Pizza event raises $6,500 for Miller Place teen hurt in Route 25A accident

A weekend pizza fundraiser drew a large crowd and delivered meaningful support to a Miller Place teen critically injured on his bicycle last week in a crash on Route 25A.

Lavieri’s Pizza on Wheels raised $6,517 during a Sunday pop-up event at Heritage Park in Mount Sinai, with lines stretching and supporters waiting over an hour to contribute to the effort on behalf of 14-year-old Andrew Salgado.

“All I can say is—WOW. What an amazing community,” Lavieri’s owner Joe Lavieri wrote in a Facebook post following the event. “We are beyond grateful.

“Some of you stood in line for over an hour for Andrew, which says so much about the kind of people you are,” he added. “Others stopped by just to offer support, kind words, and even donations without asking for anything in return.”

Lavieri also thanked Heritage Park and several local businesses — including Kat and Hannah Glen, Casa Piazza, DiCarlo Foods and Breakin Bread — for helping to make the fundraiser possible.

“Because of all of you—this incredible community—we were able to raise $6,517 for Andrew and his family,” the post read.

The in-person effort adds to a growing wave of support for Andrew, who remains hospitalized at Stony Brook University Hospital following Tuesday afternoon’s crash.

GoFundMe grows

A GoFundMe launched to help Andrew and his family has now surged past $93,000, drawing more than 1,300 donations as of Monday night.

Salgado, a Miller Place eighth-grade student and varsity soccer player, suffered multiple broken bones and brain damage when, while riding east on the shoulder of Route 25A, his bicycle struck a turning Ford F-550 truck, authorities said.

The crash occurred about 3:20 p.m., as the truck attempted to turn into L Delea & Sons Sod Farms. The driver, a 58-year-old Sound Beach man, remained at the scene and called 911.

_{Top: Heritage Park on Sunday (Facebook) and Andrew Salgado (courtesy of GoFundMe).}