the Shinnecock Nation Cultural Center & Museum (to include community members in the restoration of Wikun Village and promote cultural awareness and stewardship).

Southold: Community Action Southold Town, Inc. (for the purchase of new books and toys for the Parent-Child Home program year); Group for the East End (to organize three East End coastal cleanup projects); and the Family Service League (to continue to provide mental health screenings and non-clinical interventions for elementary school children).

For more info and tickets to Dan’s Taste of Summer events, visit DansTaste.com.