Electrical Welfare Club Hosts 40th Annual Muscular Dystrophy Outing at Belmont Park

The Electrical Welfare Club of Local 3, IBEW held their 40th Annual Muscular Dystrophy Outing on Saturday, July 22, 2017. This was the 14th year that the New York Racing Authority graciously made it possible to hold the outing at Belmont Park.
Early in the morning, on a beautiful summer day, dozens of volunteers consisting of Electrical Welfare Club members and their families decorated the large pavilion in front of the racetrack. Signs were hung; tables were set and colorful balloon centerpieces were in place. By 11 am, the first guests from Nassau, Suffolk and New York City Chapters of the Muscular Dystrophy Association began to arrive. They were greeted by the EWC family and given their name tags, club members assisted them to their tables.
Once inside, DJ Russell Targove of ReQuest Global entertained our guests. The room was livened up with music, karaoke and dancing. We also had our very own clown, retired Bro. Nick Marer working the room providing his own entertainment putting smiles on the faces of our guests. We had an arts & crafts table set-up and volunteers helped with hand paintings and temporary tattoos. Thanks go out to Local 3 member Jerry Presta, the Junior Fire Fighters of the East Norwich Fire Company as well as the Elmont Fire Department, who gave the children the exciting opportunity to ride on a fire truck, use the hoses and other fire equipment.
By 11:30 am, the room was filled with over 100 guests. An announcement was made introducing EWC Vice President Marc Deutscher as “Dr. Bingo.” Dr. Bingo is a staple figure at the outing. Dr. Bingo was assisted by Marc’s sons Matthew and Evan and Melanie Portnoy, daughter of Brother Paul Portnoy. Throughout the day many different games of bingo were played and wonderful prizes were given to the winners. Some of the prizes were Blue-Tooth speakers, headphones, igloo coolers and more. We also had once again “Mr. Penny Jar,” retired member, Brother Marty Reicher, working the room giving everyone a chance to guess how many pennies were in a jar. The two closest guessers were awarded prizes.
Members of the Electrical Welfare Club grilled a fabulous “kosher” BBQ lunch and as soon as it was ready, they served up what seemed like an unlimited amount of food and beverages. After some watermelon and later ice cream, Assistant Business Manager Elliot Hecht welcomed everyone to our annual event. He thanked EWC President Steven Sadofsky, the event Chairman Paul Portnoy and all the volunteers who helped to give our guests a memorable afternoon. The fun and games then resumed.
At the end of the event, all our guests left with some goodies from this fun-filled day. The outing was a huge success. The Muscular Dystrophy Association of New York was grateful for the hard work and generosity of the Electrical Welfare Club and all the support of the electrical contractors and supply houses that made this such a wonderful event. Everyone enjoyed the opportunity to give back to such a worthy cause.