HUNTINGTON VILLAGE, NY – The Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce’s annual Summer in the Streets 2025 series began on July 24, 2025 from 5:00PM to 9:00PM with the first of three planned events this summer on Wall Street in Huntington Village. It was great to spend the evening with friends and neighbors in the community, meeting new people as Diane Schaber and I enjoyed the beautiful summer evening together.
A robust crowd of neighbors and visitors of all ages came out to enjoy the refreshing breezy evening at the Huntington Chamber’s free annual event featuring live music, games, touch-a-boat (yes!), sidewalk chalk art, a fashion show, shopping at both pop-up vendors and the local businesses, and marveling at Tony the Long Island Sandman‘s live sand sculpture dolphin taking shape in the middle of the closed Wall Street!
For $20, participants entered a Food Contest where they sampled coconut flavored dishes from nine different restaurants within walking distance and used a QR code to vote for their favorites. The participating restaurants were Harborlights Still House, Bon Bons Chocolatier, The Special Cup, Ella’s, Spotlight at The Paramount, Wok N’ Roll, Ben & Jerry’s, Tony’s Tacos and New York Panini. This article will be updated when the winners are announced.
At 7:15pm, attendees were treated to a fashion show coordinated by Rhonda Taylor-Gooden with 3 local boutiques – Rhonda’s Chez Laa Reine at 1038 New York Ave in Huntington Station, Madison’s Niche at 14 Wall Street, and The Snooki Shop at 42 Gerard Street. Rhonda shared “This is a true collaboration between our small businesses. The clothes are from all three stores, and I styled and accessorized them.” The turning lane transformed into a runway right down the middle of Wall Street where the stunning ladies brought the curated pieces to life.
The Runway Models in order of appearance:
- Stephanie Gotard (Huntington), Director of Huntington Historical Society wearing Madison’s Niche clothing and accessories.
- Emma Kainz (Huntington), Student at Fairfield University and Sales Associate at Madison’s Niche wearing their clothing and accessories.
- Kehila Jean, (Huntington), Nursing Assistant at Northwell Health Huntington Hospital and Chez Laa Reine model wearing Madison’s Niche clothing and Chez Laa Reine accessories.
- Tashari Gilliard (North Babylon), Medical Administrator Assistant for Northwell Health Huntington Hospital and Chez Laa Reine model wearing The Snooki Shop clothing and purse with Chez Laa Reine accessories.
- Ava Campfield (Huntington), Store Manager of The Snooki Shop and Makeup Artist wearing their clothing and accessories.
- Marissa Cozzolino (Huntington), Financial Strategist and Owner of The Social Network of NY wearing Chez Laa Reine clothing and accessories.
- Sally Safo (Bay Shore), Registered Nurse at Good Samaritan Hospital and Chez Laa Reine model wearing their original clothing and accessories.
- Justina Safo (Bay Shore), STEM Teacher to children at NY University, attends Yale University as a Commercial Architecture student and is a Chez Laa Reine model wearing their original clothing and accessories.
- Rhonda Taylor-Gooden (Huntington), Owner of Chez Laa Reine and Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce Board Member and Co-Chair of the Women in Business Committee wearing Chez Laa Reine original clothing and accessories.
Huntington’s own John Cronin, Co-Founder of John‘s Crazy Socks sat in the dunk tank for charity, raising nearly $300 for the Special Olympics! Quite a few of the children had very accurate throwing arms, keeping John very busy in the tank!
Thank you to the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce for organizing this excellent event for our community! Every year it gets bigger and better with a small army of volunteers, generous sponsors and 6 months of planning! I highly encourage all local business from anywhere in the Town of Huntington to become a member of The Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce, a not for profit 501(c)3 organization. Not only do you get discounts for their ticketed events, you get to know the incredible people who are behind the businesses, services and charities in our community. MOST of the Chamber’s events are available to non-members, and many of their events are FREE. All of the Chamber’s events can be found on the Huntington Matters Community Calendar with a quick keyword search. Events can be added to your iCal or Google calendar with one click!
The next Summer in the Streets events are Thursday, August 7, 2025 and Thursday, August 14, 2025 from 5:00pm – 9:00pm. Each event will be different so come down with the whole family!
Photographs by Diane Schaber and June Margolin. Videography and Editing by June Margolin.
