The Greater Westbury Council for the Arts recently elected their Executive Officers. Rocco Lanzilotta will serve as president, Dana Boylan as first president; Alex Nunez as second vice president; and Thomas Sobczak was elected third vice president. Maureen Baranov and Chrissy Lorusso Shelley were elected co-recording secretaries and Elizabeth Parisi and Judy Gerrard were elected co-corresponding secretaries. Michael Kennedy was elected treasurer.
Lanzilotta says he has always loved art and spent over 30 years doing advertising and marketing for Columbia Records before becoming a team leader for Liberty Travel. He’s been involved with the WAC since it began over a year ago.
“One thing we noticed right away was the treasure of talent in Westbury. There’s so much talent from all disciplines and the support has been overwhelming in how many people want to get involved to make sure Westbury becomes a focal point,” says Lanzilotta.
Nunez comes from a background in advertising design and was instrumental in starting a craft fair at St. Brigid’s/Our Lady of Hope School. He’s also a Cub Scout leader and member of the Westbury Village Latino Advisory Council, which helps bring a Hispanic Heritage Month celebration to Village Piazza in the summer.
He says getting involved in the WAC made sense given his professional background, as well as his prior involvement in so many local activities.
“I wanted to be involved in supporting my community, which goes back to my involvement in my kids’ school and the Cub Scouts,” said Nunez. “It started as an opportunity for networking and then the more I heard, the more I thought this would be beneficial, so I thought ‘let’s make it possible.’”
Over the past year, the WAC has already orchestrated several successful events including a short film concert, the street mosaic, several outdoor concerts and most recently, an art show during Hicks Nurseries’ Flower Show. In the weeks ahead, the WAC board will start forming committees and planning future events. Lanzilotta notes that Westbury’s already seen a huge cultural change with the opening of The Space, and that he’s hoping to see the local art community continue to thrive and grow.
“We are well on the way,” Lanzilotta says. “Everyone wants to come support (the arts) whether it’s visual, or music, or performance, and we’re hoping to make Westbury a true destination for culture and the arts.”
Find out more about the WAC and its upcoming events on its Facebook page, Greater Westbury Council for the Arts.
By Betsy Abraham
babraham@antonnews.com
