Parish Festival Kicks Off May 29

The Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Church in New Hyde Park will hold its first Parish Festival from Thursday, May 29 to Sunday, June 1. The festival should serve as a complement to the larger, village-sponsored New Hyde Park Street Fair held in September, but with rides and games.

“We want to bring some energy and something the parish hasn’t had before,” said Holy Spirit Pastor Frank Grieco. He came up with the idea to hold the festival. Grieco’s past assignments in East Northport and Deer Park have held similar fairs.

“It’s a way of bringing excitement and enthusiasm into the parish and local community,” he said. “The village has been very supportive.”

Grieco has been in New Hyde Park for 10 months. He broached the idea of a festival with parishioners and held festival committee meetings, which boasted 75 attendees or more.

“We’re hoping for huge crowds every night,” he said. “If that happens, everything else will fall into place.”

Local entertainment will highlight the fair. The likes of former New Hyde Park Village Clerk Pat Farrell, Victor Cuneen and Tommy Deegan will perform classic rock and Irish music. Other acts include 15 Below, an alternative rock band, and EJ the DJ, a Ronkonkoma-based disc jockey.

“We want to reinvigorate the community and raise money for the parish at the same time,” said Family Festival Committee Chairman Kevin Fitzgerald.

The parish is hoping to strengthen the “family dynamic” in New Hyde Park by holding a festival geared toward children.

“With the exception of the street fair, there’s really nothing else in the community,” Fitzgerald said. “The street fair is geared more toward adults. This is the first time that it’s totally kid-centric. “We want everyone to have a positive experience.”

Newtown Shows of East Northport will handle carnival rides and games for the festival. Owner Mike Newton expects nine rides and a food court (on South 6th Street), selling traditional fair-style fried oreos, zeppoles, funnel cakes, sausage and peppers.

“There will be rides for the young at heart through the thrill seekers,” said Newton. “We’ll have carnival games for kids and the big games for adults.

Newton said he was “impressed by the location” with the fair taking place in the church parking lot, a few steps away from residential homes and the bustling thoroughfare of Jericho Turnpike.

“We do a similar event for my church in East Northport for the Knights of Columbus,” he said. “We set it up right in the community and I think for New Hyde Park, it will be great.”