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The force behind the LI Pizza Strong fundraisers is switching gears, at least for this effort.
Alyssa Guidice, who’s also the beloved administrator of the industry-insider Facebook group Dine-LI, has just announced the launch of LI Wings it Forward for firefighters.
The idea is simple: On Monday, April 7, participating Long Island bars and restaurants will be donating 20 percent of their wing sales from that day as a big, virtual hug and “thank you” to the 84 fire and EMS agencies from Nassau and Suffolk counties that responded to the Pine Barrens wildfires earlier this month, Guidice told Greater Long Island.
The money will then be distributed as donations to all the local departments involved in the massive effort.
“It’s a thank you for keeping us safe, and they did a great job” Guidice said of the volunteers, who worked in concert to prevent tragedy from striking Long Island as the wildfires began to spread on March 8, from East Moriches to Westhampton Beach.
“No homes were lost and nothing catastrophic happened,” she added.
The fundraising event will include revenues from all bone-in, boneless and cauliflower wings sold on that day, which also happens to be the date of the NCAA men’s basketball championship at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
So many more wings will be sold April 7 than a typical Monday.
Assisting in her efforts are Islip Town Councilman Mike McElwee, who’s also a multi-restaurant owner and founder of the Bay Shore Restaurant Association, and Long Island foodie influencer Joshua Soto of @firefoodsonly.
LI Wings it Forward borrows from the model that Guidice perfected through her LI Pizza Strong, which has raised exactly $388,700 in the wake of several recent local tragedies. LI Pizza Strong started after the fatal Farmingdale High School bus crash in Orange County in 2023, when 140 Long Island pizzerias raised over $100,000 for the crash victims and their families.
With LI Pizza Strong, participating pizzerias set aside a day (or two) to donate pizza sale proceeds.
But LI Wings it Forward will mark the first time Guidice is coordinating multi-restaurant efforts on Long Island for an event that didn’t end sadly and tragically.
“Helping people is close to my heart,” she said, but the thinking here was, “Why do we have to be helping people after something bad?
“Why not help people after they do something good?”
Those restaurants looking to participate in the firefighter fundraising efforts should click here to sign up. As of March 18, nearly three dozens restaurants have joined the effort (see the initial list, below). The names will also be updated on the LI Wings it Forward website between now and April 7.
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Top: Manorville firefighters battling Pine Barrens blazes on Saturday, March 9, in the East Moriches area. (courtesy)
