Trudy here! I want folks to know about The Klaber Award and its latest recipient, Sheila Pariser. The award is given by the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce. It honors long term dedication to the Town of Huntington, NY and is bestowed upon an individual, age 60 or older, who has spent more than 15 years building a record of distinguished and exceptional voluntary service to the community, including key leadership positions with diverse town-wide organizations. The award is not given every year. It was recently given for the first time since 2015, when I was honored to be selected!
The honor itself memorializes a prominent local architect named John Klaber. Born in 1884, Klaber did not make his home in Huntington until 1945. Despite the late start, he had a profound impact, endeavoring to both improve the quality of life and preserve the existing beauty and charm of his adopted community. In his 26 years as a Town resident, John served as Vice President of the Old Village Green and Vice President of the local chapter of the NAACP. He was a member of the Huntington Historical Society, Historical Sites Preservation Committee, Huntington Lions Club and the American Legion. Mr. Klaber continued to be an active member of the community until his passing in 1971 at the age of 87. At that time he was serving on the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce’s Planning and Zoning, Human Resources, and Town and County Affairs Committees. Throughout, Klaber maintained a fascinating scrap book that was donated to the archives of the Town of Huntington in 2014.
This past August, I was pleased to join the Huntington Chamber of Commerce in celebrating the organization’s latest Klaber Award recipient, Sheila Pariser, who has been a volunteer on Long Island for 40 years. Sheila’s community endeavors began with becoming a Board Member of the Huntington Chapter of the American Red Cross in the late 1970s, where she served for five years. Since 1980 Ms. Pariser has been a member of Soroptimist International of Huntington (now Soroptimist International of Suffolk County), with roles including President, Vice President and Director. The organization has also honored her as a Woman of the Year.
In the 1980’s and 90’s Sheila served the Huntington Freedom Center (now Head Start), and volunteered at Huntington Hospital on Sundays. From 2006-2011 she served on the Board of Managers of the Greens at Half Hollow, then as Secretary of the Homeowners Association in 2011. From 2012-2014, Pariser was Vice President of the Homeowners Association of the Greens in Melville. In 2013, she was appointed Chair of the Special Needs Committee for the Community. From 2016 to present, Ms. Pariser has been member of Condo 3 Board of the Greens in Melville. She has also been appointed Government Liaison for its Government Affairs and Public Relations Committee.
Since 2010 Ms. Pariser has volunteered for the Visiting Nurse Service and Hospice Center of Suffolk. Since 2015, she has been a Board Member of the Friends of Oheka, serving on their artistic scholarship selections committee.
Previous honorees of this award honoring Klaber’s spirit include:
Clayton F. Mugridge – 1973
Bryon Sammis – 1974
John Ficker – 1975
Richard E. Allen – 1976
Honorable Fred Munder – 1977
Jack Lee – 1979 Jane M. Sullivan – 1981
Robert Mitchell – 1984
Ruth F. Concoran – 1986
John Jazombek – 1988
John Staib – 1989
Quentin Sammis – 1991
Anthony Mastroianni – 1992
Walter Spilsbury – 1997
Arthur Goldstein – 1998
Vaughan Spilsbury – 1999
Mary C. Cary – 2000
Libby Hubbard – 2001
Clifford Starkins & Joy Squires – 2002
Duncan Elder – 2003
Kenneth A. Christensen & Eleanor Casey – 2004
Dolores Thompson – 2010
Robert Scheiner – 2014
Trudy Fitzsimmons – 2015
If you know someone who should be considered for this award in the future, please contact the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce at 631-423-6100, info@huntingtonchamber.com.
